Evolutionary history and functional characterization of Lj-TICAM-a and Lj-TICAM-b formed via lineage-specific tandem duplication in lamprey (Lampetra japonica)

Abstract The xenosensing constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) is widely considered to have arisen in early mammals via duplication of the pregnane X receptor (PXR). We report that CAR emerged together with PXR and the vitamin D receptor from an ancestral NR1I gene already in early vertebrates, as a result of whole-genome duplications. CAR genes were subsequently lost from the fish lineage, but they are conserved in all taxa of land vertebrates. This contrasts with PXR, which is found in most fish species, whereas it is lost from Sauropsida (reptiles and birds) and plays a role unrelated to xenosensing in Xenopus. This role is fulfilled in Xenopus by CAR, which exhibits low basal activity and pronounced responsiveness to activators such as drugs and steroids, altogether resembling mammalian PXR. The constitutive activity typical for mammalian CAR emerged first in Sauropsida, and it is thus common to all fully terrestrial land vertebrates (Amniota). The constitutive activity can be achieved by humanizing just two amino acids of the Xenopus CAR. Taken together, our results provide a comprehensive reconstruction of the evolutionary history of the NR1I subfamily of nuclear receptors. They identify CAR as the more conserved and remarkably plastic NR1I xenosensor in land vertebrates. Nonmammalian CAR should help to dissect the specific functions of PXR and CAR in the metabolism of xeno- and endobiotics in humans. Xenopus CAR is a first reported amphibian xenosensor, which opens the way to toxicogenomic and bioaugmentation studies in this critically endangered taxon of land vertebrates.

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Data on functional characterization of LECT2 from Lampetra japonica

Data in Brief ◽

10.1016/j.dib.2018.02.036 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 17 ◽

pp. 1271-1275

Author(s):

Zhiliang Wang ◽

Jiali Lu ◽

Qingwei Li ◽

Yue Pang

Keyword(s):

Functional Characterization ◽

Lampetra Japonica

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Evolutionary History and Functional Characterization of Three Large Genes Involved in Sporulation in Bacillus cereus Group Bacteria

Journal of Bacteriology ◽

10.1128/jb.05309-11 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 193 (19) ◽

pp. 5420-5430 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

L. Reiter ◽

N. J. Tourasse ◽

A. Fouet ◽

R. Loll ◽

S. Davison ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Bacillus Cereus ◽

Evolutionary History ◽

Functional Characterization ◽

Bacillus Cereus Group ◽

Large Genes

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Functional characterization of human brown adipose tissue metabolism

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bcj20190464 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 477 (7) ◽

pp. 1261-1286 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Marie Anne Richard ◽

Hannah Pallubinsky ◽

Denis P. Blondin

Keyword(s):

Adipose Tissue ◽

Brown Adipose Tissue ◽

Functional Characterization ◽

Human Infants ◽

Positron Emission ◽

Brown Adipose ◽

Treatment Of Obesity ◽

And Function

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has long been described according to its histological features as a multilocular, lipid-containing tissue, light brown in color, that is also responsive to the cold and found especially in hibernating mammals and human infants. Its presence in both hibernators and human infants, combined with its function as a heat-generating organ, raised many questions about its role in humans. Early characterizations of the tissue in humans focused on its progressive atrophy with age and its apparent importance for cold-exposed workers. However, the use of positron emission tomography (PET) with the glucose tracer [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) made it possible to begin characterizing the possible function of BAT in adult humans, and whether it could play a role in the prevention or treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). This review focuses on the in vivo functional characterization of human BAT, the methodological approaches applied to examine these features and addresses critical gaps that remain in moving the field forward. Specifically, we describe the anatomical and biomolecular features of human BAT, the modalities and applications of non-invasive tools such as PET and magnetic resonance imaging coupled with spectroscopy (MRI/MRS) to study BAT morphology and function in vivo, and finally describe the functional characteristics of human BAT that have only been possible through the development and application of such tools.

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