Search results for "pseudogene"

Factors Behind Junk DNA in Bacteria

2012

Although bacterial genomes have been traditionally viewed as being very compact, with relatively low amounts of repetitive and non-coding DNA, this view has dramatically changed in recent years. The increase of available complete bacterial genomes has revealed that many species present abundant repetitive DNA (i.e., insertion sequences, prophages or paralogous genes) and that many of these sequences are not functional but can have evolutionary consequences as concerns the adaptation to specialized host-related ecological niches. Comparative genomics analyses with close relatives that live in non-specialized environments reveal the nature and fate of this bacterial junk DNA. In addition, the…

The Evolutionary Fate of Nonfunctional DNA in the Bacterial Endosymbiont Buchnera aphidicola

2004

Reduction of the genome size in endosymbiotic bacteria is the main feature linked to the adaptation to a host-associated lifestyle. We have analyzed the fate of the nonfunctional DNA in Buchnera aphidicola, the primary endosymbiont of aphids. At least 164 gene losses took place during the recent evolution of three B. aphidicola strains, symbionts of the aphids Acyrthosiphon pisum (BAp), Schizaphis graminum (BSg), and Baizongia pistacia (BBp). A typical pattern starts with the inactivation of a gene, which produces a pseudogene, and is followed by the progressive loss of its DNA. Our results show that during the period from the separation of the Aphidinae and Pemphiginae lineages (86-164 MYA…

The All-Rounder Sodalis: A New Bacteriome-Associated Endosymbiont of the Lygaeoid Bug Henestaris halophilus (Heteroptera: Henestarinae) and a Critica…

2017

International audience; Hemipteran insects are well-known in their ability to establish symbiotic relationships with bacteria. Among them, heteropteran insects present an array of symbiotic systems, ranging from the most common gut crypt symbiosis to the more restricted bacteriome-associated endosymbiosis, which have only been detected in members of the superfamily Lygaeoidea and the family Cimicidae so far. Genomic data of heteropteran endosymbionts are scarce and have merely been analyzed from the Wolbachia endosymbiont in bed bug and a few gut crypt-associated symbionts in pentatomoid bugs. In this study, we present the first detailed genomic analysis of a bacteriome-associated endosymbi…

A frame shift mutation in a hot spot region of the nuclear autoantigen La (SS-B).

1996

A hot spot region was identified in the exon 7 of the nuclear autoantigen La (SS-B). Two La cDNAs were identified which contained a frame shift mutation in the hot spot region. One La cDNA was isolated from a cDNA library made from peripheral blood lymphocytes of an autoimmune patient with primary Sjogren's Syndrome, the other La cDNA was isolated from a human liver cDNA library. The patient's La cDNA had a deletion and the liver La cDNA had an insert of an (A)-residue at the same position. Inserts of 4, 16 and 24 more or less homogeneous (A)-residues were found at the same site in the three La retropseudogenes. The hot spot region located in one of the major autoepitope regions of the La a…

The nuclear autoantigen La/SS-B: Mapping and sequencing of the gene and the three retropseudogenes

1997

One target of autoantibodies in sera of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus or primary Sjogren's syndrome is the nuclear autoantigen La/SS-B. Lambda clones and cosmids were isolated, which contained the sequences of the La gene and the three La pseudogenes. They were used for preparation of a physical map. Finally, the La gene and pseudogenes were sequenced. The pseudogenes were characterized as retropseudogenes. Their evolutionary ages were estimated to be approx. 4, 4.5 and 5 million years. Inserts of 4, 16 and 24 nucleotides, which were mostly A-residues, were found in exon 7 of the respective pseudogene. The oldest pseudogene contained the longest insert, the youngest pseudogene …

The never-ending story of geologically ancient DNA: was the model plantArabidopsisthe source of Miocene Dominican amber?

2013

Studies characterizing geologically ancient DNA in plants are rare, and all have reportedly obtained plastid DNA sequences from Miocene fossils in a remarkable state of preservation. Recently, a group made the extraordinary claim of having amplified a geologically ancient Miocene plastid DNA fragment (the rbcL gene) from Dominican amber nuggets, and the organismal source of this DNA was identified as Hymenaea protera (Fabaceae), the plant that produced the fossilized Dominican amber. Assuming that the Miocene sequence is error-free, reanalysis of the sequence indicates it is probably a technical artifact or an rbcL pseudogene. Furthermore, BLAST similarity searches and phylogenetic analyses…

The gene encoding the transcriptional repressor BERF-1 maps to a region of conserved synteny on mouse chromosome 16 and human chromosome 3 and a rela…

1999

We have recently identified and characterized a Kruppel-like zinc finger protein (BERF-1), that functions as a repressor of β enolase gene transcription. By interspecific backcross analysis the gene encoding BERF-1 was localized 4.7 cM proximal to the <i>Mtv6</i> locus on mouse chromosome 16, and an isolated pseudogene was localized to mouse chromosome 8, about 5.3 cM distal to the D8Mit4 marker. Nucleotide sequence identity and chomosome location indicate that the gene encoding BERF-1 is the mouse homologue (<i>Zfp148</i>) of ZNF148 localized to human chromosome 3q21, a common translocation site in acute myeloid leukemia patients.

The human fascin gene promoter is highly active in mature dendritic cells due to a stage-specific enhancer.

2003

Abstract Dendritic cells (DC), regarded as the most efficient APCs of the immune system, are capable of activating naive T cells. Thus, DC are primary targets in immunotherapy. However, little is known about gene regulation in DC, and for efficient transcriptional targeting of human DC, a suitable promoter is still missing. Recently, we successfully used the promoter of the murine actin-bundling protein fascin to transcriptionally target DC by DNA vaccination in mice. In this study, we report on isolation of the human fascin promoter and characterization of its regulatory elements. The actively expressed gene was distinguished from a conserved inactive genomic locus and a continuous region …

Why Nuclear Ribosomal DNA Spacers (ITS) Tell Different Stories in Quercus

2001

The molecular systematics of Quercus (Fagaceae) was recently assessed by two teams using independently generated ITS sequences. Although the results disagreed in several remarkable features, the phylogenetic trees for either hypothesis were highly supported by bootstrap resampling. We have reanalyzed the ITS sequences used by both teams (eight taxa) to reveal the underlying patterns of this divergence. Within species, conspicuous length and G + C% divergence were evident in most sequence comparisons. In addition, a high rate of substitutions and deletions involving highly conserved motifs in both ITS spacers were present in a set of sequences. This was coupled with a less thermodynamic stab…

2006

During the past years, we and others discovered a series of human ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, now referred to as ABC A-subfamily transporters. Recently, a novel testis-specific ABC A transporter, Abca17, has been cloned in rodent. In this study, we report the identification and characterization of the human ortholog of rodent Abca17. The novel human ABC A-transporter gene on chromosome 16p13.3 is ubiquitously expressed with highest expression in glandular tissues and the heart. The new ABC transporter gene exhibits striking nucleotide sequence homology with the recently cloned mouse (58%) and rat Abca17 (51%), respectively, and is located in the syntenic region of mouse Abca17 …