Adaptive evolution of the Retinoid X receptor in vertebrates

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2012

Authors

Siby Philip (Author) Other; Filipe F C Castro (Author) ICBAS; Rute R da Fonseca (Author) Other; Maria A Reis Henriques (Author) Other; Vitor Vasconcelos (Author) FCUP; Miguel M Santos (Author) FCUP; Agostinho Antunes (Author) FCUP

Journal

Title: Genomics

Vol. 99

Pages: 81-89

ISSN: 0888-7543

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 18 Citations

Scopus - 19 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Natural sciences > Biological sciences

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-002-DF3

DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2011.12.001

Abstract (EN): Retinoid X receptors (RXR) are transcription factors with important roles in development, reproduction, homeostasis, and cell differentiation. Different types of vertebrate RXRs (alpha (RXRA), beta (RXRB) and gamma (RXRG)) have arisen from multiple duplication events. The adaptive evolution mechanism that has preserved duplicate RXR paralogs, as well as their role in development and adaptation, is thus far unknown. In this work, we have investigated different aspects of vertebrate RXR evolution. Cotton based tests of positive selection identified that RXR was under significant positive selection immediately after the whole genome duplications in vertebrates. Amino acid based rate shift analysis also revealed significant rate shifts immediately after the whole genome duplications and functional divergence between all the pairs of RXRs. However, the extant RXR genes are highly conserved, particularly the helix involved in dimerization and the DNA-binding domain, but positively selected sites can nevertheless be found in domains for RXR regulation.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 9