Accuracy and power of statistical methods for detecting adaptive evolution in protein coding sequences and for identifying positively selected sites

Protein-protein interfaces from cytochrome c oxidase I evolve faster than nonbinding surfaces, yet negative selection is the driving force

Respiratory complexes are encoded by two genomes (mitochondrial DNA [mtDNA] and nuclear DNA [nDNA]). Although the importance of intergenomic coadaptation is acknowledged, the forces and constraints shaping such coevolution are largely unknown. Previous works using cytochrome c oxidase (COX) as a model enzyme have led to the so-called “optimizing interaction” hypothesis. According to this view, mtDNA-encoded residues close to nDNA-encoded residues evolve faster than the rest of positions, favoring the optimization of protein–protein interfaces. Herein, using evolutionary data in combination with structural information of COX, we show that failing to discern the effects of interaction from other structural and functional effects can lead to deceptive conclusions such as the “optimizing hypothesis.” Once spurious factors have been accounted for, data analysis shows that mtDNA-encoded residues engaged in contacts are, in general, more constrained than their noncontact counterparts. Nevertheless, noncontact residues from the surface of COX I subunit are a remarkable exception, being subjected to an exceptionally high purifying selection that may be related to the maintenance of a suitable heme environment. We also report that mtDNA-encoded residues involved in contacts with other mtDNA-encoded subunits are more constrained than mtDNA-encoded residues interacting with nDNA-encoded polypeptides. This differential behavior cannot be explained on the basis of predicted thermodynamic stability, as interactions between mtDNA-encoded subunits contribute more weakly to the complex stability than those interactions between subunits encoded by different genomes. Therefore, the higher conservation observed among mtDNA-encoded residues involved in intragenome interactions is likely due to factors other than structural stability.

IMPACT_S: integrated multiprogram platform to analyze and combine tests of selection

Among the major goals of research in evolutionary biology are the identification of genes targeted by natural selection and understanding how various regimes of evolution affect the fitness of an organism. In particular, adaptive evolution enables organisms to adapt to changing ecological factors such as diet, temperature, habitat, predatory pressures and prey abundance. An integrative approach is crucial for the identification of non-synonymous mutations that introduce radical changes in protein biochemistry and thus in turn influence the structure and function of proteins. Performing such analyses manually is often a time-consuming process, due to the large number of statistical files generated from multiple approaches, especially when assessing numerous taxa and/or large datasets. We present IMPACT_S, an easy-to-use Graphical User Interface (GUI) software, which rapidly and effectively integrates, filters and combines results from three widely used programs for assessing the influence of selection: Codeml (PAML package), Datamonkey and TreeSAAP. It enables the identification and tabulation of sites detected by these programs as evolving under the influence of positive, neutral and/or negative selection in protein-coding genes. IMPACT_S further facilitates the automatic mapping of these sites onto the three-dimensional structures of proteins. Other useful tools incorporated in IMPACT_S include Jmol, Archaeopteryx, Gnuplot, PhyML, a built-in Swiss-Model interface and a PDB downloader. The relevance and functionality of IMPACT_S is shown through a case study on the toxicoferan-reptilian Cysteine-rich Secretory Proteins (CRiSPs). IMPACT_S is a platform-independent software released under GPLv3 license, freely available online from http://impact-s.sourceforge.net.

Sexual selection and the adaptive evolution of PKDREJ protein in primates and rodents

PKDREJ is a testis-specific protein thought to be located on the sperm surface. Functional studies in the mouse revealed that loss of PKDREJ has effects on sperm transport and the ability to undergo an induced acrosome reaction. Thus, PKDREJ has been considered a potential target of post-copulatory sexual selection in the form of sperm competition. Proteins involved in reproductive processes often show accelerated evolution. In many cases, this rapid divergence is promoted by positive selection which may be driven, at least in part, by post-copulatory sexual selection. We analysed the evolution of the PKDREJ protein in primates and rodents and assessed whether PKDREJ divergence is associated with testes mass relative to body mass, which is a reliable proxy of sperm competition levels. Evidence of an association between the evolutionary rate of the PKDREJ gene and testes mass relative to body mass was not found in primates. Among rodents, evidence of positive selection was detected in the Pkdrej gene in the family Cricetidae but not in Muridae. We then assessed whether Pkdrej divergence is associated with episodes of sperm competition in these families. We detected a positive significant correlation between the evolutionary rates of Pkdrej and testes mass relative to body mass in cricetids. These findings constitute the first evidence of post-copulatory sexual selection influencing the evolution of a protein that participates in the mechanisms regulating sperm transport and the acrosome reaction, strongly suggesting that positive selection may act on these fertilization steps, leading to advantages in situations of sperm competition.

The influence of taxon sampling on Bayesian divergence time inference under scenarios of rate heterogeneity among lineages

Although taxon sampling is commonly considered an important issue in phylogenetic inference, it is rarely considered in the Bayesian estimation of divergence times. In fact, the studies conducted to date have presented ambiguous results, and the relevance of taxon sampling for molecular dating remains unclear. In this study, we developed a series of simulations that, after six hundred Bayesian molecular dating analyses, allowed us to evaluate the impact of taxon sampling on chronological estimates under three scenarios of among-lineage rate heterogeneity. The first scenario allowed us to examine the influence of the number of terminals on the age estimates based on a strict molecular clock. The second scenario imposed an extreme example of lineage specific rate variation, and the third scenario permitted extensive rate variation distributed along the branches. We also analyzed empirical data on selected mitochondrial genomes of mammals. Our results showed that in the strict molecular-clock scenario (Case I), taxon sampling had a minor impact on the accuracy of the time estimates, although the precision of the estimates was greater with an increased number of terminals. The effect was similar in the scenario (Case III) based on rate variation distributed among the branches. Only under intensive rate variation among lineages (Case II) taxon sampling did result in biased estimates. The results of an empirical analysis corroborated the simulation findings. We demonstrate that taxonomic sampling affected divergence time inference but that its impact was significant if the rates deviated from those derived for the strict molecular clock. Increased taxon sampling improved the precision and accuracy of the divergence time estimates, but the impact on precision is more relevant. On average, biased estimates were obtained only if lineage rate variation was pronounced.

Comparative genomics and transcriptomics in ants provide new insights into the evolution and function of odorant binding and chemosensory proteins

BACKGROUND

The complex societies of ants and other social insects rely on sophisticated chemical communication. Two families of small soluble proteins, the odorant binding and chemosensory proteins (OBPs and CSPs), are believed to be important in insect chemosensation. To better understand the role of these proteins in ant olfaction, we examined their evolution and expression across the ants using phylogenetics and sex- and tissue-specific RNA-seq.

RESULTS

We find that subsets of both OBPs and CSPs are expressed in the antennae, contradicting the previous hypothesis that CSPs have replaced OBPs in ant olfaction. Both protein families have several highly conserved clades with a single ortholog in all eusocial hymenopterans, as well as clades with more dynamic evolution and many taxon-specific radiations. The dynamically evolving OBPs and CSPs have been hypothesized to function in chemical communication. Intriguingly, we find that seven members of the conserved clades are expressed specifically in the antennae of the clonal raider ant Cerapachys biroi, whereas only one dynamically evolving CSP is antenna specific. The orthologs of the conserved, antenna-specific C. biroi genes are also expressed in antennae of the ants Camponotus floridanus and Harpegnathos saltator, indicating that antenna-specific expression of these OBPs and CSPs is conserved across ants. Most members of the dynamically evolving clades in both protein families are expressed primarily in non-chemosensory tissues and thus likely do not fulfill chemosensory functions.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results identify candidate OBPs and CSPs that are likely involved in conserved aspects of ant olfaction, and suggest that OBPs and CSPs may not rapidly evolve to recognize species-specific signals.

Positive selection during the evolution of the blood coagulation factors in the context of their disease-causing mutations

Blood coagulation occurs through a cascade of enzymes and cofactors that produces a fibrin clot, while otherwise maintaining hemostasis. The 11 human coagulation factors (FG, FII–FXIII) have been identified across all vertebrates, suggesting that they emerged with the first vertebrates around 500 Ma. Human FVIII, FIX, and FXI are associated with thousands of disease-causing mutations. Here, we evaluated the strength of selective pressures on the 14 genes coding for the 11 factors during vertebrate evolution, and compared these with human mutations in FVIII, FIX, and FXI. Positive selection was identified for fibrinogen (FG), FIII, FVIII, FIX, and FX in the mammalian Primates and Laurasiatheria and the Sauropsida (reptiles and birds). This showed that the coagulation system in vertebrates was under strong selective pressures, perhaps to adapt against blood-invading pathogens. The comparison of these results with disease-causing mutations reported in FVIII, FIX, and FXI showed that the number of disease-causing mutations, and the probability of positive selection were inversely related to each other. It was concluded that when a site was under positive selection, it was less likely to be associated with disease-causing mutations. In contrast, sites under negative selection were more likely to be associated with disease-causing mutations and be destabilizing. A residue-by-residue comparison of the FVIII, FIX, and FXI sequence alignments confirmed this. This improved understanding of evolutionary changes in FVIII, FIX, and FXI provided greater insight into disease-causing mutations, and better assessments of the codon sites that may be mutated in applications of gene therapy.

Adaptive expansion of the maize maternally expressed gene (Meg) family involves changes in expression patterns and protein secondary structures of its members

BACKGROUND

The Maternally expressed gene (Meg) family is a locally-duplicated gene family of maize which encodes cysteine-rich proteins (CRPs). The founding member of the family, Meg1, is required for normal development of the basal endosperm transfer cell layer (BETL) and is involved in the allocation of maternal nutrients to growing seeds. Despite the important roles of Meg1 in maize seed development, the evolutionary history of the Meg cluster and the activities of the duplicate genes are not understood.

RESULTS

In maize, the Meg gene cluster resides in a 2.3 Mb-long genomic region that exhibits many features of non-centromeric heterochromatin. Using phylogenetic reconstruction and syntenic alignments, we identified the pedigree of the Meg family, in which 11 of its 13 members arose in maize after allotetraploidization ~4.8 mya. Phylogenetic and population-genetic analyses identified possible signatures suggesting recent positive selection in Meg homologs. Structural analyses of the Meg proteins indicated potentially adaptive changes in secondary structure from α-helix to β-strand during the expansion. Transcriptomic analysis of the maize endosperm indicated that 6 Meg genes are selectively activated in the BETL, and younger Meg genes are more active than older ones. In endosperms from B73 by Mo17 reciprocal crosses, most Meg genes did not display parent-specific expression patterns.

CONCLUSIONS

Recently-duplicated Meg genes have different protein secondary structures, and their expressions in the BETL dominate over those of older members. Together with the signs of positive selections in the young Meg genes, these results suggest that the expansion of the Meg family involves potentially adaptive transitions in which new members with novel functions prevailed over older members.

Uncovering adaptive evolution in the human lineage

BACKGROUND

The recent increase in human polymorphism data, together with the availability of genome sequences from several primate species, provides an unprecedented opportunity to investigate how natural selection has shaped human evolution.

RESULTS

We compared human branch-specific substitutions with variation data in the current human population to measure the impact of adaptive evolution on human protein coding genes. The use of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with high derived allele frequencies (DAFs) minimized the influence of segregating slightly deleterious mutations and improved the estimation of the number of adaptive sites. Using DAF ≥ 60% we showed that the proportion of adaptive substitutions is 0.2% in the complete gene set. However, the percentage rose to 40% when we focused on genes that are specifically accelerated in the human branch with respect to the chimpanzee branch, or on genes that show signatures of adaptive selection at the codon level by the maximum likelihood based branch-site test. In general, neural genes are enriched in positive selection signatures. Genes with multiple lines of evidence of positive selection include taxilin beta, which is involved in motor nerve regeneration and syntabulin, and is required for the formation of new presynaptic boutons.

CONCLUSIONS

We combined several methods to detect adaptive evolution in human coding sequences at a genome-wide level. The use of variation data, in addition to sequence divergence information, uncovered previously undetected positive selection signatures in neural genes.

Rapid evolution of BRCA1 and BRCA2 in humans and other primates

Background

The maintenance of chromosomal integrity is an essential task of every living organism and cellular repair mechanisms exist to guard against insults to DNA. Given the importance of this process, it is expected that DNA repair proteins would be evolutionarily conserved, exhibiting very minimal sequence change over time. However, BRCA1, an essential gene involved in DNA repair, has been reported to be evolving rapidly despite the fact that many protein-altering mutations within this gene convey a significantly elevated risk for breast and ovarian cancers.

Results

To obtain a deeper understanding of the evolutionary trajectory of BRCA1, we analyzed complete BRCA1 gene sequences from 23 primate species. We show that specific amino acid sites have experienced repeated selection for amino acid replacement over primate evolution. This selection has been focused specifically on humans and our closest living relatives, chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and bonobos (Pan paniscus). After examining BRCA1 polymorphisms in 7 bonobo, 44 chimpanzee, and 44 rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) individuals, we find considerable variation within each of these species and evidence for recent selection in chimpanzee populations. Finally, we also sequenced and analyzed BRCA2 from 24 primate species and find that this gene has also evolved under positive selection.

Conclusions

While mutations leading to truncated forms of BRCA1 are clearly linked to cancer phenotypes in humans, there is also an underlying selective pressure in favor of amino acid-altering substitutions in this gene. A hypothesis where viruses are the drivers of this natural selection is discussed.

Patterns of positive selection in seven ant genomes

The evolution of ants is marked by remarkable adaptations that allowed the development of very complex social systems. To identify how ant-specific adaptations are associated with patterns of molecular evolution, we searched for signs of positive selection on amino-acid changes in proteins. We identified 24 functional categories of genes which were enriched for positively selected genes in the ant lineage. We also reanalyzed genome-wide data sets in bees and flies with the same methodology to check whether positive selection was specific to ants or also present in other insects. Notably, genes implicated in immunity were enriched for positively selected genes in the three lineages, ruling out the hypothesis that the evolution of hygienic behaviors in social insects caused a major relaxation of selective pressure on immune genes. Our scan also indicated that genes implicated in neurogenesis and olfaction started to undergo increased positive selection before the evolution of sociality in Hymenoptera. Finally, the comparison between these three lineages allowed us to pinpoint molecular evolution patterns that were specific to the ant lineage. In particular, there was ant-specific recurrent positive selection on genes with mitochondrial functions, suggesting that mitochondrial activity was improved during the evolution of this lineage. This might have been an important step toward the evolution of extreme lifespan that is a hallmark of ants.

Adaptive evolution and divergent expression of heat stress transcription factors in grasses

BACKGROUND

Heat stress transcription factors (Hsfs) regulate gene expression in response to heat and many other environmental stresses in plants. Understanding the adaptive evolution of Hsf genes in the grass family will provide potentially useful information for the genetic improvement of modern crops to handle increasing global temperatures.

RESULTS

In this work, we performed a genome-wide survey of Hsf genes in 5 grass species, including rice, maize, sorghum, Setaria, and Brachypodium, by describing their phylogenetic relationships, adaptive evolution, and expression patterns under abiotic stresses. The Hsf genes in grasses were divided into 24 orthologous gene clusters (OGCs) based on phylogeneitc relationship and synteny, suggesting that 24 Hsf genes were present in the ancestral grass genome. However, 9 duplication and 4 gene-loss events were identified in the tested genomes. A maximum-likelihood analysis revealed the effects of positive selection in the evolution of 11 OGCs and suggested that OGCs with duplicated or lost genes were more readily influenced by positive selection than other OGCs. Further investigation revealed that positive selection acted on only one of the duplicated genes in 8 of 9 paralogous pairs, suggesting that neofunctionalization contributed to the evolution of these duplicated pairs. We also investigated the expression patterns of rice and maize Hsf genes under heat, salt, drought, and cold stresses. The results revealed divergent expression patterns between the duplicated genes.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates that neofunctionalization by changes in expression pattern and function following gene duplication has been an important factor in the maintenance and divergence of grass Hsf genes.

Background selection as baseline for nucleotide variation across the Drosophila genome

The constant removal of deleterious mutations by natural selection causes a reduction in neutral diversity and efficacy of selection at genetically linked sites (a process called Background Selection, BGS). Population genetic studies, however, often ignore BGS effects when investigating demographic events or the presence of other types of selection. To obtain a more realistic evolutionary expectation that incorporates the unavoidable consequences of deleterious mutations, we generated high-resolution landscapes of variation across the Drosophila melanogaster genome under a BGS scenario independent of polymorphism data. We find that BGS plays a significant role in shaping levels of variation across the entire genome, including long introns and intergenic regions distant from annotated genes. We also find that a very large percentage of the observed variation in diversity across autosomes can be explained by BGS alone, up to 70% across individual chromosome arms at 100-kb scale, thus indicating that BGS predictions can be used as baseline to infer additional types of selection and demographic events. This approach allows detecting several outlier regions with signal of recent adaptive events and selective sweeps. The use of a BGS baseline, however, is particularly appropriate to investigate the presence of balancing selection and our study exposes numerous genomic regions with the predicted signature of higher polymorphism than expected when a BGS context is taken into account. Importantly, we show that these conclusions are robust to the mutation and selection parameters of the BGS model. Finally, analyses of protein evolution together with previous comparisons of genetic maps between Drosophila species, suggest temporally variable recombination landscapes and, thus, local BGS effects that may differ between extant and past phases. Because genome-wide BGS and temporal changes in linkage effects can skew approaches to estimate demographic and selective events, future analyses should incorporate BGS predictions and capture local recombination variation across genomes and along lineages.

The removal of deleterious mutations from natural populations has potential consequences on patterns of variation across genomes. Population genetic analyses, however, often assume that such effects are negligible across recombining regions of species like Drosophila. We use simple models of purifying selection and current knowledge of recombination rates and gene distribution across the genome to obtain a baseline of variation predicted by the constant input and removal of deleterious mutations. We find that purifying selection alone can explain a major fraction of the observed variance in nucleotide diversity across the genome. The use of a baseline of variation predicted by linkage to deleterious mutations as null expectation exposes genomic regions under other selective regimes, including more regions showing the signature of balancing selection than would be evident when using traditional approaches. Our study also indicates that most, if not all, nucleotides across the D. melanogaster genome are significantly influenced by the removal of deleterious mutations, even when located in the middle of highly recombining regions and distant from genes. Additionally, the study of rates of protein evolution confirms previous analyses suggesting that the recombination landscape across the genome has changed in the recent history of D. melanogaster. All these reported factors can skew current analyses designed to capture demographic events or estimate the strength and frequency of adaptive mutations, and illustrate the need for new and more realistic theoretical and modeling approaches to study naturally occurring genetic variation.

Delineation of plant caleosin residues critical for functional divergence, positive selection and coevolution

Background

The caleosin genes encode proteins with a single conserved EF hand calcium-binding domain and comprise small gene families found in a wide range of plant species. These proteins may be involved in many cellular and biological processes coupled closely to the synthesis, degradation, or stability of oil bodies. Although previous studies of this protein family have been reported for Arabidopsis and other species, understanding of the evolution of the caleosin gene family in plants remains inadequate.

Results

In this study, comparative genomic analysis was performed to investigate the phylogenetic relationships, evolutionary history, functional divergence, positive selection, and coevolution of caleosins. First, 84 caleosin genes were identified from five main lineages that included 15 species. Phylogenetic analysis placed these caleosins into five distinct subfamilies (sub I–V), including two subfamilies that have not been previously identified. Among these subfamilies, sub II coincided with the distinct P-caleosin isoform recently identified in the pollen oil bodies of lily; caleosin genes from the same lineage tended to be clustered together in the phylogenetic tree. A special motif was determined to be related with the classification of caleosins, which may have resulted from a deletion in sub I and sub III occurring after the evolutionary divergence of monocot and dicot species. Additionally, several segmentally and tandem-duplicated gene pairs were identified from seven species, and further analysis revealed that caleosins of different species did not share a common expansion model. The ages of each pair of duplications were calculated, and most were consistent with the time of genome-wide duplication events in each species. Functional divergence analysis showed that changes in functional constraints have occurred between subfamilies I/IV, II/IV, and II/V, and some critical amino acid sites were identified during the functional divergence. Additional analyses revealed that caleosins were under positive selection during evolution, and seven candidate amino acid sites (70R, 74G, 88 L, 89G, 100 K, 106A, 107S) for positive selection were identified. Interestingly, the critical amino acid residues of functional divergence and positive selection were mainly located in C-terminal domain. Finally, three groups of coevolved amino acid sites were identified. Among these coevolved sites, seven from group 2 were located in the Ca²⁺-binding region of crucial importance.

Conclusion

In this study, the evolutionary and expansion patterns of the caleosin gene family were predicted, and a series of amino acid sites relevant to their functional divergence, adaptive evolution, and coevolution were identified. These findings provide data to facilitate further functional analysis of caleosin gene families in the plant lineage.

Microcephaly genes evolved adaptively throughout the evolution of eutherian mammals

BACKGROUND

Genes associated with the neurodevelopmental disorder microcephaly display a strong signature of adaptive evolution in primates. Comparative data suggest a link between selection on some of these loci and the evolution of primate brain size. Whether or not either positive selection or this phenotypic association are unique to primates is unclear, but recent studies in cetaceans suggest at least two microcephaly genes evolved adaptively in other large brained mammalian clades.

RESULTS

Here we analyse the evolution of seven microcephaly loci, including three recently identified loci, across 33 eutherian mammals. We find extensive evidence for positive selection having acted on the majority of these loci not just in primates but also across non-primate mammals. Furthermore, the patterns of selection in major mammalian clades are not significantly different. Using phylogenetically corrected comparative analyses, we find that the evolution of two microcephaly loci, ASPM and CDK5RAP2, are correlated with neonatal brain size in Glires and Euungulata, the two most densely sampled non-primate clades.

CONCLUSIONS

Together with previous results, this suggests that ASPM and CDK5RAP2 may have had a consistent role in the evolution of brain size in mammals. Nevertheless, several limitations of currently available data and gene-phenotype tests are discussed, including sparse sampling across large evolutionary distances, averaging gene-wide rates of evolution, potential phenotypic variation and evolutionary reversals. We discuss the implications of our results for studies of the genetic basis of brain evolution, and explicit tests of gene-phenotype hypotheses.

Unraveling patterns of site-to-site synonymous rates variation and associated gene properties of protein domains and families

In protein-coding genes, synonymous mutations are often thought not to affect fitness and therefore are not subject to natural selection. Yet increasingly, cases of non-neutral evolution at certain synonymous sites were reported over the last decade. To evaluate the extent and the nature of site-specific selection on synonymous codons, we computed the site-to-site synonymous rate variation (SRV) and identified gene properties that make SRV more likely in a large database of protein-coding gene families and protein domains. To our knowledge, this is the first study that explores the determinants and patterns of the SRV in real data. We show that the SRV is widespread in the evolution of protein-coding sequences, putting in doubt the validity of the synonymous rate as a standard neutral proxy. While protein domains rarely undergo adaptive evolution, the SRV appears to play important role in optimizing the domain function at the level of DNA. In contrast, protein families are more likely to evolve by positive selection, but are less likely to exhibit SRV. Stronger SRV was detected in genes with stronger codon bias and tRNA reusage, those coding for proteins with larger number of interactions or forming larger number of structures, located in intracellular components and those involved in typically conserved complex processes and functions. Genes with extreme SRV show higher expression levels in nearly all tissues. This indicates that codon bias in a gene, which often correlates with gene expression, may often be a site-specific phenomenon regulating the speed of translation along the sequence, consistent with the co-translational folding hypothesis. Strikingly, genes with SRV were strongly overrepresented for metabolic pathways and those associated with several genetic diseases, particularly cancers and diabetes.

Impact of recurrent gene duplication on adaptation of plant genomes

BACKGROUND

Recurrent gene duplication and retention played an important role in angiosperm genome evolution. It has been hypothesized that these processes contribute significantly to plant adaptation but so far this hypothesis has not been tested at the genome scale.

RESULTS

We studied available sequenced angiosperm genomes to assess the frequency of positive selection footprints in lineage specific expanded (LSE) gene families compared to single-copy genes using a dN/dS-based test in a phylogenetic framework. We found 5.38% of alignments in LSE genes with codons under positive selection. In contrast, we found no evidence for codons under positive selection in the single-copy reference set. An analysis at the branch level shows that purifying selection acted more strongly on single-copy genes than on LSE gene clusters. Moreover we detect significantly more branches indicating evolution under positive selection and/or relaxed constraint in LSE genes than in single-copy genes.

CONCLUSIONS

In this - to our knowledge -first genome-scale study we provide strong empirical support for the hypothesis that LSE genes fuel adaptation in angiosperms. Our conservative approach for detecting selection footprints as well as our results can be of interest for further studies on (plant) gene family evolution.

Rapid evolution of PARP genes suggests a broad role for ADP-ribosylation in host-virus conflicts

Post-translational protein modifications such as phosphorylation and ubiquitinylation are common molecular targets of conflict between viruses and their hosts. However, the role of other post-translational modifications, such as ADP-ribosylation, in host-virus interactions is less well characterized. ADP-ribosylation is carried out by proteins encoded by the PARP (also called ARTD) gene family. The majority of the 17 human PARP genes are poorly characterized. However, one PARP protein, PARP13/ZAP, has broad antiviral activity and has evolved under positive (diversifying) selection in primates. Such evolution is typical of domains that are locked in antagonistic ‘arms races’ with viral factors. To identify additional PARP genes that may be involved in host-virus interactions, we performed evolutionary analyses on all primate PARP genes to search for signatures of rapid evolution. Contrary to expectations that most PARP genes are involved in ‘housekeeping’ functions, we found that nearly one-third of PARP genes are evolving under strong recurrent positive selection. We identified a >300 amino acid disordered region of PARP4, a component of cytoplasmic vault structures, to be rapidly evolving in several mammalian lineages, suggesting this region serves as an important host-pathogen specificity interface. We also found positive selection of PARP9, 14 and 15, the only three human genes that contain both PARP domains and macrodomains. Macrodomains uniquely recognize, and in some cases can reverse, protein mono-ADP-ribosylation, and we observed strong signatures of recurrent positive selection throughout the macro-PARP macrodomains. Furthermore, PARP14 and PARP15 have undergone repeated rounds of gene birth and loss during vertebrate evolution, consistent with recurrent gene innovation. Together with previous studies that implicated several PARPs in immunity, as well as those that demonstrated a role for virally encoded macrodomains in host immune evasion, our evolutionary analyses suggest that addition, recognition and removal of ADP-ribosylation is a critical, underappreciated currency in host-virus conflicts.

The outcome of viral infections is determined by the repertoire and specificity of the antiviral genes in a particular animal species. The identification of candidate immunity genes and mechanisms is a key step in describing this repertoire. Despite advances in genome sequencing, identification of antiviral genes has largely remained dependent on demonstration of their activity against candidate viruses. However, antiviral proteins that directly interact with viral targets or antagonists also bear signatures of recurrent evolutionary adaptation, which can be used to identify candidate antivirals. Here, we find that five out of seventeen genes that contain a domain that can catalyze the post-translational addition ADP-ribose to proteins bear such signatures of recurrent genetic innovation. In particular, we find that all the genes that encode both ADP-ribose addition (via PARP domains) as well as recognition and/or removal (via macro domains) activities have evolved under extremely strong diversifying selection in mammals. Furthermore, such genes have undergone multiple episodes of gene duplications and losses throughout mammalian evolution. Combined with the knowledge that some viruses also encode macro domains to counteract host immunity, our evolutionary analyses therefore implicate ADP-ribosylation as an underappreciated key step in antiviral defense in mammalian genomes.

Erasing errors due to alignment ambiguity when estimating positive selection

Current estimates of diversifying positive selection rely on first having an accurate multiple sequence alignment. Simulation studies have shown that under biologically plausible conditions, relying on a single estimate of the alignment from commonly used alignment software can lead to unacceptably high false-positive rates in detecting diversifying positive selection. We present a novel statistical method that eliminates excess false positives resulting from alignment error by jointly estimating the degree of positive selection and the alignment under an evolutionary model. Our model treats both substitutions and insertions/deletions as sequence changes on a tree and allows site heterogeneity in the substitution process. We conduct inference starting from unaligned sequence data by integrating over all alignments. This approach naturally accounts for ambiguous alignments without requiring ambiguously aligned sites to be identified and removed prior to analysis. We take a Bayesian approach and conduct inference using Markov chain Monte Carlo to integrate over all alignments on a fixed evolutionary tree topology. We introduce a Bayesian version of the branch-site test and assess the evidence for positive selection using Bayes factors. We compare two models of differing dimensionality using a simple alternative to reversible-jump methods. We also describe a more accurate method of estimating the Bayes factor using Rao-Blackwellization. We then show using simulated data that jointly estimating the alignment and the presence of positive selection solves the problem with excessive false positives from erroneous alignments and has nearly the same power to detect positive selection as when the true alignment is known. We also show that samples taken from the posterior alignment distribution using the software BAli-Phy have substantially lower alignment error compared with MUSCLE, MAFFT, PRANK, and FSA alignments.

Evolution of PAS domains and PAS-containing genes in eukaryotes

The PAS domains are signal modules, which are widely distributed in proteins across all kingdoms of life. They are common in photoreceptors and transcriptional regulators of eukaryotic circadian clocks q(bHLH-PAS proteins and PER in animals; PHY and ZTL in plants; and WC-1, 2, and VVD in fungi) and possess mainly protein-protein interaction and light-sensing functions. We conducted several evolutionary analyses of the PAS superfamily. Although the whole superfamily evolved primarily under strong purifying selection (average ω ranges from 0.0030 to 0.1164), some lineages apparently experienced strong episodic positive selection at some periods of the evolution. Although the PAS domains from different proteins vary in sequence and length, but they maintain a fairly conserved 3D structure, which is determined by only eight residues. The WC-1 and WC- 2, bHLH-PAS, and P er genes probably originated in the Neoproterozoic Era (1000-542 Mya), plant P hy and ZTL evolved in the Paleozoic (541-252 Mya), which might be a result of adaptation to the major climate and global light regime changes having occurred in those eras.

The pleiotropic SEPALLATA-like gene OsMADS34 reveals that the 'empty glumes' of rice (Oryza sativa) spikelets are in fact rudimentary lemmas

The single floret of the rice (Oryza sativa) spikelet is subtended by a pair of enigmatic organs usually termed 'empty glumes' or 'sterile lemmas'. As the identity of these organs remains essentially unknown, we refer to them as 'organs of unknown identity' (OUIs). Here we present a novel mutant of the rice SEPALLATA-like gene OsMADS34 which develops, in addition to disorganized branches and sterile seeds, elongated OUIs. The function and evolution of OsMADS34 were studied. Morphological and molecular markers indicate that the elongated OUIs have adopted lemma identity. Evolutionary analyses show that the ancestral genes of the OsM34 subclade evolved under positive selection, and that three specific motifs occur in the C-terminal region of proteins in the OsM34 subclade. Yeast two-hybrid assays revealed that the C-terminal region of OsMADS34 plays a crucial role in mediating protein interactions. Sequence analyses for the wild rice Oryza grandiglumis which has elongated OUIs revealed the association of OsMADS34 functionality with OUI identity. Our findings support the hypothesis that OUIs originated from the lemmas of degenerate florets under the negative control of OsMADS34. As OUIs neither are homologues to glumes nor have the identity of lemmas any more, but originated from these organs, we suggest calling them 'rudimentary lemmas'.

Phylogenetic analysis of ligninolytic peroxidases: preliminary insights into the alternation of white-rot and brown-rot fungi in their lineage

White-rot and brown-rot fungi employ different mechanisms to degrade lignocellulose. These fungi are not monophyletic and even alternate in their common lineage. To explore the reason for this, seventy-six ligninolytic peroxidases (LPs), including 14 sequences newly identified from available basidiomycetous whole-genome and EST databases in this study, were utilized for phylogenetic and selective pressure analyses. We demonstrate that LPs were subjected to the mixed process of concerted and birth-and-death evolution. After the duplication events of original LPs, various LP types may originate from mutation events of several key residues driven by positive selection, which may change LP types and even rot types in a small fraction of wood-decaying fungi. Our findings provide preliminary insights into the cause for the alternation of the two fungal rot types within the same lineage.

Novel ovine polymorphisms and adaptive evolution in mammalian TLR2 suggest existence of multiple pathogen binding regions

Toll-like receptors initiate inflammatory responses following the recognition of a wide repertoire of pathogens including bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses. They are composed of an extracellular leucine-rich repeat domain responsible for detecting pathogen-associated molecular patterns, a membrane spanning region and an intracellular Toll/Interleukin 1 receptor domain which invokes signal transduction. Toll-like receptor 2 is the most diverse of these receptors as it recognises infectious agents from a range of pathogenic groups. Over 1400 breeds of sheep exist worldwide that inhabit a diverse range of environments, which leads to the potential contact with a wide variety of pathogens likely detected by Toll-like receptor 2. In this study, we evaluated the extent of both long term evolutionary changes, across the mammalian phylogeny of the TLR2 gene, and recent divergence of this same gene in sheep breeds. Evolutionary analyses identified positive selective pressure across the mammalian phylogeny, and differential selection pressure within the artiodactyl and primate lineage. Finally, we identified localised positively-selected sites within two regions of the extracellular domain which suggest that multiple binding regions in TLR2 may be involved in pathogen detection. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that competition between host and pathogen is driving adaptation of Toll-like receptor 2 genes.

Repeated functional convergent effects of NaV1.7 on acid insensitivity in hibernating mammals

Hibernating mammals need to be insensitive to acid in order to cope with conditions of high CO2; however, the molecular basis of acid tolerance remains largely unknown. The African naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) and hibernating mammals share similar environments and physiological features. In the naked mole-rat, acid insensitivity has been shown to be conferred by the functional motif of the sodium ion channel NaV1.7. There is now an opportunity to evaluate acid insensitivity in other taxa. In this study, we tested for functional convergence of NaV1.7 in 71 species of mammals, including 22 species that hibernate. Our analyses revealed a functional convergence of amino acid sequences, which occurred at least six times independently in mammals that hibernate. Evolutionary analyses determined that the convergence results from both parallel and divergent evolution of residues in the functional motif. Our findings not only identify the functional molecules responsible for acid insensitivity in hibernating mammals, but also open new avenues to elucidate the molecular underpinnings of acid insensitivity in mammals.

PSP: rapid identification of orthologous coding genes under positive selection across multiple closely related prokaryotic genomes

Background

With genomic sequences of many closely related bacterial strains made available by deep sequencing, it is now possible to investigate trends in prokaryotic microevolution. Positive selection is a sub-process of microevolution, in which a particular mutation is favored, causing the allele frequency to continuously shift in one direction. Wide scanning of prokaryotic genomes has shown that positive selection at the molecular level is much more frequent than expected. Genes with significant positive selection may play key roles in bacterial adaption to different environmental pressures. However, selection pressure analyses are computationally intensive and awkward to configure.

Results

Here we describe an open access web server, which is designated as PSP (Positive Selection analysis for Prokaryotic genomes) for performing evolutionary analysis on orthologous coding genes, specially designed for rapid comparison of dozens of closely related prokaryotic genomes. Remarkably, PSP facilitates functional exploration at the multiple levels by assignments and enrichments of KO, GO or COG terms. To illustrate this user-friendly tool, we analyzed Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus genomes and found that several genes, which play key roles in human infection and antibiotic resistance, show significant evidence of positive selection. PSP is freely available to all users without any login requirement at: http://db-mml.sjtu.edu.cn/PSP/.

Conclusions

PSP ultimately allows researchers to do genome-scale analysis for evolutionary selection across multiple prokaryotic genomes rapidly and easily, and identify the genes undergoing positive selection, which may play key roles in the interactions of host-pathogen and/or environmental adaptation.

GATA transcription factors in vertebrates: evolutionary, structural and functional interplay

GATA transcription factors perform conserved and essential roles during animal development, including germ-layer specification, hematopoiesis, and cardiogenesis. The evolutionary history and the changes in selection pressures following duplication of the six GATA family members in vertebrates have not been completely understood. Recently, we explored multiple databases to find GATAs in different vertebrate species. Using these sequences, we have performed molecular phylogenetic analyses using Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian methods, and statistical tests of tree topologies, to ascertain the phylogenetic relationship and selection pressures among GATA proteins. Seventy-one full-length cDNA sequences from 24 vertebrate species were extracted from multiple databases. By phylogenetic analyses, we investigated the origin, conservation, and evolution of the GATAs. Six GATA genes in vertebrates might be formed by gene duplication. The inferred evolutionary transitions that separate members which belong to different gene clusters correlated with changes in functional properties. Selection analysis and protein structure analysis were combined to explain Darwinian selection in GATA sequences and these changes brought putative biological significance. 26 positive selection sites were detected in this process. This study reveals the evolutionary history of vertebrate GATA paralogous and positively selected sites likely relevant for the distinct functional properties of the paralogs. It provides a new perspective for understanding the origin and evolution and biological functions of GATAs, which will help to uncover the GATAs' biological roles, evolution and their relationship with associated diseases; in addition, other complex multidomain families and also larger superfamilies can be investigated in a similar way.

A phylogeographical study of the cauliflower mosaic virus population in mid-Eurasia Iran using complete genome analysis

The full-length sequences of 34 Iranian cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) isolates were compared with others from public nucleotide sequence databases to provide a comprehensive overview of the genetic variability and patterns of genetic exchange in CaMV isolates from Iran. Based on the severity of symptoms and their ability to infect Brassica oleracea var. capitata, Iranian CaMV isolates were grouped into two distinct biotypes: latent/mild mottle (LI/MMo) and severe (S) infection. Recombination breakpoints were detected between the large intergenic region (LIR) and open reading frame (ORF) V (event 2); between ORF VII and ORF II (event 3), between ORF I and ORF III (event 4), and within ORF VI (event 1). Phylogenetic analysis indicated that Iranian CaMV isolates clustered into two subgroups belonging to group I (GI) that were distinct from North American and European isolates from group II (GII). Northeast Iranian isolates (subgroup B) and CaMV isolates from subgroup A closely corresponded to the S and LI/MMo biological groups, respectively. Genome-wide pairwise identity analysis of the CaMV isolates revealed three regions of pairwise identity representation: 92-94 % for GII and 94-96 % and 98-100 % for subgroups A and B. The within-population diversity was lower than the between-population diversity, suggesting the contribution of a founder effect on diversification of CaMV isolates. Amino acid sequences were conserved, with ω values ranging from 0.074 to 0.717 in different proteins. Thirteen amino acids in the deduced proteins of ORFs I, II, III, VI and VII were under positive selection (ω > 1), whereas purifying selection applied to the proteins encoded by ORFs IV and V. This study suggests that variation in the CaMV population can be explained by host-range differentiation and selection pressure. Moreover, recombination analysis revealed that a genomic exchange is responsible for the emergence of CaMV strains, providing valuable new information for understanding the diversity and evolution of caulimoviruses.

Genetic variability and evolutionary implications of RNA silencing suppressor genes in RNA1 of sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus isolates infecting sweetpotato and related wild species

BACKGROUND

The bipartite single-stranded RNA genome of Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV, genus Crinivirus; Closteroviridae) encodes a Class 1 RNase III (RNase3), a putative hydrophobic protein (p7) and a 22-kDa protein (p22) from genes located in RNA1. RNase3 and p22 suppress RNA silencing, the basal antiviral defence mechanism in plants. RNase3 is sufficient to render sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) virus-susceptible and predisposes it to development of severe diseases following infection with unrelated virus. The incidence, strains and gene content of SPCSV infecting wild plant species have not been studied.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

Thirty SPCSV isolates were characterized from 10 wild Ipomoea species, Hewittia sublobata or Lepistemon owariensis (family Convolvulaceae) in Uganda and compared with 34 local SPCSV isolates infecting sweetpotatoes. All isolates belonged to the East African (EA) strain of SPCSV and contained RNase3 and p7, but p22 was not detected in six isolates. The three genes showed only limited genetic variability and the proteins were under purifying selection. SPCSV isolates lacking p22 synergized with Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV, genus potyvirus; Potyviridae) and caused severe symptoms in co-infected sweetpotato plants. One SPCSV isolate enhanced accumulation of SPFMV, but no severe symptoms developed. A new whitefly-transmitted virus (KML33b) encoding an RNase3 homolog (<56% identity to SPCSV RNase3) able to suppresses sense-mediated RNA silencing was detected in I. sinensis.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

SPCSV isolates infecting wild species and sweetpotato in Uganda were genetically undifferentiated, suggesting inter-species transmission of SPCSV. Most isolates in Uganda contained p22, unlike SPCSV isolates characterized from other countries and continents. Enhanced accumulation of SPFMV and increased disease severity were found to be uncoupled phenotypic outcomes of RNase3-mediated viral synergism in sweetpotato. A second virus encoding an RNase3-like RNA silencing suppressor was detected. Overall, results provided many novel and important insights into evolutionary biology of SPCSV.

Phylogenetic analysis and positive-selection site detecting of vascular endothelial growth factor family in vertebrates

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), known to play an important role in vascular homeostasis, vascular integrity and angiogenesis, is little known about the evolutionary relationship of its five members especially the role of gene duplication and natural selection in the evolution of the VEGF family. In this study, seventy-five full-length cDNA sequences from 33 vertebrate species were extracted from the NCBI's GenBank, UniProt protein database and the Ensembl database. By phylogenetic analyses, we investigated the origin, conservation, and evolution of the VEGFs. Five VEGF family members in vertebrates might be formed by gene duplication. The inferred evolutionary transitions that separate members which belong to different gene clusters correlated with changes in functional properties. Selection analysis and protein structure analysis were combined to explain the relationship of the site-specific evolution in the vertebrate VEGF family. Eleven positive selection sites, one transmembrane region and the active sites were detected in this process.

The evolution of novelty in conserved genes; evidence of positive selection in the Drosophila fruitless gene is localised to alternatively spliced exons

There has been much debate concerning whether cis-regulatory or coding changes are more likely to produce evolutionary innovation or adaptation in gene function, but an additional complication is that some genes can dramatically diverge through alternative splicing, increasing the diversity of gene function within a locus. The fruitless gene is a major transcription factor with a wide range of pleiotropic functions, including a fundamental conserved role in sexual differentiation, species-specific morphology and an important influence on male sexual behaviour. Here, we examine the structure of fruitless in multiple species of Drosophila, and determine the patterns of selective constraint acting across the coding region. We found that the pattern of selection, estimated from the ratio of non-synonymous to synonymous substitutions, varied considerably across the gene, with most regions of the gene evolutionarily conserved but with several regions showing evidence of divergence as a result of positive selection. The regions that showed evidence of positive selection were found to be localised to relatively consistent regions across multiple speciation events, and are associated with alternative splicing. Alternative splicing may thus provide a route to gene diversification in key regulatory loci.

Metabolic flux is a determinant of the evolutionary rates of enzyme-encoding genes

Relationships between evolutionary rates and gene properties on a genomic, functional, pathway, or system level are being explored to unravel the principles of the evolutionary process. In particular, functional network properties have been analyzed to recognize the constraints they may impose on the evolutionary fate of genes. Here we took as a case study the core metabolic network in human erythrocytes and we analyzed the relationship between the evolutionary rates of its genes and the metabolic flux distribution throughout it. We found that metabolic flux correlates with the ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous substitution rates. Genes encoding enzymes that carry high fluxes have been more constrained in their evolution, while purifying selection is more relaxed in genes encoding enzymes carrying low metabolic fluxes. These results demonstrate the importance of considering the dynamical functioning of gene networks when assessing the action of selection on system-level properties.

Adaptive evolution of the osmoregulation-related genes in cetaceans during secondary aquatic adaptation

Background

Osmoregulation was a primary challenge for cetaceans during the evolutionary transition from a terrestrial to a mainly hyperosmotic environment. Several physiological mechanisms have been suggested to maintain the water and salt balance in cetaceans, but their genetic and evolutionary bases remain poorly explored. The current study investigated the genes involved in osmoregulation in cetaceans and compared them with their counterparts in terrestrial mammals to test whether adaptive evolution occurred during secondary aquatic adaptation.

Results

The present study analyzed the molecular evolution of 11 osmoregulation-related genes in 11 cetacean species, which represented all of the major cetacean clades. The results demonstrated positive selection acting on angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), angiotensinogen (AGT), SLC14A2, and aquaporin 2 (AQP2). This evidence for the positive selection of AQP2 and SLC14A2 suggests that the adaptive evolution of these genes has helped to enhance the capacity for water and urea transport, thereby leading to the concentration of urine, which is an efficient mechanism for maintaining the water balance. By contrast, a series of positively selected amino acid residues identified in the ACE and AGT (two key members of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, RAAS) proteins of cetaceans suggests that RAAS might have been adapted to maintain the water and salt balance in response to a hyperosmotic environment. Radical amino acid changes in positively selected sites were distributed among most internal and terminal branches of the cetacean phylogeny, which suggests the pervasively adaptive evolution of osmoregulation since the origin of cetaceans and their subsequent diversification.

Conclusions

This is the first comprehensive analysis of the molecular evolution of osmoregulation-related genes in cetaceans in response to selection pressure from a generally hyperosmotic environment. Four genes, i.e., AQP2, SLC14A2, ACE, and AGT were subject to positive selection in cetaceans, which suggests that cetaceans may have adapted to maintain their water and salt balance. This also suggests that cetaceans may have evolved an effective and complex mechanism for osmoregulation.

Genome evolution and phylogenomic analysis of Candidatus Kinetoplastibacterium, the betaproteobacterial endosymbionts of Strigomonas and Angomonas

It has been long known that insect-infecting trypanosomatid flagellates from the genera Angomonas and Strigomonas harbor bacterial endosymbionts (Candidatus Kinetoplastibacterium or TPE [trypanosomatid proteobacterial endosymbiont]) that supplement the host metabolism. Based on previous analyses of other bacterial endosymbiont genomes from other lineages, a stereotypical path of genome evolution in such bacteria over the duration of their association with the eukaryotic host has been characterized. In this work, we sequence and analyze the genomes of five TPEs, perform their metabolic reconstruction, do an extensive phylogenomic analyses with all available Betaproteobacteria, and compare the TPEs with their nearest betaproteobacterial relatives. We also identify a number of housekeeping and central metabolism genes that seem to have undergone positive selection. Our genome structure analyses show total synteny among the five TPEs despite millions of years of divergence, and that this lineage follows the common path of genome evolution observed in other endosymbionts of diverse ancestries. As previously suggested by cell biology and biochemistry experiments, Ca. Kinetoplastibacterium spp. preferentially maintain those genes necessary for the biosynthesis of compounds needed by their hosts. We have also shown that metabolic and informational genes related to the cooperation with the host are overrepresented amongst genes shown to be under positive selection. Finally, our phylogenomic analysis shows that, while being in the Alcaligenaceae family of Betaproteobacteria, the closest relatives of these endosymbionts are not in the genus Bordetella as previously reported, but more likely in the Taylorella genus.

Genome-wide signatures of convergent evolution in echolocating mammals

Evolution is typically thought to proceed through divergence of genes, proteins and ultimately phenotypes. However, similar traits might also evolve convergently in unrelated taxa owing to similar selection pressures. Adaptive phenotypic convergence is widespread in nature, and recent results from several genes have suggested that this phenomenon is powerful enough to also drive recurrent evolution at the sequence level. Where homoplasious substitutions do occur these have long been considered the result of neutral processes. However, recent studies have demonstrated that adaptive convergent sequence evolution can be detected in vertebrates using statistical methods that model parallel evolution, although the extent to which sequence convergence between genera occurs across genomes is unknown. Here we analyse genomic sequence data in mammals that have independently evolved echolocation and show that convergence is not a rare process restricted to several loci but is instead widespread, continuously distributed and commonly driven by natural selection acting on a small number of sites per locus. Systematic analyses of convergent sequence evolution in 805,053 amino acids within 2,326 orthologous coding gene sequences compared across 22 mammals (including four newly sequenced bat genomes) revealed signatures consistent with convergence in nearly 200 loci. Strong and significant support for convergence among bats and the bottlenose dolphin was seen in numerous genes linked to hearing or deafness, consistent with an involvement in echolocation. Unexpectedly, we also found convergence in many genes linked to vision: the convergent signal of many sensory genes was robustly correlated with the strength of natural selection. This first attempt to detect genome-wide convergent sequence evolution across divergent taxa reveals the phenomenon to be much more pervasive than previously recognized.

Selection pressure and founder effects constrain genetic variation in differentiated populations of soilborne bymovirus Wheat yellow mosaic virus (Potyviridae) in China

To study the population genetic structure and forces driving the evolution of Wheat yellow mosaic virus (WYMV), the nucleotide sequences encoding the coat protein (CP) (297 sequences) or the genome-linked virion protein (VPg) (87 sequences) were determined from wheat plants growing at 11 different locations distributed in five provinces in China. There were close phylogenetic relationships between all sequences but clustering on the phylogenetic trees was congruent with their provenance, suggesting an origin-dependent population genetic structure. There were low levels of genetic diversity, ranging from 0.00035 ± 0.00019 to 0.01536 ± 0.00043 (CP), and 0.00086 ± 0.00039 to 0.00573 ± 0.00111 (VPg), indicating genetic stability or recent emergence of WYMV in China. The results may suggest that founder effects play a role in shaping the genetic structure of WYMV. Between-population diversity was consistently higher than within-population diversity, suggesting limited gene flow between subpopulations (average FST 0.6241 for the CP and 0.7981 for the VPg). Consistent amino acid substitutions correlated with the provenance of the sequences were observed at nine positions in the CP (but none in the VPg), indicating an advanced stage in population structuring. Strong negative (purifying) selection was implicated on both the CP and VPg but positive selection on a few codons in the CP, indicating an ongoing molecular adaptation.

Evolutionary Modeling of Genotype-Phenotype Associations, and Application to Primate Coding and Non-coding mtDNA Rate Variation

Variation in substitution rates across a phylogeny can be indicative of shifts in the evolutionary dynamics of a protein or non-protein coding regions. One way to understand these signals is to seek the phenotypic correlates of rate variation. Here, we extended a previously published likelihood method designed to detect evolutionary associations between genotypic evolutionary rate and phenotype over a phylogeny. In simulation with two discrete categories of phenotype, the method has a low false-positive rate and detects greater than 80% of true-positives with a tree length of three or greater and a three-fold or greater change in substitution rate given the phenotype. In addition, we successfully extend the test from two to four phenotype categories and evaluated its performance. We then applied the method to two major hypotheses for rate variation in the mitochondrial genome of primates-longevity and generation time as well as body mass which is correlated with many aspects of life history-using three categories of phenotype through discretization of continuous values. Similar to previous results for mammals, we find that the majority of mitochondrial protein-coding genes show associations consistent with the longevity and body mass predictions and that the predominant signal of association comes from the third codon position. We also found a significant association between maximum lifespan and the evolutionary rate of the control region of the mtDNA. In contrast, 24 protein-coding genes from the nuclear genome do not show a consistent pattern of association, which is inconsistent with the generation time hypothesis. These results show the extended method can robustly identify genotype-phenotype associations up to at least four phenotypic categories, and demonstrate the successful application of the method to study factors affecting neutral evolutionary rate in protein-coding and non-coding loci.

Transcriptome characterisation of the ant Formica exsecta with new insights into the evolution of desaturase genes in social hymenoptera

BACKGROUND

Despite the recent sequencing of seven ant genomes, no genomic data are available for the genus Formica, an important group for the study of eusocial traits. We sequenced the transcriptome of the ant Formica exsecta with the 454 FLX Titanium technology from a pooled sample of workers from 70 Finnish colonies.

RESULTS

About 1,000,000 reads were obtained from a normalised cDNA library. We compared the assemblers MIRA3.0 and Newbler2.6 and showed that the latter performed better on this dataset due to a new option which is dedicated to improve contig formation in low depth portions of the assemblies. The 29,579 contigs represent 27 Mb. 50% showed similarity with known proteins and 25% could be assigned a category of gene ontology. We found more than 13,000 high-quality single nucleotide polymorphisms. The Δ9 desaturase gene family is an important multigene family involved in chemical communication in insects. We found six Δ9 desaturases in this Formica exsecta transcriptome dataset that were used to reconstruct a maximum-likelihood phylogeny of insect desaturases and to test for signatures of positive selection in this multigene family in ant lineages. We found differences with previous phylogenies of this gene family in ants, and found two clades potentially under positive selection.

CONCLUSION

This first transcriptome reference sequence of Formica exsecta provided sequence and polymorphism data that will allow researchers working on Formica ants to develop studies to tackle the genetic basis of eusocial phenotypes. In addition, this study provided some general guidelines for de novo transcriptome assembly that should be useful for future transcriptome sequencing projects. Finally, we found potential signatures of positive selection in some clades of the Δ9 desaturase gene family in ants, which suggest the potential role of sequence divergence and adaptive evolution in shaping the large diversity of chemical cues in social insects.

Molecular evolutionary analysis of the Alfin-like protein family in Arabidopsis lyrata, Arabidopsis thaliana, and Thellungiella halophila

In previous studies, the Alfin1 gene, a transcription factor, enhanced salt tolerance in alfalfa, primarily through altering gene expression levels in the root. Here, we examined the molecular evolution of the Alfin-like (AL) proteins in two Arabidopsis species (A. lyrata and A. thaliana) and a salt-tolerant close relative Thellungiella halophila. These AL-like proteins could be divided into four groups and the two known DUF3594 and PHD-finger domains had co-evolved within each group of genes, irrespective of species, due to gene duplication events in the common ancestor of all three species while gene loss was observed only in T. halophila. To detect whether natural selection acted in the evolution of AL genes, we calculated synonymous substitution ratios (dn/ds) and codon usage statistics, finding positive selection operated on four branches and significant differences in biased codon usage in the AL family between T. halophila and A. lyrata or A. thaliana. Distinctively, only the AL7 branch was under positive selection on the PHD-finger domain and the three members on the branch showed the smallest difference when codon bias was evaluated among the seven clusters. Functional analysis based on transgenic overexpression lines and T-DNA insertion mutants indicated that salt-stress-induced AtAL7 could play a negative role in salt tolerance of A. thaliana, suggesting that adaptive evolution occurred in the members of AL gene family.

Suppressors of RNAi from plant viruses are subject to episodic positive selection

Viral suppressors of RNAi (VSRs) are proteins that actively inhibit the antiviral RNA interference (RNAi) immune response, providing an immune evasion route for viruses. It has been hypothesized that VSRs are engaged in a molecular ‘arms race’ with RNAi pathway genes. Two lines of evidence support this. First, VSRs from plant viruses display high sequence diversity, and are frequently gained and lost over evolutionary time scales. Second, Drosophila antiviral RNAi genes show high rates of adaptive evolution. Here, we investigate whether VSRs diversify faster than other genes and, if so, whether this is a result of positive selection, as might be expected in an arms race. By analysis of 12 plant RNA viruses, we show that the relative rate of protein evolution is higher for VSRs than for other genes, but that this is not attributable to pervasive positive selection. We argue that, because evolutionary time scales are extremely different for viruses and eukaryotes, it is improbable that viral adaptation (as measured by the ratio of non-synonymous to synonymous change) will be dominated by one-to-one coevolution with eukaryotes. Instead, for plant virus VSRs, we find strong evidence of episodic selection—diversifying selection that acts on a subset of lineages—which might be attributable to frequent shifts between different host genotypes or species.

Phylogenomic analyses of nuclear genes reveal the evolutionary relationships within the BEP clade and the evidence of positive selection in Poaceae

BEP clade of the grass family (Poaceae) is composed of three subfamilies, i.e. Bambusoideae, Ehrhartoideae, and Pooideae. Controversies on the phylogenetic relationships among three subfamilies still persist in spite of great efforts. However, previous evidence was mainly provided from plastid genes with only a few nuclear genes utilized. Given different evolutionary histories recorded by plastid and nuclear genes, it is indispensable to uncover their relationships based on nuclear genes. Here, eleven species with whole-sequenced genome and six species with transcriptomic data were included in this study. A total of 121 one-to-one orthologous groups (OGs) were identified and phylogenetic trees were reconstructed by different tree-building methods. Genes which might have undergone positive selection and played important roles in adaptive evolution were also investigated from 314 and 173 one-to-one OGs in two bamboo species and 14 grass species, respectively. Our results support the ((B, P) E) topology with high supporting values. Besides, our findings also indicate that 24 and nine orthologs with statistically significant evidence of positive selection are mainly involved in abiotic and biotic stress response, reproduction and development, plant metabolism and enzyme etc. from two bamboo species and 14 grass species, respectively. In summary, this study demonstrates the power of phylogenomic approach to shed lights on the evolutionary relationships within the BEP clade, and offers valuable insights into adaptive evolution of the grass family.

Adaptive selection on bracovirus genomes drives the specialization of Cotesia parasitoid wasps

The geographic mosaic of coevolution predicts parasite virulence should be locally adapted to the host community. Cotesia parasitoid wasps adapt to local lepidopteran species possibly through their symbiotic bracovirus. The virus, essential for the parasitism success, is at the heart of the complex coevolutionary relationship linking the wasps and their hosts. The large segmented genome contained in the virus particles encodes virulence genes involved in host immune and developmental suppression. Coevolutionary arms race should result in the positive selection of particular beneficial alleles. To understand the global role of bracoviruses in the local adaptation or specialization of parasitoid wasps to their hosts, we studied the molecular evolution of four bracoviruses associated with wasps of the genus Cotesia, including C congregata, C vestalis and new data and annotation on two ecologically differentiated populations of C sesamie, Kitale and Mombasa. Paired orthologs analyses revealed more genes under positive selection when comparing the two C sesamiae bracoviruses belonging to the same species, and more genes under strong evolutionary constraint between species. Furthermore branch-site evolutionary models showed that 17 genes, out of the 54 currently available shared by the four bracoviruses, harboured sites under positive selection including: the histone H4-like, a C-type lectin, two ep1-like, ep2, a viral ankyrin, CrV1, a ben-domain, a Serine-rich, and eight unknown genes. Lastly the phylogenetic analyses of the histone, ep2 and CrV1 genes in different African C sesamiae populations showed that each gene described differently the individual relationships. In particular we found recombination had happened between the ep2 and CrV1 genes, which are localized 37.5 kb apart on the wasp chromosomes. Involved in multidirectional coevolutionary interactions, C sesamiae wasps rely on different bracovirus mediated molecular pathways to overcome local host resistance.

Evolution of smooth tubercle Bacilli PE and PE_PGRS genes: evidence for a prominent role of recombination and imprint of positive selection

BACKGROUND

PE and PE_PGRS are two mycobateria-restricted multigene families encoding membrane associated and secreted proteins that have expanded mainly in the pathogenic species, notably the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC). Several lines of evidence attribute to PE and PE_PGRS genes critical roles in mycobacterial pathogenicity. To get more insight into the nature of these genes, we sought to address their evolutionary trajectories in the group of smooth tubercle bacilli (STB), the putative ancestor of the clonal MTBC.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

By focussing on six polymorphic STB PE/PE_PGRS genes, we demonstrate significant incongruence among single gene genealogies and detect strong signals of recombination using various approaches. Coalescent-based estimation of population recombination and mutation rates (ρ and θ, respectively) indicates that the two mechanisms are of roughly equal importance in generating diversity (ρ/θ = 1.457), a finding in a marked contrast to house keeping genes (HKG) whose evolution is chiefly brought about by mutation (ρ/θ = 0.012). In comparison to HKG, we found 15 times higher mean rate of nonsynonymous substitutions, with strong evidence of positive selection acting on PE_PGRS62 (dN/dS = 1.42), a gene that has previously been shown to be essential for mycobacterial survival in macrophages and granulomas. Imprint of positive selection operating on specific amino acid residues or along branches of PE_PGRS62 phylogenetic tree was further demonstrated using maximum likelihood- and covarion-based approaches, respectively. Strikingly, PE_PGR62 proved highly conserved in present-day MTBC strains.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

Overall the data indicate that, in STB, PE/PE_PGRS genes have undergone a strong diversification process that is speeded up by recombination, with evidence of positive selection. The finding that positive selection involved an essential PE_PGRS gene whose sequence appears to be driven to fixation in present-day MTBC strains lends further support to the critical role of PE/PE_PGRS genes in the evolution of mycobacterial pathogenicity.

Diversification of the monoterpene synthase gene family (TPSb) in Protium, a highly diverse genus of tropical trees

Plant monoterpenes are a diverse class of secondary metabolites mediating biotic and abiotic interactions with direct effects on plant fitness. To evaluate the hypothesis that monoterpene diversity is related to functional diversification after gene duplication, we reconstructed the evolutionary history of monoterpene synthases (TPSb)--the genes underlying monoterpene synthesis--in Protium, a taxonomically and chemically diverse genus of tropical trees. We isolated multiple copies of TPSb genes from chemically divergent Protium species, reconstructed the phylogeny of this gene family, used maximum-likelihood estimation of selection coefficients, and inferred residues evolving under positive selection. We found evidence for one ancient and multiple more recent duplication events giving rise to three, and potentially five, copies of TPSb genes currently present in Protium. There was evidence for adaptive evolution in one copy with a positively selected residue likely involved in protein folding and product specificity. All other copies were inferred to be evolving under a combination of stabilizing and/or relaxed selection. Although gene copy number is consistent with the extensive phenotypic diversity in monoterpenes shown in Protium, selection analyses suggest that not all copies are undergoing divergent selection consistent with a coevolutionary arms race with enemies, but instead may be under stabilizing and relaxed selection consistent with signaling or physiological stress functionality.