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At least 919 records · Page 51Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Molecular evolution and distribution of dengue viruses type 1 and 2 in nature.

During the past several decades, dengue viruses have progressively extended their geographic distribution, and are currently some of the most important mosquito-borne viruses associated with human illness. Determining the genetic variability and transmission patterns of these RNA viruses is crucial in developing effective control strategies for the disease. Primer-extension sequencing of less than 3% of the dengue genome (across the E/NS1 gene junction) provided sufficient information for estimating genetic relationships among 40 dengue type 1 and 40 type 2 virus isolates from diverse geographic areas and hosts. A quantitative comparison of these 240-nucleotide-long sequences revealed previously unrecognized evolutionary relationships between disease outbreaks. Five distinct virus genotypic groups were detected for each of the two serotypes. The evolutionary rates of epidemic dengue viruses of types 1 and 2 were similar, although the transmission pathways of these viruses around the world are different. For dengue type 2, one genotypic group represents an isolated, forest virus cycle which seems to have evolved independently in West Africa. This is the first genetic evidence of the existence of a sylvatic cycle of dengue virus, which is clearly distinct from outbreak viruses.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Ribosomal DNA: molecular evolution and phylogenetic inference.

Ribosomal DNA (rDNA) sequences have been aligned and compared in a number of living organisms, and this approach has provided a wealth of information about phylogenetic relationships. Studies of rDNA sequences have been used to infer phylogenetic history across a very broad spectrum, from studies among the basal lineages of life to relationships among closely related species and populations. The reasons for the systematic versatility of rDNA include the numerous rates of evolution among different regions of rDNA (both among and within genes), the presence of many copies of most rDNA sequences per genome, and the pattern of concerted evolution that occurs among repeated copies. These features facilitate the analysis of rDNA by direct RNA sequencing, DNA sequencing (either by cloning or amplification), and restriction enzyme methodologies. Constraints imposed by secondary structure of rRNA and concerted evolution need to be considered in phylogenetic analyses, but these constraints do not appear to impede seriously the usefulness of rDNA. An analysis of aligned sequences of the four nuclear and two mitochondrial rRNA genes identified regions of these genes that are likely to be useful to address phylogenetic problems over a wide range of levels of divergence. In general, the small subunit nuclear sequences appear to be best for elucidating Precambrian divergences, the large subunit nuclear sequences for Paleozoic and Mesozoic divergences, and the organellar sequences of both subunits for Cenozoic divergences. Primer sequences were designed for use in amplifying the entire nuclear rDNA array in 15 sections by use of the polymerase chain reaction; these "universal" primers complement previously described primers for the mitochondrial rRNA genes. Pairs of primers can be selected in conjunction with the analysis of divergence of the rRNA genes to address systematic problems throughout the hierarchy of life.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Molecular evolution of the Escherichia coli chromosome. II. Clonal segments.

Remarkable sequence similarities in the trp region among Escherichia coli strains of diverse natural origins imply the existence of worldwide clones of very recent origin. This in turn implies a low rate of fixation of new universally favorable alleles, which carry adjacent stretches of chromosome to high frequency. These clonal segments begin as entire chromosomes; recombination shortens them progressively by substituting less closely related homologous DNA. The rate of this recombination, comprising the introduction of a homologous chromosomal fragment to a cell and the replacement of part of the original chromosome, is estimated from observations.

Biological Evolution↗
PubMed1990

Molecular evolution of the Escherichia coli chromosome. III. Clonal frames.

PCR fragments, 1500-bp, from 15 previously sequenced regions in the Escherichia coli chromosome have been compared by restriction analysis in a large set of wild (ECOR) strains. Prior published observations of segmental clonality are confirmed: each of several sequence types is shared by a number of strains. The rate of recombinational replacement and the average size of the replacements are estimated in a set of closely related strains in which a clonal frame is dotted with occasional stretches of DNA belonging to other clones. A clonal hierarchy is described. Some new comparative sequencing data are presented.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Molecular evolution of a repetitive region within the per gene of Drosophila.

The clock gene period (per) controls a number of biological rhythms in Drosophila. In D. melanogaster, per has a repetitive region that encodes a number of alternating threonine-glycine residues. We sequenced and compared this region from several different Drosophila species belonging to various groups within the Drosophila and Sophophora subgenera. This part of per shows a great variability in both DNA sequence and length. Furthermore, analysis of the data suggests that changes in the length of this variable region might be associated with amino acid replacements in the more conserved flanking sequences.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1986

Molecular evolution of pancreatic-type ribonucleases.

Amino acid sequences of 39 mammalian ribonucleases have been used to construct trees by the maximum parsimony procedure. These trees are in fairly good agreement with the biological classification of the species involved. In the branching order of the six investigated eutherian mammalian orders, the edentates diverge first, followed, probably, by the primates. No definite conclusions can be drawn about the order of divergence of the perissodactyls, the rodents, and the group consisting of artiodactyls plus cetaceans. Nucleic acid sequences of part of the messenger RNAs of rat pancreatic and bovine seminal ribonuclease were compared. Both messengers have a second stop codon at position 129, which is in agreement with the addition of four residues at the C-terminus in several other ribonucleases. Turtle pancreatic ribonuclease and human angiogenin differ from each other and from the mammalian ribonucleases at 55%-70% of the amino acid positions; they share a number of structural features. Mammalian nonsecretory ribonucleases are homologous to the pancreatic ribonucleases in sequence regions where the active-site histidine residues are located.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Primary structure of apolipophorin-III from the migratory locust, Locusta migratoria. Potential amphipathic structures and molecular evolution of an insect apolipoprotein.

The amino acid sequence of an insect apolipoprotein, apolipophorin-III from Locusta migratoria, has been deduced from the sequence of its cloned cDNA. The mature hemolymph protein consists of 161 amino acids. Optimized alignments of this protein with apolipophorin-III from the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, disclosed an overall sequence identity of only 29%, even though the two proteins are functionally equivalent. The L. migratoria sequence is composed of 12 repeating peptides that are variable in length. Six amphipathic helical segments of varying length were identified in each protein using a newly described algorithm for detecting such secondary structures. The degree of sequence identity between the two insect apoproteins is considerably less than that observed among orthologous mammalian apolipoproteins. However, calculation of the rates of synonymous and nonsynonymous nucleotide substitutions indicates that the insect genes may be evolving at rates similar to the mammalian apolipoprotein genes. Further comparative analyses of insect and mammalian apolipoproteins should provide insights about the limits of sequence diversity tolerated by their predicted amphipathic helical domains.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Molecular evolution of shark C-type natriuretic peptides.

C-type natriuretic peptides (CNP) of varying length were isolated from the atrium or ventricle of a shark, Lamna ditropis and their amino acid sequences were determined. Although the sequence of Lamna CNP was highly homologous to those of other CNPs sequenced to date, the Lamna CNP-41, the longest CNP identified in this study, has one amino acid replacement from those of Triakis scyllia and Scyliorhinus canicula, and three amino acid replacements from that of Squalus acanthias. The degree of similarity of CNP molecules coincides well with their systematic positions in the cladogram of elasmobranchs; Lamna, Triakis and Scyliorhinus belong to the same order, but Lamna and Squalus belong to different orders. The facts that Lamna and Triakis are in different suborders but Triakis and Scyliorhinus are in the same suborder and have identical CNP-41, also support this evolutionary implication.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2002

Directed molecular evolution of ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase.

ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase catalyzes a rate-limiting reaction in prokaryotic glycogen and plant starch biosynthesis. Despite sharing similar molecular size and catalytic and allosteric regulatory properties, the prokaryotic and higher plant enzymes differ in higher-order protein structure. The bacterial enzyme is encoded by a single gene whose product of ca. 50,000 Da assembles into a homotetrameric structure. Although the higher plant enzyme has a similar molecular size, it is made up of a pair of large subunits and a pair of small subunits, encoded by different genes. To identify the basis for the evolution of AGPase function and quaternary structure, a potato small subunit homotetrameric mutant, TG-15, was subjected to iterations of DNA shuffling and screened for enzyme variants with up-regulated catalytic and/or regulatory properties. A glycogen selection/screening regimen of buoyant density gradient centrifugation and iodine vapor colony staining on glucose-containing media was used to increase the stringency of selection. This approach led to the isolation of a population of AGPase small subunit homotetramer enzymes with enhanced affinity toward ATP and increased sensitivity to activator and/or greater resistance to inhibition than TG-15. Several enzymes displayed a shift in effector preference from 3-phosphoglycerate to fructose-6 phosphate or fructose-1,6-bis-phosphate, effectors used by specific bacterial AGPases. Our results suggest that evolution of AGPase, with regard to quaternary structure, allosteric effector selectivity, and effector sensitivity, can occur through the introduction of a few point mutations alone with low-level recombination hastening the process.

Directed Molecular Evolution↗
PubMed1994

Molecular evolution of the family Camelidae: a mitochondrial DNA study.

We report the first molecular evolutionary analysis of the family Camelidae by analysing the full DNA sequence of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Estimates for the time of divergence of the Old World (Camelini) and New World (Lamini) tribes obtained from sequence data are in agreement with those derived from the fossil record. The DNA sequence data were also used to test current hypotheses concerning the ancestors of the domesticated llama and alpaca. The results show that hybridization has occurred in the ancestry of both domesticated camelids, obscuring the origin of the domestic species.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Molecular and phylogenetic analyses reveal mammalian-like clockwork in the honey bee (Apis mellifera) and shed new light on the molecular evolution of the circadian clock.

The circadian clock of the honey bee is implicated in ecologically relevant complex behaviors. These include time sensing, time-compensated sun-compass navigation, and social behaviors such as coordination of activity, dance language communication, and division of labor. The molecular underpinnings of the bee circadian clock are largely unknown. We show that clock gene structure and expression pattern in the honey bee are more similar to the mouse than to Drosophila. The honey bee genome does not encode an ortholog of Drosophila Timeless (Tim1), has only the mammalian type Cryptochrome (Cry-m), and has a single ortholog for each of the other canonical "clock genes." In foragers that typically have strong circadian rhythms, brain mRNA levels of amCry, but not amTim as in Drosophila, consistently oscillate with strong amplitude and a phase similar to amPeriod (amPer) under both light-dark and constant darkness illumination regimes. In contrast to Drosophila, the honey bee amCYC protein contains a transactivation domain and its brain transcript levels oscillate at virtually an anti-phase to amPer, as it does in the mouse. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that the basal insect lineage had both the mammalian and Drosophila types of Cry and Tim. Our results suggest that during evolution, Drosophila diverged from the ancestral insect clock and specialized in using a set of clock gene orthologs that was lost by both mammals and bees, which in turn converged and specialized in the other set. These findings illustrate a previously unappreciated diversity of insect clockwork and raise critical questions concerning the evolution and functional significance of species-specific variation in molecular clockwork.

Amino Acid Motifs↗
PubMed1992

Molecular evolution of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase for C4 photosynthesis in maize: comparison of its cDNA sequence with a newly isolated cDNA encoding an isozyme involved in the anaplerotic function.

Molecular events associated with the evolution of an enzyme for C4 photosynthesis were investigated. In maize, at least three isozymes of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase [EC 4.1.1.31] are known: the C4-form, the C2-form and the root-form, being named according to their physiological roles and pattern of tissue distribution [Ting, I.P. & Osmond, C.B. (1973) Plant Physiol. 51, 448-453]. A cDNA clone which presumably encodes the C3-form isozyme was newly isolated and analyzed. Comparison of the sequences of the C3-form and C4-form isozymes revealed that (i) the homologies in the nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences were 71 and 77%, respectively, and (ii) the gene for the C4-form isozyme evolved under strong G/C pressure. The genes for these isozymes were found to be located apart on different chromosomes. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using 8 amino acid sequences of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylases from various sources. The topology of the tree indicated that, at least in monocots such as maize and sorghum, the genes for the C4-form and C3-form isozymes diverged from their common ancestral gene earlier than the monocot-dicot divergence (about 2 x 10(8) yr ago), though the divergence of maize (C4 plant) from wheat (C3 plant) is supposed to have occurred much later (6 x 10(7) yr ago).

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2007

Current topics in genome evolution: molecular mechanisms of new gene formation.

Comparative genome analyses reveal that most functional domains of human genes have homologs in widely divergent species. These shared functional domains, however, are differentially shuffled among evolutionary lineages to produce an increasing number of domain architectures. Combined with duplication and adaptive evolution, domain shuffling is responsible for the great phenotypic complexity of higher eukaryotes. Although the domain-shuffling hypothesis is generally accepted, determining the molecular mechanisms that lead to domain shuffling and novel gene creation has been challenging, as sequence features accompanying the formation of known genes have been obscured by accumulated mutations. The growing availability of genome sequences and EST databases allows us to study the characteristics of newly emerged genes. Here we review recent genome-wide DNA and EST analyses, and discuss the three major molecular mechanisms of gene formation: (1) atypical spicing, both within and between genes, followed by adaptation, (2) tandem and interspersed segmental duplications, and (3) retrotransposition events.

Alternative Splicing↗
PubMed1994

Cloning of cDNAs and the molecular evolution of a bovine MHC class II DRA gene.

Two overlapping cDNA clones coding for bovine major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II antigen DRA chain were isolated and characterized. The full-length cDNA clone, MR1, encoded a primary translated product of 253 amino acids, 24 of which were deduced to be a signal peptide and 229 which formed a mature polypeptide. The amino acid sequences deduced from this clone resembled those of class II A molecules from other species in both size and structure, but no potential consensus site of N-linked glycosylation comparable to those in the human, mouse, rat and swine proteins was found in the alpha 2 domain, as well as ovine and equine DRA molecules. Comparison of amino acid sequences encoded by class II A genes among several species and a dendrogram constructed from these data places the DRA gene and the DQA/DYA genes on two distinct branches of a phylogenetic tree, with bovine DRA and ovine DRA being most similar on the DRA branch.

Amino Acid Sequence↗