Search results for "immunoevolution"

Focusing on Ciona intestinalis (Tunicata) innate immune system. Evolutionary implications

2009

Phylogenetic analyses based on molecular data provide compelling evidence that ascidians are of critical importance for studying chordate immune system evolution. The Ciona intestinalis draft genome sequence allows searches for phylogenetic relationships, gene cloning and expression of immunorelevant molecules. Acidians lack of the pivotal components of the vertebrate recombinatory adaptive immunity, i.e., MHC, TCRs and dimeric immunoglobulins. However, bioinformatic sequence analyses recognized genic elements indicating the essential features of the Ig superfamily and ancestor proto-MHC genes, suggesting a primitive pre-duplication and pre-recombination status. C. intestinalis genes for in…