Expressional profiling study revealed unique expressional patterns and dramatic expressional divergence of maize α-zein super gene family
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Functional divergence
Pair-rule gene
Functional divergence
Pair-rule gene
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Phylogenetic analysis reveals dynamic evolution of the poly(A)-binding protein gene family in plants
The poly(A)-binding protein (PABP) binds the poly(A) tail of eukaryotic mRNAs and functions to maintain the integrity of the mRNA while promoting protein synthesis through its interaction with eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) 4G and eIF4B. PABP is encoded by a single gene in yeast and marine algae but during plant evolution the PABP gene family expanded substantially, underwent sequence divergence into three subclasses, and acquired tissue-specificity in gene family member expression. Although such changes suggest functional specialization, the size of the family and its sequence divergence have complicated an understanding of which gene family members may be foundational and which may represent more recent expansions of the family to meet the specific needs of speciation. Here, we examine the evolution of the plant PABP gene family to provide insight into these aspects of the family that may yield clues into the function of individual family members. The PABP gene family had expanded to two members by the appearance of fresh water algae and four members in non-vascular plants. In lycophytes, the first sequence divergence yielding a specific class member occurs. The earliest members of the gene family share greatest similarity to those modern members whose expression is confined to reproductive tissues, suggesting that supporting reproductive-associated gene expression is the most conserved function of this family. A family member sharing similarity to modern vegetative-associated members first appears in gymnosperms. Further elaboration of the reproductive-associated and vegetative-associated members occurred during the evolution of flowering plants. Expansion of the plant PABP gene family began prior to the colonization of land. By the evolution of lycophytes, the first class member whose expression is confined to reproductive tissues in higher plants had appeared. A second class member whose expression is vegetative-associated appeared in gymnosperms and all three modern classes had fully evolved by the appearance of the first known basal angiosperm. The size of each PABP class underwent further expansion during subsequent evolution, especially in the Brassicaceae, suggesting that the family is undergoing dynamic evolution.
Functional divergence
Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)
EIF4EBP1
Protein family
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The LATERAL ORGAN BOUNDARIES DOMAIN (LBD) gene family has been well-studied in Arabidopsis and play crucial roles in the diverse growth and development processes including establishment and maintenance of boundary of developmental lateral organs. In this study we identified and characterized 38 LBD genes in Lotus japonicus (LjLBD) and 57 LBD genes in Medicago truncatula (MtLBD), both of which are model legume plants that have some specific development features absent in Arabidopsis. The phylogenetic relationships, their locations in the genome, genes structure and conserved motifs were examined. The results revealed that all LjLBD and MtLBD genes could be distinctly divided into two classes: Class I and II. The evolutionary analysis showed that Type I functional divergence with some significantly site-specific shifts may be the main force for the divergence between Class I and Class II. In addition, the expression patterns of LjLBD genes uncovered the diverse functions in plant development. Interestingly, we found that two LjLBD proteins that were highly expressed during compound leaf and pulvinus development, can interact via yeast two-hybrid assays. Taken together, our findings provide an evolutionary and genetic foundation in further understanding the molecular basis of LBD gene family in general, specifically in L. japonicus and M. truncatula.
Medicago truncatula
Lotus japonicus
Functional divergence
Medicago
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4-Coumarate:CoA ligase (4CL; EC 6.2.1.12) has a pivotal role in the biosynthesis of plant secondary compounds at the divergence point from general phenylpropanoid metabolism to several major branch pathways. In Arabidopsis thaliana , we have identified a previously undetected, fourth and final member of the At4CL gene family. The encoded enzyme, At 4CL4, exhibits the rare property of efficiently activating sinapate, besides the usual 4CL substrates (4-coumarate, caffeate, and ferulate), indicating a distinct metabolic function. Phylogenetic analysis suggests an early evolutionary and functional divergence of three of the four gene family members, At4CL2-4 , whereas At4CL1 appears to have originated much later by duplication of its structurally and functionally closest relative, At4CL2 . Various characteristics shared by all known plant 4CL genes, as well as by the encoded proteins, define and delimit the At4CL gene family and distinguish it from the closely related family of “ At4CL-like ” genes.
Functional divergence
Phenylpropanoid
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Low molecular weight metabolites are important plant hormones and signaling molecules, and play an important part among the processes of plant development. Their activities may also be affected by the chemical modifications of methylation performed by SABATH. In this study, a total of 24 and 21 SABATH genes in
Functional divergence
Nonsynonymous substitution
Segmental duplication
Negative selection
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WRKY protein domain
Functional divergence
Synteny
Subfunctionalization
Pair-rule gene
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Plant evolution is characterized by frequent genome duplication events. Expansion of habitat resulted in the origin of many novel genes and genome duplication events which in turn resulted in the expansion of many regulatory gene families. The plant-specific FCS-Like Zinc finger (FLZ) gene family is characterized by the presence of a FCS-Like Zinc finger (FLZ) domain which mediates the protein-protein interaction. In this study, we identified that the expansion of FLZ gene family size in different species is correlated with ancestral and lineage-specific whole genome duplication events. The subsequent gene loss found to have a greater role in determining the size of this gene family in many species. However, genomic block duplications played the significant role in the expansion of FLZ gene family in some species. Comparison of Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa FLZ gene family revealed monocot and dicot specific evolutionary trends. The FLZ genes were found to be under high purifying selection. The spatiotemporal expression analyses of Arabidopsis thaliana FLZ gene family revealed that majority of the members are highly expressed in reproductive organs. FLZ genes were also found to be highly expressed during vegetative-to-reproductive phase transition which is correlated with the proposed role of this gene family in sugar signaling. The comparison of sequence, structural and expression features of duplicated genes identified lineage-specific redundancy and divergence. This extensive evolutionary analysis and expression analysis of Arabidopsis thaliana FLZ genes will pave the way for further functional analysis of FLZ genes.
Functional divergence
Lineage (genetic)
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Proline-rich extensin-like receptor kinases (PERKs) are an important class of receptor kinases in plants. Receptor kinases comprise large gene families in many plant species, including the 15 PERK genes in Arabidopsis. At present, there is no comprehensive published study of PERK genes in G. hirsutum. Our study identified 33 PERK genes in G. hirsutum. Phylogenetic analysis of conserved PERK protein sequences from 15 plant species grouped them into four well defined clades. The GhPERK gene family is an evolutionarily advanced gene family that lost its introns over time. Several cis-elements were identified in the promoter regions of the GhPERK genes that are important in regulating growth, development, light responses and the response to several stresses. In addition, we found evidence for gene loss or addition through segmental or whole genome duplication in cotton. Gene duplication and synteny analysis identified 149 orthologous/paralogous gene pairs. Ka/Ks values show that most GhPERK genes experienced strong purifying selection during the rapid evolution of the gene family. GhPERK genes showed high expression levels in leaves and during ovule development. Furthermore, the expression of GhPERK genes can be regulated by abiotic stresses and phytohormone treatments. Additionally, PERK genes could be involved in several molecular, biological and physiological processes that might be the result of functional divergence.
Functional divergence
Synteny
Segmental duplication
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The 14-3-3 protein plays an important role in the cellular signal transduction and primary metabolism of plants.To explore the evolutional pattern of the 14-3-3 gene family will facilitate the understanding of its function in woody plants.In this study,twelve 14-3-3 genes were identified from the Populus trichocarpa genome based on bioinformatics.A phylogenetic study showed that Populus 14-3-3 proteins contain both e and non-e forms.A recent whole genome duplication event contributed to the expansion of Populus 14-3-3 gene family,among which a total of five paralogous gene pairs were formed.The analysis of Ka /Ks showed that the purifying selection is the predominant evolutionary force acting on the five paralogous gene pairs.RT-PCR revealed expression divergence in twelve Populus 14-3-3 genes.In conclusion,the results indicate that there are functional divergences in the Populus 14-3-3 gene family after gene duplication.
Populus trichocarpa
Functional divergence
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The domain of unknown function (DUF) superfamily encodes proteins of unknown functions in plants. Among them, DUF668 family members in plants possess a 29 amino-acid conserved domain, and this family has not been described previously. Here, we report this plant-specific novel DUF668 gene family containing 12 OsDUF668 genes in rice (Oryza sativa) and 91 DUF668s for the other seven plant species. In our study, DUF668 genes were present in both dicot and monocot plants, indicating that DUF668 is a conserved gene family that originated by predating the dicot–monocot divergence. Based on the gene structure and motif composition, the DUF668 family consists of two distinct clades, I and II in the phylogenetic tree. Remarkably, OsDUF668 genes clustered on the chromosomes merely show close phylogenetic relationships, suggesting that gene duplications or collinearity seldom happened. Cis-elements prediction display that over 80% of DUF668s contain phytohormone and light responsiveness factors. Further comprehensive experimental analyses of the OsDUF668 family are implemented in 22 different tissues, five hormone treatments, seven environmental factor stresses, and two pathogen-defense related stresses. The OsDUF668 genes express ubiquitously in analyzed rice tissues, and seven genes show tissue-specific high expression profiles. All OsDUF668s respond to drought, and some of Avr9/Cf-9 rapidly elicited genes resist to salt, wound, and rice blast with rapidly altered expression patterns. These findings imply that OsDUF668 is essential for drought-enduring and plant defense. Together, our results bring the important role of the DUF668 gene family in rice development and fitness to the fore.
Functional divergence
Divergence (linguistics)
Expression (computer science)
Characterization
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