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Structure of the human cytochrome c oxidase subunit Vb gene and chromosomal mapping of the coding gene and of seven pseudogenes.

Subunit Vb of mammalian cytochrome c oxidase (COX; EC 1.9.3.1) is encoded by a nuclear gene and assembled with the other 12 COX subunits encoded in both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA. We have cloned the gene for human COX subunit Vb (COX5B) and determined the exon-intron structure by both hybridization analysis and DNA sequencing. The gene contains five exons and four introns; the four coding exons span a region of approximately 2.4 kb. The 5' end of the COX5B gene is GC-rich and contains many HpaII sites. Genomic Southern blot analysis of human DNA probed with the human COX Vb cDNA identified eight restriction fragments containing COX Vb-related sequences that were mapped to different chromosomes with panels of human x Chinese hamster somatic cell hybrids. Because only one of these fragments hybridized with a 210-bp probe from intron 4, we conclude that there is a single expressed gene for COX subunit Vb in the human genome. We have mapped this gene to chromosome 2, region cen-q13.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A frameshift in the coding region of a novel tomato class I basic chitinase gene makes it a pseudogene with a functional wound-responsive promoter.

A putative class I basic chitinase gene, assigned as psiBCH, was cloned from a tomato breeding line NC 24E. The gene contains a coding region with two introns. The predicted psiBCH open reading frame (ORF) is 971 bp and exhibits 81-88% identity at the nucleotide level with known class I basic chitinase genes from the Solanaceae family. However, the presence of a stop codon caused by a frameshift in the ORF of psiBCH makes it unusual among the other class I plant basic chitinases. This stop codon might be involved in the lower accumulation of fully spliced psiBCH RNA caused by nonsense-mediated decay (NMD), which is an RNA surveillance system universally found in eukaryotes. Sequence analysis of the 1883-bp 5'-flanking region of the psiBCH gene revealed the presence of potential wound-response promoter elements. To study the transcriptional regulation of the psiBCH gene, its 5'-flanking region containing the putative promoter was fused to the gus reporter gene and introduced into the tobacco genome via Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Transgenic plants were functionally assayed for beta-glucuronidase activity. The psiBCH promoter drives the reporter gene expression in response to wounding stimuli. psiBCH promoter-GUS analysis indicates that wound-response of the tobacco transgene was rapid and localized in the wounded area following mechanical wounding. Therefore, our results suggest that the psiBCH promoter can provide targeted expression of genes, such as protease inhibitors in response to pest attack.

Agrobacterium tumefaciens↗

Discovery of a large number of previously unrecognized mitochondrial pseudogenes in fish genomes.

Nuclear inserted copies of mitochondrial origin (numts) vary widely among eukaryotes, with human and plant genomes harboring the largest repertoires. Numts were previously thought to be absent from fish species, but the recent release of three fish nuclear genome sequences provides the resource to obtain a more comprehensive insight into the extent of mtDNA transfer in fishes. From the sequence analyses of the genomes of Fugu rubripes, Tetraodon nigroviridis, and Danio rerio, we have identified 2, 5, and 10 recent numt integrations, respectively, which integrated into those genomes less than 0.6 million years (Myr) ago. Such results contradict the hypothesis of absence or rarity of numts in fishes, as (i) the ratio of numts to the total size of the nuclear genome in T. nigroviridis was superior to the ratio observed in several higher vertebrate species (e.g., chicken, mouse, and rat), and only surpassed by humans, and (ii) the mtDNA coverage transferred to the nuclear genome of D. rerio is exceeded only by human and mouse, within the whole range of eukaryotic genomes surveyed for numts. Additionally, 335, 336, and 471 old numts (>12.5 Myr) were detected in F. rubripes, T. nigroviridis, and D. rerio, respectively. Surprisingly, old numts are inserted preferentially into known or predicted genes, as inferred for recent numts in human. However, because in fish genomes such integrations are old, they are likely to represent evolutionary successes and they may be considered a potential important evolutionary mechanism for the enhancement of genomic coding regions.

Animals↗

Pseudogenes.

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Human Genome Project↗

Nuclear mitochondrial pseudogenes as molecular outgroups for phylogenetically isolated taxa: a case study in Sphenodon.

'Living fossil' taxa, by definition, have no close relatives, and therefore no outgroup to provide a root to phylogenetic trees. We identify and use a molecular outgroup in the sole extant lineage of sphenodontid reptiles, which separated from other reptiles 230 million years ago. We isolated and sequenced a partial nuclear copy of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. We confirm the copy is indeed not mitochondrial, is older than all extant mitochondrial copies in Sphenodon (tuatara), and is therefore useful as a molecular outgroup. Under phylogenetic analysis, the nuclear copy places the root of the tuatara mitochondrial gene tree between the northern and the southern (Cook Strait) groups of islands of New Zealand that are the last refugia for Sphenodon. This analysis supports a previous mid-point rooted mitochondrial gene tree. The mitochondrial DNA tree conflicts with allozyme analyses which place a Cook Strait population equidistant to all northern and other Cook Strait populations. This population on North Brother Island is the only natural population of extant S. guntheri; thus, we suggest that the current species designations of tuatara require further investigation.

Animals↗

The tree squirrel HP-25 gene is a pseudogene.

The gene for the hibernation-specific protein HP-25 is expressed in the liver in hibernating species of the squirrel family (chipmunk and ground squirrel), but not in a nonhibernating species (tree squirrel). To investigate why the HP-25 gene is not expressed in the tree squirrel, we isolated the tree squirrel HP-25 gene and compared its gene structure and promoter activity with that of the chipmunk. The tree squirrel HP-25 gene is composed of three exons, and the gene structures are conserved between the tree squirrel and chipmunk. However, the tree squirrel HP-25 gene has an insertional mutation of 13 nucleotides in exon 2 that disrupts the ORF. In the chipmunk HP-25 gene, the 80-bp 5' flanking sequence is sufficient for the liver-specific promoter activity, and HNF-4, which binds to the sequence from nucleotides -67 to -51, is involved in its transcriptional regulation. In contrast, the corresponding tree squirrel 5' flanking sequence had almost no promoter activity in HepG2 cells, and HNF-4 did not bind to the corresponding region of the tree squirrel HP-25 gene. Furthermore, a tree squirrel-type G to A mutation at -57 in the chipmunk HP-25 gene promoter context abolished its binding to and transactivation by HNF-4. Thus, the point mutation in the HNF-4-binding site is likely to be involved in the lack of HP-25 gene expression in the tree squirrel.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A gonococcal porA pseudogene: implications for understanding the evolution and pathogenicity of Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Members of the genus Neisseria, including the human pathogens Neisseria meningitidis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae, express at least one member of a family of related porins. N. meningitidis is the only species known to express a second porin, the meningococcal serosubtyping antigen PorA, the most divergent member of this family. Unexpectedly, a porA gene was identified in the gonococcal genome. Both the gonococcal and meningococcal porA loci were adjacent to a homologue of the Escherichia coli greA gene, although the IS1106 element downstream of porA in some meningococci was absent in the gonococcus. Almost identical porA loci were present in four unrelated gonococcal isolates and clinical specimens from patients with gonorrhoea. Lack of PorA expression in the gonococcus resulted from mutations in the promoter region, which prevented transcription, and frameshift mutations in the coding region of the porA gene. Hybridization and amplification experiments, showing the absence of a porA gene in seven other Neisseria species, suggested that porA was acquired by a common ancestor of the gonococcus and meningococcus but inactivated in the gonococcus on speciation. This implies that, while advantageous during colonization of the upper respiratory tract, this protein has no function in, or hinders, colonization of the urogenital tract.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Activation of the gamma E-crystallin pseudogene in the human hereditary Coppock-like cataract.

The locus for the hereditary human Coppock-like cataract (CCL) is closely linked to a particular combination of polymorphic TaqI sites within the human gamma-crystallin gene cluster. Mapping of these sites shows that they define a 15 kb region encompassing the gamma D and psi gamma E gene. The gamma D and the psi gamma E gene were cloned from the CCL chromosome and characterized. The gamma D gene was functionally equivalent to its allele cloned from a wild-type chromosome. The CCL psi gamma E gene contains a cluster of sequence changes within and around its TATA box. Together these cause a ten-fold increase in the activity of the psi gamma E promoter, raising the level of expression of this gene to 30% of that of the gamma D gene. The predicted protein product of the psi gamma E gene is a 6 kD N-terminal gamma-crystallin fragment. Reactivation of the psi gamma E gene and concomitant overexpression of the gamma-crystallin fragment could be the cause of the Coppock-like cataract.

Base Sequence↗