scholarly journals Killer meiotic drive and dynamic evolution of the wtf gene family

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael T. Eickbush ◽  
Janet M. Young ◽  
Sarah E. Zanders
Keyword(s):  
Gene Family ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Gene Evolution ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Meiotic Drive ◽  
Recombination Mechanism ◽  
Evolutionary Force ◽  
Drive Systems ◽  
Dna Sequence Repeats ◽  
Diploid Organism

AbstractNatural selection works best when the two alleles in a diploid organism are transmitted to offspring at equal frequencies. Despite this, selfish loci known as meiotic drivers that bias their own transmission into gametes are found throughout eukaryotes. Drive is thought to be a powerful evolutionary force, but empirical evolutionary analyses of drive systems are limited by low numbers of identified meiotic drive genes. Here, we analyze the evolution of the wtf gene family of Schizosaccharomyces pombe that contains both killer meiotic drive genes and suppressors of drive. We completed assemblies of all wtf genes for two S. pombe strains, as well as a subset of wtf genes from over 50 strains. We find that wtf copy number can vary greatly between strains, and that amino acid substitutions, expansions and contractions of DNA sequence repeats, and nonallelic gene conversion between family members all contribute to dynamic wtf gene evolution. This work demonstrates the power of meiotic drive to foster rapid evolution and identifies a recombination mechanism through which transposons can indirectly mobilize meiotic drivers.

scholarly journals Nuclear transport genes recurrently duplicate by means of RNA intermediates in Drosophila but not in other insects

BMC Genomics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayda Mirsalehi ◽  
Dragomira N. Markova ◽  
Mohammadmehdi Eslamieh ◽  
Esther Betrán
Keyword(s):  
Gene Evolution ◽  
Nuclear Transport ◽  
Meiotic Drive ◽  
Gene Duplications ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Drive Systems ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Male Specific ◽  
Phylogenomic Study ◽  
Dipteran Species

Abstract Background The nuclear transport machinery is involved in a well-known male meiotic drive system in Drosophila. Fast gene evolution and gene duplications have been major underlying mechanisms in the evolution of meiotic drive systems, and this might include some nuclear transport genes in Drosophila. So, using a comprehensive, detailed phylogenomic study, we examined 51 insect genomes for the duplication of the same nuclear transport genes. Results We find that most of the nuclear transport duplications in Drosophila are of a few classes of nuclear transport genes, RNA mediated and fast evolving. We also retrieve many pseudogenes for the Ran gene. Some of the duplicates are relatively young and likely contributing to the turnover expected for genes under strong but changing selective pressures. These duplications are potentially revealing what features of nuclear transport are under selection. Unlike in flies, we find only a few duplications when we study the Drosophila duplicated nuclear transport genes in dipteran species outside of Drosophila, and none in other insects. Conclusions These findings strengthen the hypothesis that nuclear transport gene duplicates in Drosophila evolve either as drivers or suppressors of meiotic drive systems or as other male-specific adaptations circumscribed to flies and involving a handful of nuclear transport functions.

scholarly journals Evolution, expression and functional analysis of cultivated allotetraploid cotton DIR genes

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengwen Liu ◽  
Xingfen Wang ◽  
Zhengwen Sun ◽  
Yan Zhang ◽  
Chengsheng Meng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Family ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Gene Clusters ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Fiber Development ◽  
Rna Seq ◽  
Evolutionarily Conserved ◽  
Cell Wall Development ◽  
Tandem Duplications

Abstract Background Dirigent (DIR) proteins mediate regioselectivity and stereoselectivity during lignan biosynthesis and are also involved in lignin, gossypol and pterocarpan biosynthesis. This gene family plays a vital role in enhancing stress resistance and in secondary cell-wall development, but systematical understanding is lacking in cotton. Results In this study, 107 GbDIRs and 107 GhDIRs were identified in Gossypium barbadense and Gossypium hirsutum, respectively. Most of these genes have a classical gene structure without intron and encode proteins containing a signal peptide. Phylogenetic analysis showed that cotton DIR genes were classified into four distinct subfamilies (a, b/d, e, and f). Of these groups, DIR-a and DIR-e were evolutionarily conserved, and segmental and tandem duplications contributed equally to their formation. In contrast, DIR-b/d mainly expanded by recent tandem duplications, accompanying with a number of gene clusters. With the rapid evolution, DIR-b/d-III was a Gossypium-specific clade involved in atropselective synthesis of gossypol. RNA-seq data highlighted GhDIRs in response to Verticillium dahliae infection and suggested that DIR gene family could confer Verticillium wilt resistance. We also identified candidate DIR genes related to fiber development in G. barbadense and G. hirsutum and revealed their differential expression. To further determine the involvement of DIR genes in fiber development, we overexpressed a fiber length-related gene GbDIR78 in Arabidopsis and validated its function in trichomes and hypocotyls. Conclusions These findings contribute novel insights towards the evolution of DIR gene family and provide valuable information for further understanding the roles of DIR genes in cotton fiber development as well as in stress responses.

scholarly journals Rapid evolution at the Drosophila telomere: transposable element dynamics at an intrinsically unstable locus

Genetics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 217 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael P McGurk ◽  
Anne-Marie Dion-Côté ◽  
Daniel A Barbash
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Insertion Site ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Interspecific Variation ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Evolutionary Strategy ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Genetic Conflict ◽  
Number Variation

AbstractDrosophila telomeres have been maintained by three families of active transposable elements (TEs), HeT-A, TAHRE, and TART, collectively referred to as HTTs, for tens of millions of years, which contrasts with an unusually high degree of HTT interspecific variation. While the impacts of conflict and domestication are often invoked to explain HTT variation, the telomeres are unstable structures such that neutral mutational processes and evolutionary tradeoffs may also drive HTT evolution. We leveraged population genomic data to analyze nearly 10,000 HTT insertions in 85  Drosophila melanogaster genomes and compared their variation to other more typical TE families. We observe that occasional large-scale copy number expansions of both HTTs and other TE families occur, highlighting that the HTTs are, like their feral cousins, typically repressed but primed to take over given the opportunity. However, large expansions of HTTs are not caused by the runaway activity of any particular HTT subfamilies or even associated with telomere-specific TE activity, as might be expected if HTTs are in strong genetic conflict with their hosts. Rather than conflict, we instead suggest that distinctive aspects of HTT copy number variation and sequence diversity largely reflect telomere instability, with HTT insertions being lost at much higher rates than other TEs elsewhere in the genome. We extend previous observations that telomere deletions occur at a high rate, and surprisingly discover that more than one-third do not appear to have been healed with an HTT insertion. We also report that some HTT families may be preferentially activated by the erosion of whole telomeres, implying the existence of HTT-specific host control mechanisms. We further suggest that the persistent telomere localization of HTTs may reflect a highly successful evolutionary strategy that trades away a stable insertion site in order to have reduced impact on the host genome. We propose that HTT evolution is driven by multiple processes, with niche specialization and telomere instability being previously underappreciated and likely predominant.

scholarly journals Rapid evolution and copy number variation of primate RHOXF2, an X-linked homeobox gene involved in male reproduction and possibly brain function

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ao-lei Niu ◽  
Yin-qiu Wang ◽  
Hui Zhang ◽  
Cheng-hong Liao ◽  
Jin-kai Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Homeobox Gene ◽  
Male Reproduction ◽  
Number Variation

scholarly journals MULTIPLE MEIOTIC DRIVE SYSTEMS IN THE DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER MALE

Genetics ◽  
1972 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-115
Author(s):  
George L Gabor Miklos ◽  
Armon F Yanders ◽  
W J Peacock
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Survival Probability ◽  
Sex Chromosome ◽  
Meiotic Drive ◽  
The Other ◽  
Segregation Distorter ◽  
Two Systems ◽  
Combined Action ◽  
Drive Systems

ABSTRACT The behaviour of two "meiotic drive" systems, Segregation-Distorter (SD) and the sex chromosome sc4sc8 has been examined in the same meiocyte. It has been found that the two systems interact in a specific way. When the distorting effects of SD and sc4sc8 are against each other, there is no detectable interaction. Each system is apparently oblivious to the presence of the other, gametes being produced according to independence expectations. However when the affected chromosomes are at the same meiotic pole an interaction occurs; the survival probability of the gamete containing both distorted chromosomal products is increased, rather than being decreased by the combined action of two systems.

scholarly journals Meiotic drive mechanisms: lessons from Drosophila

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1913) ◽  
pp. 20191430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cécile Courret ◽  
Ching-Ho Chang ◽  
Kevin H.-C. Wei ◽  
Catherine Montchamp-Moreau ◽  
Amanda M. Larracuente
Keyword(s):  
Small Rna ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Meiotic Drive ◽  
Gene Duplications ◽  
Arms Races ◽  
Transport Pathways ◽  
Selfish Genetic Elements ◽  
Genetic Origins ◽  
Drive Systems ◽  
Rna Pathways

Meiotic drivers are selfish genetic elements that bias their transmission into gametes, often to the detriment of the rest of the genome. The resulting intragenomic conflicts triggered by meiotic drive create evolutionary arms races and shape genome evolution. The phenomenon of meiotic drive is widespread across taxa but is particularly prominent in the Drosophila genus. Recent studies in Drosophila have provided insights into the genetic origins of drivers and their molecular mechanisms. Here, we review the current literature on mechanisms of drive with an emphasis on sperm killers in Drosophila species. In these systems, meiotic drivers often evolve from gene duplications and targets are generally linked to heterochromatin. While dense in repetitive elements and difficult to study using traditional genetic and genomic approaches, recent work in Drosophila has made progress on the heterochromatic compartment of the genome. Although we still understand little about precise drive mechanisms, studies of male drive systems are converging on common themes such as heterochromatin regulation, small RNA pathways, and nuclear transport pathways. Meiotic drive systems are therefore promising models for discovering fundamental features of gametogenesis.

scholarly journals Rapid Evolution of a Pollen-Specific Oleosin-Like Gene Family from Arabidopsis thaliana and Closely Related Species

2004 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 659-669 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manja Schein ◽  
Ziheng Yang ◽  
Thomas Mitchell-Olds ◽  
Karl J. Schmid
Keyword(s):  
Arabidopsis Thaliana ◽  
Gene Family ◽  
Related Species ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Closely Related Species

scholarly journals The DUB/USP17 deubiquitinating enzymes: A gene family within a tandemly repeated sequence, is also embedded within the copy number variable Beta-defensin cluster

BMC Genomics ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 250 ◽  
Author(s):  
James F Burrows ◽  
Christopher J Scott ◽  
James A Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Gene Family ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Repeated Sequence ◽  
Deubiquitinating Enzymes
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