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Liu D, Liu LL, Zheng XQ, Chen R, Lin LR, Yang TC, Tong ML. Genetic Profiling of the Full-Length tprK Gene in Patients with Primary and Secondary Syphilis. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0493122. [PMID: 37036342 PMCID: PMC10269439 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04931-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2023] [Indexed: 04/11/2023] Open
Abstract
TprK antigenic variation is acknowledged as an important strategy developed by Treponema pallidum to achieve immune evasion. Previous studies applied short-read sequencing to explore tprK gene sequence diversity in clinical samples; however, due to the limitations of short-read sequencing, it was difficult to determine the linkage between the seven V regions, and crucial information about full-length tprK variants was lost. Although two recent studies explored complete tprK gene profiles in natural human syphilis infection, there are still too few profiled full-length tprK variants among clinical T. pallidum isolates to fully understand the characteristics of TprK coding diversity. Here, Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) long-read sequencing was applied to examine the diversity of full-length tprK variants in 21 clinical T. pallidum isolates from 11 patients with primary syphilis and 10 patients with secondary syphilis. A total of 398 high-confidence full-length sequences, which presented remarkable sequence heterogeneity, were found. However, these full-length tprK variants exhibited limited variation in length and GC content, showing 24 length types and average GC content of 51.5 ± 0.42% and 51.6 ± 0.26% for primary and secondary syphilis samples, respectively. Additionally, the combined patterns of mutated V regions generating new tprK variants were obviously different in primary and secondary syphilis samples. The diversity of tprK gene sequences in primary syphilis samples may represent the underlying variability of the bacterium; conversely, the variability of the tprK gene in secondary syphilis samples may more accurately reflect how T. pallidum escapes host immune clearance. These data highlight the tprK gene as an important coding gene that shows conflicting genetic characteristics but underlies the persistence of spirochete infection. IMPORTANCE The resurgence of syphilis in both low- and high-income countries has attracted attention, and persistent infection by the pathogen has long been a research focus. The tprK gene, encoding the hypervariable outer membrane protein, is thought to be responsible for pathogen immune evasion and persistent infection. Here, PacBio long-read sequencing was applied to examine the diversity of full-length tprK variants in 21 clinical T. pallidum isolates from 11 patients with primary syphilis and 10 patients with secondary syphilis. The results showed that the sequences of the tprK gene were remarkably heterogeneous; however, the sequences presented limited variation in length and GC content. The investigation of the combined patterns of the V regions allowed us to gain insight into the features of the tprK gene generating new variants at different clinical stages. The findings of this study will be helpful for further exploration of the pathogenesis of syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan Liu
- Center of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongshan Hospital, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Li-Li Liu
- Center of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongshan Hospital, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Xin-Qi Zheng
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Rui Chen
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Li-Rong Lin
- Center of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongshan Hospital, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Tian-Ci Yang
- Center of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongshan Hospital, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Man-Li Tong
- Center of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongshan Hospital, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Institute of Infectious Disease, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
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2
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Deb SK, Edger PP, Pires JC, McKain MR. Patterns, mechanisms, and consequences of homoeologous exchange in allopolyploid angiosperms: a genomic and epigenomic perspective. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 238:2284-2304. [PMID: 37010081 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Allopolyploids result from hybridization between different evolutionary lineages coupled with genome doubling. Homoeologous chromosomes (chromosomes with common shared ancestry) may undergo recombination immediately after allopolyploid formation and continue over successive generations. The outcome of this meiotic pairing behavior is dynamic and complex. Homoeologous exchanges (HEs) may lead to the formation of unbalanced gametes, reduced fertility, and selective disadvantage. By contrast, HEs could act as sources of novel evolutionary substrates, shifting the relative dosage of parental gene copies, generating novel phenotypic diversity, and helping the establishment of neo-allopolyploids. However, HE patterns vary among lineages, across generations, and even within individual genomes and chromosomes. The causes and consequences of this variation are not fully understood, though interest in this evolutionary phenomenon has increased in the last decade. Recent technological advances show promise in uncovering the mechanistic basis of HEs. Here, we describe recent observations of the common patterns among allopolyploid angiosperm lineages, underlying genomic and epigenomic features, and consequences of HEs. We identify critical research gaps and discuss future directions with far-reaching implications in understanding allopolyploid evolution and applying them to the development of important phenotypic traits of polyploid crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sontosh K Deb
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487, USA
- Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, 3114, Bangladesh
| | - Patrick P Edger
- Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48823, USA
- Genetics and Genome Sciences Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48823, USA
| | - J Chris Pires
- Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Michael R McKain
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487, USA
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3
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Ho AT, Hurst LD. Unusual mammalian usage of TGA stop codons reveals that sequence conservation need not imply purifying selection. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001588. [PMID: 35550630 PMCID: PMC9129041 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The assumption that conservation of sequence implies the action of purifying selection is central to diverse methodologies to infer functional importance. GC-biased gene conversion (gBGC), a meiotic mismatch repair bias strongly favouring GC over AT, can in principle mimic the action of selection, this being thought to be especially important in mammals. As mutation is GC→AT biased, to demonstrate that gBGC does indeed cause false signals requires evidence that an AT-rich residue is selectively optimal compared to its more GC-rich allele, while showing also that the GC-rich alternative is conserved. We propose that mammalian stop codon evolution provides a robust test case. Although in most taxa TAA is the optimal stop codon, TGA is both abundant and conserved in mammalian genomes. We show that this mammalian exceptionalism is well explained by gBGC mimicking purifying selection and that TAA is the selectively optimal codon. Supportive of gBGC, we observe (i) TGA usage trends are consistent at the focal stop codon and elsewhere (in UTR sequences); (ii) that higher TGA usage and higher TAA→TGA substitution rates are predicted by a high recombination rate; and (iii) across species the difference in TAA <-> TGA substitution rates between GC-rich and GC-poor genes is largest in genomes that possess higher between-gene GC variation. TAA optimality is supported both by enrichment in highly expressed genes and trends associated with effective population size. High TGA usage and high TAA→TGA rates in mammals are thus consistent with gBGC’s predicted ability to “drive” deleterious mutations and supports the hypothesis that sequence conservation need not be indicative of purifying selection. A general trend for GC-rich trinucleotides to reside at frequencies far above their mutational equilibrium in high recombining domains supports the generality of these results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Thomas Ho
- Milner Centre for Evolution, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
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4
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Wang L, Sun F, Wan ZY, Yang Z, Tay YX, Lee M, Ye B, Wen Y, Meng Z, Fan B, Alfiko Y, Shen Y, Piferrer F, Meyer A, Schartl M, Yue GH. Transposon-induced epigenetic silencing in the X chromosome as a novel form of dmrt1 expression regulation during sex determination in the fighting fish. BMC Biol 2022; 20:5. [PMID: 34996452 PMCID: PMC8742447 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-021-01205-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Fishes are the one of the most diverse groups of animals with respect to their modes of sex determination, providing unique models for uncovering the evolutionary and molecular mechanisms underlying sex determination and reversal. Here, we have investigated how sex is determined in a species of both commercial and ecological importance, the Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens. Results We conducted association mapping on four commercial and two wild populations of B. splendens. In three of the four commercial populations, the master sex determining (MSD) locus was found to be located in a region of ~ 80 kb on LG2 which harbours five protein coding genes, including dmrt1, a gene involved in male sex determination in different animal taxa. In these fish, dmrt1 shows a male-biased gonadal expression from undifferentiated stages to adult organs and the knockout of this gene resulted in ovarian development in XY genotypes. Genome sequencing of XX and YY genotypes identified a transposon, drbx1, inserted into the fourth intron of the X-linked dmrt1 allele. Methylation assays revealed that epigenetic changes induced by drbx1 spread out to the promoter region of dmrt1. In addition, drbx1 being inserted between two closely linked cis-regulatory elements reduced their enhancer activities. Thus, epigenetic changes, induced by drbx1, contribute to the reduced expression of the X-linked dmrt1 allele, leading to female development. This represents a previously undescribed solution in animals relying on dmrt1 function for sex determination. Differentiation between the X and Y chromosomes is limited to a small region of ~ 200 kb surrounding the MSD gene. Recombination suppression spread slightly out of the SD locus. However, this mechanism was not found in the fourth commercial stock we studied, or in the two wild populations analysed, suggesting that it originated recently during domestication. Conclusions Taken together, our data provide novel insights into the role of epigenetic regulation of dmrt1 in sex determination and turnover of SD systems and suggest that fighting fish are a suitable model to study the initial stages of sex chromosome evolution. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12915-021-01205-y.
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Affiliation(s)
- Le Wang
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Fei Sun
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Zi Yi Wan
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Zituo Yang
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Yi Xuan Tay
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - May Lee
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Baoqing Ye
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Yanfei Wen
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Zining Meng
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, China
| | - Bin Fan
- Department of Food and Environmental Engineering, Yangjiang Polytechnic, Yangjiang, 529500, China
| | - Yuzer Alfiko
- Biotech Lab, Wilmar International, Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Yubang Shen
- Key Laboratory of Exploration and Utilization of Aquatic Genetic Resources, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306, China
| | - Francesc Piferrer
- Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Axel Meyer
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany.
| | - Manfred Schartl
- Developmental Biochemistry, Biocenter, University of Wuerzburg, 97074, Wuerzburg, Germany. .,The Xiphophorus Genetic Stock Center, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, 78666, USA.
| | - Gen Hua Yue
- Molecular Population Genetics & Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore, 117604, Singapore. .,Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. .,School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637551, Singapore.
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5
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Yang T, Sahu SK, Yang L, Liu Y, Mu W, Liu X, Strube ML, Liu H, Zhong B. Comparative Analyses of 3,654 Plastid Genomes Unravel Insights Into Evolutionary Dynamics and Phylogenetic Discordance of Green Plants. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:808156. [PMID: 35498716 PMCID: PMC9038950 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.808156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The plastid organelle is essential for many vital cellular processes and the growth and development of plants. The availability of a large number of complete plastid genomes could be effectively utilized to understand the evolution of the plastid genomes and phylogenetic relationships among plants. We comprehensively analyzed the plastid genomes of Viridiplantae comprising 3,654 taxa from 298 families and 111 orders and compared the genomic organizations in their plastid genomic DNA among major clades, which include gene gain/loss, gene copy number, GC content, and gene blocks. We discovered that some important genes that exhibit similar functions likely formed gene blocks, such as the psb family presumably showing co-occurrence and forming gene blocks in Viridiplantae. The inverted repeats (IRs) in plastid genomes have doubled in size across land plants, and their GC content is substantially higher than non-IR genes. By employing three different data sets [all nucleotide positions (nt123), only the first and second codon positions (nt12), and amino acids (AA)], our phylogenomic analyses revealed Chlorokybales + Mesostigmatales as the earliest-branching lineage of streptophytes. Hornworts, mosses, and liverworts forming a monophylum were identified as the sister lineage of tracheophytes. Based on nt12 and AA data sets, monocots, Chloranthales and magnoliids are successive sister lineages to the eudicots + Ceratophyllales clade. The comprehensive taxon sampling and analysis of different data sets from plastid genomes recovered well-supported relationships of green plants, thereby contributing to resolving some long-standing uncertainties in the plant phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Yang
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Sunil Kumar Sahu
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
- *Correspondence: Sunil Kumar Sahu,
| | - Lingxiao Yang
- College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Weixue Mu
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xin Liu
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Mikael Lenz Strube
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Huan Liu
- Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Yantian Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genomics, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Bojian Zhong
- College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China
- Bojian Zhong,
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6
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Papaioannou IA, Dutreux F, Peltier FA, Maekawa H, Delhomme N, Bardhan A, Friedrich A, Schacherer J, Knop M. Sex without crossing over in the yeast Saccharomycodes ludwigii. Genome Biol 2021; 22:303. [PMID: 34732243 PMCID: PMC8567612 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-021-02521-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Intermixing of genomes through meiotic reassortment and recombination of homologous chromosomes is a unifying theme of sexual reproduction in eukaryotic organisms and is considered crucial for their adaptive evolution. Previous studies of the budding yeast species Saccharomycodes ludwigii suggested that meiotic crossing over might be absent from its sexual life cycle, which is predominated by fertilization within the meiotic tetrad. RESULTS We demonstrate that recombination is extremely suppressed during meiosis in Sd. ludwigii. DNA double-strand break formation by the conserved transesterase Spo11, processing and repair involving interhomolog interactions are required for normal meiosis but do not lead to crossing over. Although the species has retained an intact meiotic gene repertoire, genetic and population analyses suggest the exceptionally rare occurrence of meiotic crossovers in its genome. A strong AT bias of spontaneous mutations and the absence of recombination are likely responsible for its unusually low genomic GC level. CONCLUSIONS Sd. ludwigii has followed a unique evolutionary trajectory that possibly derives fitness benefits from the combination of frequent mating between products of the same meiotic event with the extreme suppression of meiotic recombination. This life style ensures preservation of heterozygosity throughout its genome and may enable the species to adapt to its environment and survive with only minimal levels of rare meiotic recombination. We propose Sd. ludwigii as an excellent natural forum for the study of genome evolution and recombination rates.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Fabien Dutreux
- Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, GMGM UMR 7156, Strasbourg, France
| | - France A. Peltier
- Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Hiromi Maekawa
- Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), Heidelberg, Germany
- Current affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Nicolas Delhomme
- Umeå Plant Science Centre, Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Amit Bardhan
- Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Anne Friedrich
- Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, GMGM UMR 7156, Strasbourg, France
| | - Joseph Schacherer
- Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, GMGM UMR 7156, Strasbourg, France
- Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), Paris, France
| | - Michael Knop
- Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg, Germany
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7
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de Oliveira JL, Morales AC, Hurst LD, Urrutia AO, Thompson CRL, Wolf JB. Inferring Adaptive Codon Preference to Understand Sources of Selection Shaping Codon Usage Bias. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:3247-3266. [PMID: 33871580 PMCID: PMC8321536 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Alternative synonymous codons are often used at unequal frequencies. Classically, studies of such codon usage bias (CUB) attempted to separate the impact of neutral from selective forces by assuming that deviations from a predicted neutral equilibrium capture selection. However, GC-biased gene conversion (gBGC) can also cause deviation from a neutral null. Alternatively, selection has been inferred from CUB in highly expressed genes, but the accuracy of this approach has not been extensively tested, and gBGC can interfere with such extrapolations (e.g., if expression and gene conversion rates covary). It is therefore critical to examine deviations from a mutational null in a species with no gBGC. To achieve this goal, we implement such an analysis in the highly AT rich genome of Dictyostelium discoideum, where we find no evidence of gBGC. We infer neutral CUB under mutational equilibrium to quantify "adaptive codon preference," a nontautologous genome wide quantitative measure of the relative selection strength driving CUB. We observe signatures of purifying selection consistent with selection favoring adaptive codon preference. Preferred codons are not GC rich, underscoring the independence from gBGC. Expression-associated "preference" largely matches adaptive codon preference but does not wholly capture the influence of selection shaping patterns across all genes, suggesting selective constraints associated specifically with high expression. We observe patterns consistent with effects on mRNA translation and stability shaping adaptive codon preference. Thus, our approach to quantifying adaptive codon preference provides a framework for inferring the sources of selection that shape CUB across different contexts within the genome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janaina Lima de Oliveira
- Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, 40170-115, Brazil.,Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
| | - Atahualpa Castillo Morales
- Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
| | - Laurence D Hurst
- Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
| | - Araxi O Urrutia
- Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.,Instituto de Ecologia, UNAM, Ciudad de Mexico 04510, Mexico
| | - Christopher R L Thompson
- Centre for Life's Origins and Evolution, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Darwin Building, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Jason B Wolf
- Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
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8
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Gong W, Song X, Xie C, Zhou Y, Zhu Z, Xu C, Peng Y. Landscape of meiotic crossovers in Hericium erinaceus. Microbiol Res 2021; 245:126692. [PMID: 33453565 DOI: 10.1016/j.micres.2020.126692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2020] [Revised: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Meiotic crossover shows marked interspecific and intraspecific variation, and knowledge about the molecular mechanism of crossover variation remains limited. Herein, we described the genome-wide scanning of crossover in one mushroom-forming fungus Hericium erinaceus. Utilizing the whole-genome single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data-sets of a 127 F1 haploid progeny, we localized a total of 1316 crossover events and found that they were more likely to occur in the genic than intergenic regions. More than 30 % of the crossovers were concentrated in 59 crossover hotspots that were preferentially located close to chromosome ends. We then examined the genomic features around crossover hotspots. Results showed that the crossover hotspots were associated with increased gene density and guanine-cytosine (GC) content. An 8-bp GC-rich motif (GCGTCAGC) was found to be significantly enriched in these hotspots. The presence of mating-type loci affected the crossover at local scale rather than the overall crossover number. In order to dissect the genetic mechanisms shaping crossover variation, we then conducted quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping for the total crossovers (TCO) and the crossover events that solely occurred within hotspots (HCO). Genome-wide QTL scanning identified four TCO-QTLs and two HCO-QTLs, which all located within or next to the crossover-hotspots. Crossover variations were shaped by multiple small-effect loci, with individual QTL contributing 6.9 %-11.7 % of variation. A few recombination pathway genes, including Spo11, Msh5, and Smc5 were found to be co-localized with the mapped crossover QTLs. Taken together, findings of this study offer insights into the crossover distribution and genetic factors conferring crossover variation in H. erinaceus, and advance our understandings for meiotic recombination in mushroom-forming fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenbing Gong
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China
| | - Xiaoya Song
- Lishui Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, Lishui 323000, PR China
| | - Chunliang Xie
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China
| | - Yingjun Zhou
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China
| | - Zuohua Zhu
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China
| | - Chao Xu
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China
| | - Yuande Peng
- Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha 410205, PR China.
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9
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From molecules to populations: appreciating and estimating recombination rate variation. Nat Rev Genet 2020; 21:476-492. [DOI: 10.1038/s41576-020-0240-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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10
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Nivina A, Yuet KP, Hsu J, Khosla C. Evolution and Diversity of Assembly-Line Polyketide Synthases. Chem Rev 2019; 119:12524-12547. [PMID: 31838842 PMCID: PMC6935866 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 142] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Assembly-line polyketide synthases (PKSs) are among the most complex protein machineries known in nature, responsible for the biosynthesis of numerous compounds used in the clinic. Their present-day diversity is the result of an evolutionary path that has involved the emergence of a multimodular architecture and further diversification of assembly-line PKSs. In this review, we provide an overview of previous studies that investigated PKS evolution and propose a model that challenges the currently prevailing view that gene duplication has played a major role in the emergence of multimodularity. We also analyze the ensemble of orphan PKS clusters sequenced so far to evaluate how large the entire diversity of assembly-line PKS clusters and their chemical products could be. Finally, we examine the existing techniques to access the natural PKS diversity in natural and heterologous hosts and describe approaches to further expand this diversity through engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Nivina
- Department
of Chemistry, Stanford ChEM-H, Department of Chemical Engineering Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Kai P. Yuet
- Department
of Chemistry, Stanford ChEM-H, Department of Chemical Engineering Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Jake Hsu
- Department
of Chemistry, Stanford ChEM-H, Department of Chemical Engineering Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Chaitan Khosla
- Department
of Chemistry, Stanford ChEM-H, Department of Chemical Engineering Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
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11
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Weissman JL, Fagan WF, Johnson PLF. Linking high GC content to the repair of double strand breaks in prokaryotic genomes. PLoS Genet 2019; 15:e1008493. [PMID: 31703064 PMCID: PMC6867656 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2019] [Revised: 11/20/2019] [Accepted: 10/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Genomic GC content varies widely among microbes for reasons unknown. While mutation bias partially explains this variation, prokaryotes near-universally have a higher GC content than predicted solely by this bias. Debate surrounds the relative importance of the remaining explanations of selection versus biased gene conversion favoring GC alleles. Some environments (e.g. soils) are associated with a high genomic GC content of their inhabitants, which implies that either high GC content is a selective adaptation to particular habitats, or that certain habitats favor increased rates of gene conversion. Here, we report a novel association between the presence of the non-homologous end joining DNA double-strand break repair pathway and GC content; this observation suggests that DNA damage may be a fundamental driver of GC content, leading in part to the many environmental patterns observed to-date. We discuss potential mechanisms accounting for the observed association, and provide preliminary evidence that sites experiencing higher rates of double-strand breaks are under selection for increased GC content relative to the genomic background. The overall nucleotide composition of an organism’s genome varies greatly between species. Previous work has identified certain environmental factors (e.g., oxygen availability) associated with the relative number of GC bases as opposed to AT bases in the genomes of species. Many of these environments that are associated with high GC content are also associated with relatively high rates of DNA damage. We show that organisms possessing the non-homologous end-joining DNA repair pathway, which is one mechanism to repair DNA double-strand breaks, have an elevated GC content relative to expectation. We also show that certain sites on the genome that are particularly susceptible to double strand breaks have an elevated GC content. This leads us to suggest that an important underlying driver of variability in nucleotide composition across environments is the rate of DNA damage (specifically double-strand breaks) to which an organism living in each environment is exposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- JL Weissman
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland - College Park, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
| | - William F. Fagan
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland - College Park, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Philip L. F. Johnson
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland - College Park, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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12
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Sun S, Coelho MA, Heitman J, Nowrousian M. Convergent evolution of linked mating-type loci in basidiomycete fungi. PLoS Genet 2019; 15:e1008365. [PMID: 31490920 PMCID: PMC6730849 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2018] [Accepted: 08/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexual development is a key evolutionary innovation of eukaryotes. In many species, mating involves interaction between compatible mating partners that can undergo cell and nuclear fusion and subsequent steps of development including meiosis. Mating compatibility in fungi is governed by the mating type (MAT) loci. In basidiomycetes, the ancestral state is hypothesized to be tetrapolar, with two genetically unlinked MAT loci containing homeodomain transcription factor genes (HD locus) and pheromone and pheromone receptor genes (P/R locus), respectively. Alleles at both loci must differ between mating partners for completion of sexual development. However, there are also basidiomycetes with bipolar mating systems, which can arise through genomic linkage of the HD and P/R loci. In the order Tremellales, bipolarity is found only in the pathogenic Cryptococcus species. Here, we describe the analysis of MAT loci from 24 species of the Trichosporonales, a sister order to the Tremellales. In all of the species analyzed, the MAT loci are fused and a single HD gene is present in each mating type, similar to the organization in the pathogenic Cryptococci. However, the HD and P/R allele combinations in the Trichosporonales are different from those in the pathogenic Cryptococci. This and the existence of tetrapolar species in the Tremellales suggest that fusion of the HD and P/R loci occurred independently in the Trichosporonales and pathogenic Cryptococci, supporting the hypothesis of convergent evolution towards fused MAT regions, similar to previous findings in other fungal groups. Unlike the fused MAT loci in several other basidiomycete lineages though, the gene content and gene order within the fused MAT loci are highly conserved in the Trichosporonales, and there is no apparent suppression of recombination extending from the MAT loci to adjacent chromosomal regions, suggesting different mechanisms for the evolution of physically linked MAT loci in these groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Sun
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Marco A. Coelho
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Joseph Heitman
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Minou Nowrousian
- Lehrstuhl für Allgemeine und Molekulare Botanik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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13
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A century of bias in genetics and evolution. Heredity (Edinb) 2019; 123:33-43. [PMID: 31189901 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-019-0194-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Revised: 01/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/29/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Mendel proposed that the heritable material is particulate and that transmission of alleles is unbiased. An assumption of unbiased transmission was necessary to show how variation can be preserved in the absence of selection, so overturning an early objection to Darwinism. In the second half of the twentieth century, it was widely recognised that even strongly deleterious alleles can invade if they have strongly biased transmission (i.e. strong segregation distortion). The spread of alleles with distorted segregation can explain many curiosities. More recently, the selectionist-neutralist duopoly was broken by the realisation that biased gene conversion can explain phenomena such as mammalian isochore structures. An initial focus on unbiased transmission in 1919, has thus given way to an interest in biased transmission in 2019. A focus on very weak bias is now possible owing to technological advances, although technical biases may put a limit on resolving power. To understand the relevance of weak bias we could profit from having the concept of the effectively Mendelian allele, a companion to the effectively neutral allele. Understanding the implications of unbiased and biased transmission may, I suggest, be a good way to teach evolution so as to avoid psychological biases.
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14
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Jabbari K, Wirtz J, Rauscher M, Wiehe T. A common genomic code for chromatin architecture and recombination landscape. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0213278. [PMID: 30865674 PMCID: PMC6415826 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0213278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2018] [Accepted: 02/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent findings established a link between DNA sequence composition and interphase chromatin architecture and explained the evolutionary conservation of TADs (Topologically Associated Domains) and LADs (Lamina Associated Domains) in mammals. This prompted us to analyse conformation capture and recombination rate data to study the relationship between chromatin architecture and recombination landscape of human and mouse genomes. The results reveal that: (1) low recombination domains and blocks of elevated linkage disequilibrium tend to coincide with TADs and isochores, indicating co-evolving regulatory elements and genes in insulated neighbourhoods; (2) double strand break (DSB) and recombination frequencies increase in the short loops of GC-rich TADs, whereas recombination cold spots are typical of LADs and (3) the binding and loading of proteins, which are critical for DSB and meiotic recombination (SPO11, DMC1, H3K4me3 and PRMD9) are higher in GC-rich TADs. One explanation for these observations is that the occurrence of DSB and recombination in meiotic cells are associated with compositional and epigenetic features (genomic code) that influence DNA stiffness/flexibility and appear to be similar to those guiding the chromatin architecture in the interphase nucleus of pre-leptotene cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kamel Jabbari
- Institute for Genetics, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, Köln, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Johannes Wirtz
- Institute for Genetics, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, Köln, Germany
| | - Martina Rauscher
- Institute for Genetics, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, Köln, Germany
| | - Thomas Wiehe
- Institute for Genetics, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, Köln, Germany
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15
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GC content elevates mutation and recombination rates in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:E7109-E7118. [PMID: 29987035 PMCID: PMC6064992 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1807334115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The chromosomes of many eukaryotes have regions of high GC content interspersed with regions of low GC content. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, high-GC regions are often associated with high levels of meiotic recombination. In this study, we constructed URA3 genes that differ substantially in their base composition [URA3-AT (31% GC), URA3-WT (43% GC), and URA3-GC (63% GC)] but encode proteins with the same amino acid sequence. The strain with URA3-GC had an approximately sevenfold elevated rate of ura3 mutations compared with the strains with URA3-WT or URA3-AT About half of these mutations were single-base substitutions and were dependent on the error-prone DNA polymerase ζ. About 30% were deletions or duplications between short (5-10 base) direct repeats resulting from DNA polymerase slippage. The URA3-GC gene also had elevated rates of meiotic and mitotic recombination relative to the URA3-AT or URA3-WT genes. Thus, base composition has a substantial effect on the basic parameters of genome stability and evolution.
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16
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Stapley J, Feulner PGD, Johnston SE, Santure AW, Smadja CM. Variation in recombination frequency and distribution across eukaryotes: patterns and processes. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 372:rstb.2016.0455. [PMID: 29109219 PMCID: PMC5698618 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 203] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Recombination, the exchange of DNA between maternal and paternal chromosomes during meiosis, is an essential feature of sexual reproduction in nearly all multicellular organisms. While the role of recombination in the evolution of sex has received theoretical and empirical attention, less is known about how recombination rate itself evolves and what influence this has on evolutionary processes within sexually reproducing organisms. Here, we explore the patterns of, and processes governing recombination in eukaryotes. We summarize patterns of variation, integrating current knowledge with an analysis of linkage map data in 353 organisms. We then discuss proximate and ultimate processes governing recombination rate variation and consider how these influence evolutionary processes. Genome-wide recombination rates (cM/Mb) can vary more than tenfold across eukaryotes, and there is large variation in the distribution of recombination events across closely related taxa, populations and individuals. We discuss how variation in rate and distribution relates to genome architecture, genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, sex, environmental perturbations and variable selective pressures. There has been great progress in determining the molecular mechanisms governing recombination, and with the continued development of new modelling and empirical approaches, there is now also great opportunity to further our understanding of how and why recombination rate varies.This article is part of the themed issue 'Evolutionary causes and consequences of recombination rate variation in sexual organisms'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Stapley
- Centre for Adaptation to a Changing Environment, IBZ, ETH Zürich, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Philine G D Feulner
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, EAWAG Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, 6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland.,Division of Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Susan E Johnston
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3JY, UK
| | - Anna W Santure
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Carole M Smadja
- Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution UMR 5554, CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Université de Montpellier, 3095 Montpellier cedex 05, France
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17
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A High-Resolution Map of Meiotic Recombination in Cryptococcus deneoformans Demonstrates Decreased Recombination in Unisexual Reproduction. Genetics 2018; 209:567-578. [PMID: 29625994 PMCID: PMC5972427 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.118.300996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Multiple species within the basidiomycete genus Cryptococcus cause cryptococcal disease. These species are estimated to affect nearly a quarter of a million people leading to ∼180,000 mortalities, annually. Sexual reproduction, which can occur between haploid yeasts of the same or opposite mating type, is a potentially important contributor to pathogenesis as recombination can generate novel genotypes and transgressive phenotypes. However, our quantitative understanding of recombination in this clinically important yeast is limited. Here, we describe genome-wide estimates of recombination rates in Cryptococcus deneoformans and compare recombination between progeny from α-α unisexual and a-α bisexual crosses. We find that offspring from bisexual crosses have modestly higher average rates of recombination than those derived from unisexual crosses. Recombination hot and cold spots across the C. deneoformans genome are also identified and are associated with increased GC content. Finally, we observed regions genome-wide with allele frequencies deviating from the expected parental ratio. These findings and observations advance our quantitative understanding of the genetic events that occur during sexual reproduction in C. deneoformans, and the impact that different forms of sexual reproduction are likely to have on genetic diversity in this important fungal pathogen.
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18
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Tetrad analysis in plants and fungi finds large differences in gene conversion rates but no GC bias. Nat Ecol Evol 2017; 2:164-173. [PMID: 29158556 PMCID: PMC5733138 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0372-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 10/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
GC-favoring gene conversion enables fixation of deleterious alleles, disturbs tests of natural selection and potentially explains both the evolution of recombination as well as the commonly reported intra-genomic correlation between G+C content and recombination rate. In addition, gene conversion disturbs linkage disequilibrium, potentially affecting the ability to detect causative variants. However, the importance and generality of these effects is unresolved, not simply because direct analyses are technically challenging but also because prior within- and between-species discrepant results can be hard to appraise owing to methodological differences. Here we report results of methodologically uniform whole-genome sequencing of all tetrad products in Saccharomyces, Neurospora, Chlamydomonas and Arabidopsis. The proportion of polymorphic markers converted varies over three orders of magnitude between species (from 2% of markers converted in yeast to only ~0.005% in the two plants) with at least 87.5% of the variance in per tetrad conversion rates being between-species. This is largely owing to differences in recombination rate and median tract length. Despite three of the species showing a positive GC-recombination correlation, there is no significant net AT->GC conversion bias in any, despite relatively high resolution in the two taxa (Saccharomyces and Neurospora) with relatively common gene conversion. The absence of a GC bias means: 1) that there should be no presumption that gene conversion is GC biased, nor 2) that a GC-recombination correlation necessarily implies biased gene conversion, 3) that Ka/Ks tests should be unaffected in these species and 4) it is unlikely that gene conversion explains the evolution of recombination.
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19
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Kshirsagar R, Ghodke I, Muniyappa K. Saccharomyces cerevisiae Red1 protein exhibits nonhomologous DNA end-joining activity and potentiates Hop1-promoted pairing of double-stranded DNA. J Biol Chem 2017. [PMID: 28642366 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m117.796425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Elucidation of the function of synaptonemal complex (SC) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has mainly focused on in vivo analysis of recombination-defective meiotic mutants. Consequently, significant gaps remain in the mechanistic understanding of the activities of various SC proteins and the functional relationships among them. S. cerevisiae Hop1 and Red1 are essential structural components of the SC axial/lateral elements. Previous studies have demonstrated that Hop1 is a structure-selective DNA-binding protein exhibiting high affinity for the Holliday junction and promoting DNA bridging, condensation, and pairing between double-stranded DNA molecules. However, the exact mode of action of Red1 remains unclear, although it is known to interact with Hop1 and to suppress the spore viability defects of hop1 mutant alleles. Here, we report the purification and functional characterization of the full-length Red1 protein. Our results revealed that Red1 forms a stable complex with Hop1 in vitro and provided quantitative insights into their physical interactions. Mechanistically, Red1 preferentially associated with the Holliday junction and 3-way junction rather than with single- or double-stranded DNA with overhangs. Although Hop1 and Red1 exhibited similar binding affinities toward several DNA substrates, the two proteins displayed some significant differences. Notably, Red1, by itself, lacked DNA-pairing ability; however, it potentiated Hop1-promoted intermolecular pairing between double-stranded DNA molecules. Moreover, Red1 exhibited nonhomologous DNA end-joining activity, thus revealing an unexpected role for Red1 in recombination-based DNA repair. Collectively, this study presents the first direct insights into Red1's mode of action and into the mechanism underlying its role in chromosome synapsis and recombination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rucha Kshirsagar
- From the Department of Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Indrajeet Ghodke
- From the Department of Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - K Muniyappa
- From the Department of Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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20
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Wang L, Bai B, Liu P, Huang SQ, Wan ZY, Chua E, Ye B, Yue GH. Construction of high-resolution recombination maps in Asian seabass. BMC Genomics 2017; 18:63. [PMID: 28068919 PMCID: PMC5223582 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-016-3462-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2016] [Accepted: 12/22/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background A high-density genetic map is essential for de novo genome assembly, fine mapping QTL for important complex traits, comparative genomic studies and understanding the mechanisms of genome evolution. Although a number of genomic resources are available in Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), a high-density linkage map is still lacking. To facilitate QTL mapping for marker-assisted selection and genome assembly, and to understand the genome-wide recombination rates, we constructed high density linkage maps using three families and genotyping by sequencing. Results A high-density consensus linkage map consisting of 8, 274 markers was constructed based on sex-averaged genetic maps. The genetic maps were then aligned and integrated with the current genome assembly of Asian seabass. More than 90% of the genome contig sequences were anchored onto the consensus genetic map. Evidence of assembly errors in the current genome assembly was identified. A fragment of up to 2.5 Mb belonging to LG14 was assembled into Chr15. The length of family-specific sex-averaged maps ranged from 1348.96 to 1624.65 cM. Female maps were slightly longer than male maps using common markers. Female-to-male ratios were highly variable both across chromosomes within each family and throughout three families for each chromosome. However, the distribution patterns of recombination along chromosomes were similar between sexes across the whole genome. The overall recombination rates were significantly correlated with genome-wide GC content and the correlations were revealed to be stronger in females than in males. Conclusions These high-density genetic maps provide not only essential tools for facilitating de novo genome assembly and comparative genomic studies in teleosts, but also critical resources for fine mapping QTL and genome-wide association mapping for economically important traits in Asian seabass. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-016-3462-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Le Wang
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Bin Bai
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Peng Liu
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore.,Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 14 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore
| | - Shu Qing Huang
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Zi Yi Wan
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore.,School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 60 Nanyang Drive, Singapore, 637551, Singapore
| | - Elaine Chua
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Baoqing Ye
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore
| | - Gen Hua Yue
- Molecular Population Genetics and Breeding Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117604, Singapore. .,Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 14 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. .,School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 60 Nanyang Drive, Singapore, 637551, Singapore.
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21
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Yahara K, Didelot X, Jolley KA, Kobayashi I, Maiden MCJ, Sheppard SK, Falush D. The Landscape of Realized Homologous Recombination in Pathogenic Bacteria. Mol Biol Evol 2016; 33:456-71. [PMID: 26516092 PMCID: PMC4866539 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msv237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Recombination enhances the adaptive potential of organisms by allowing genetic variants to be tested on multiple genomic backgrounds. Its distribution in the genome can provide insight into the evolutionary forces that underlie traits, such as the emergence of pathogenicity. Here, we examined landscapes of realized homologous recombination of 500 genomes from ten bacterial species and found all species have "hot" regions with elevated rates relative to the genome average. We examined the size, gene content, and chromosomal features associated with these regions and the correlations between closely related species. The recombination landscape is variable and evolves rapidly. For example in Salmonella, only short regions of around 1 kb in length are hot whereas in the closely related species Escherichia coli, some hot regions exceed 100 kb, spanning many genes. Only Streptococcus pyogenes shows evidence for the positive correlation between GC content and recombination that has been reported for several eukaryotes. Genes with function related to the cell surface/membrane are often found in recombination hot regions but E. coli is the only species where genes annotated as "virulence associated" are consistently hotter. There is also evidence that some genes with "housekeeping" functions tend to be overrepresented in cold regions. For example, ribosomal proteins showed low recombination in all of the species. Among specific genes, transferrin-binding proteins are recombination hot in all three of the species in which they were found, and are subject to interspecies recombination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Koji Yahara
- Biostatistics Center, Kurume University, Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan College of Medicine, Institute of Life Science, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Xavier Didelot
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Keith A Jolley
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Ichizo Kobayashi
- Department of Medical Genome Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Samuel K Sheppard
- College of Medicine, Institute of Life Science, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Daniel Falush
- College of Medicine, Institute of Life Science, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom Department of Medical Genome Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
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22
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Sundararajan A, Dukowic-Schulze S, Kwicklis M, Engstrom K, Garcia N, Oviedo OJ, Ramaraj T, Gonzales MD, He Y, Wang M, Sun Q, Pillardy J, Kianian SF, Pawlowski WP, Chen C, Mudge J. Gene Evolutionary Trajectories and GC Patterns Driven by Recombination in Zea mays. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2016; 7:1433. [PMID: 27713757 PMCID: PMC5031598 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2016.01433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2016] [Accepted: 09/08/2016] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Recombination occurring during meiosis is critical for creating genetic variation and plays an essential role in plant evolution. In addition to creating novel gene combinations, recombination can affect genome structure through altering GC patterns. In maize (Zea mays) and other grasses, another intriguing GC pattern exists. Maize genes show a bimodal GC content distribution that has been attributed to nucleotide bias in the third, or wobble, position of the codon. Recombination may be an underlying driving force given that recombination sites are often associated with high GC content. Here we explore the relationship between recombination and genomic GC patterns by comparing GC gene content at each of the three codon positions (GC1, GC2, and GC3, collectively termed GCx) to instances of a variable GC-rich motif that underlies double strand break (DSB) hotspots and to meiocyte-specific gene expression. Surprisingly, GCx bimodality in maize cannot be fully explained by the codon wobble hypothesis. High GCx genes show a strong overlap with the DSB hotspot motif, possibly providing a mechanism for the high evolutionary rates seen in these genes. On the other hand, genes that are turned on in meiosis (early prophase I) are biased against both high GCx genes and genes with the DSB hotspot motif, possibly allowing important meiotic genes to avoid DSBs. Our data suggests a strong link between the GC-rich motif underlying DSB hotspots and high GCx genes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Nathan Garcia
- National Center for Genome Resources, Santa FeNM, USA
| | | | | | | | - Yan He
- Section of Plant Biology, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
| | - Minghui Wang
- Section of Plant Biology, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
- Biotechnology Resource Center Bioinformatics Facility, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
| | - Qi Sun
- Biotechnology Resource Center Bioinformatics Facility, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
| | - Jaroslaw Pillardy
- Biotechnology Resource Center Bioinformatics Facility, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
| | - Shahryar F. Kianian
- Cereal Disease Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service, St. PaulMN, USA
| | - Wojciech P. Pawlowski
- Section of Plant Biology, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, IthacaNY, USA
| | - Changbin Chen
- Department of Horticultural Science, University of Minnesota, St. PaulMN, USA
| | - Joann Mudge
- National Center for Genome Resources, Santa FeNM, USA
- *Correspondence: Joann Mudge,
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23
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Isolation and Analysis of Rare Norovirus Recombinants from Coinfected Mice Using Drop-Based Microfluidics. J Virol 2015; 89:7722-34. [PMID: 25972549 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.01137-15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 05/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Human noroviruses (HuNoVs) are positive-sense RNA viruses that can cause severe, highly infectious gastroenteritis. HuNoV outbreaks are frequently associated with recombination between circulating strains. Strain genotyping and phylogenetic analyses show that noroviruses often recombine in a highly conserved region near the junction of the viral polyprotein (open reading frame 1 [ORF1]) and capsid (ORF2) genes and occasionally within the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) gene. Although genotyping methods are useful for tracking changes in circulating viral populations, they report only the dominant recombinant strains and do not elucidate the frequency or range of recombination events. Furthermore, the relatively low frequency of recombination in RNA viruses has limited studies to cell culture or in vitro systems, which do not reflect the complexities and selective pressures present in an infected organism. Using two murine norovirus (MNV) strains to model coinfection, we developed a microfluidic platform to amplify, detect, and recover individual recombinants following in vitro and in vivo coinfection. One-step reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) was performed in picoliter drops with primers that identified the wild-type and recombinant progenies and scanned for recombination breakpoints at ∼1-kb intervals. We detected recombination between MNV strains at multiple loci spanning the viral protease, RdRP, and capsid ORFs and isolated individual recombinant RNA genomes that were present at a frequency of 1/300,000 or higher. This study is the first to examine norovirus recombination following coinfection of an animal and suggests that the exchange of RNA among viral genomes in an infected host occurs in multiple locations and is an important driver of genetic diversity. IMPORTANCE RNA viruses increase diversity and escape host immune barriers by genomic recombination. Studies using a number of viral systems indicate that recombination occurs via template switching by the virus-encoded RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP). However, factors that govern the frequency and positions of recombination in an infected organism remain largely unknown. This work leverages advances in the applied physics of drop-based microfluidics to isolate and sequence rare recombinants arising from the coinfection of mice with two distinct strains of murine norovirus. This study is the first to detect and analyze norovirus recombination in an animal model.
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Recombination Analysis of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Reveals a Bias toward GC Content and the Inverted Repeat Regions. J Virol 2015; 89:7214-23. [PMID: 25926637 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00880-15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2015] [Accepted: 04/26/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) causes recurrent mucocutaneous ulcers and is the leading cause of infectious blindness and sporadic encephalitis in the United States. HSV-1 has been shown to be highly recombinogenic; however, to date, there has been no genome-wide analysis of recombination. To address this, we generated 40 HSV-1 recombinants derived from two parental strains, OD4 and CJ994. The 40 OD4-CJ994 HSV-1 recombinants were sequenced using the Illumina sequencing system, and recombination breakpoints were determined for each of the recombinants using the Bootscan program. Breakpoints occurring in the terminal inverted repeats were excluded from analysis to prevent double counting, resulting in a total of 272 breakpoints in the data set. By placing windows around the 272 breakpoints followed by Monte Carlo analysis comparing actual data to simulated data, we identified a recombination bias toward both high GC content and intergenic regions. A Monte Carlo analysis also suggested that recombination did not appear to be responsible for the generation of the spontaneous nucleotide mutations detected following sequencing. Additionally, kernel density estimation analysis across the genome found that the large, inverted repeats comprise a recombination hot spot. IMPORTANCE Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) virus is the leading cause of sporadic encephalitis and blinding keratitis in developed countries. HSV-1 has been shown to be highly recombinogenic, and recombination itself appears to be a significant component of genome replication. To date, there has been no genome-wide analysis of recombination. Here we present the findings of the first genome-wide study of recombination performed by generating and sequencing 40 HSV-1 recombinants derived from the OD4 and CJ994 parental strains, followed by bioinformatics analysis. Recombination breakpoints were determined, yielding 272 breakpoints in the full data set. Kernel density analysis determined that the large inverted repeats constitute a recombination hot spot. Additionally, Monte Carlo analyses found biases toward high GC content and intergenic and repetitive regions.
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Diament A, Pinter RY, Tuller T. Three-dimensional eukaryotic genomic organization is strongly correlated with codon usage expression and function. Nat Commun 2014; 5:5876. [PMID: 25510862 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms6876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2014] [Accepted: 11/17/2014] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
It has been shown that the distribution of genes in eukaryotic genomes is not random; however, formerly reported relations between gene function and genomic organization were relatively weak. Previous studies have demonstrated that codon usage bias is related to all stages of gene expression and to protein function. Here we apply a novel tool for assessing functional relatedness, codon usage frequency similarity (CUFS), which measures similarity between genes in terms of codon and amino acid usage. By analyzing chromosome conformation capture data, describing the three-dimensional (3D) conformation of the DNA, we show that the functional similarity between genes captured by CUFS is directly and very strongly correlated with their 3D distance in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Arabidopsis thaliana, mouse and human. This emphasizes the importance of three-dimensional genomic localization in eukaryotes and indicates that codon usage is tightly linked to genome architecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alon Diament
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Ron Y Pinter
- Department of Computer Science, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Tamir Tuller
- 1] Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel [2] The Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
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Marsolier-Kergoat MC. Models for the evolution of GC content in asexual fungi Candida albicans and C. dubliniensis. Genome Biol Evol 2014; 5:2205-16. [PMID: 24179136 PMCID: PMC3845650 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evt170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Although guanine–cytosine (GC)-biased gene conversion (gBGC) following meiotic recombination seems the most probable mechanism accounting for large-scale variations in GC content for many eukaryotes, it cannot explain such variations for organisms belonging to ancient asexual lineages, such as the pathogenic fungi Candida albicans and C. dubliniensis. Analysis of the substitution patterns for these two species reveals a strong anticorrelation between the synonymous transition rates at third codon positions. I propose two models that can account for this observation. According to the first model, the evolution of GC content is driven by gBGC linked to mitotic recombination, either associated with parasexuality or with damage repair. Variations in the GC content thus reflect variations in the strength of gBGC, presumably variations in the mitotic recombination rate. According to the second model, the evolution of GC content is driven by misincorporation errors during the process of DNA replication in S phase. This model proposes that variations in GC content are due to variations in the proportions of dCTPs and dGTPs at the time when sequences are replicated. Experimental data regarding mitotic recombination rates or the variations of dCTPs and dGTPs during S phase are required to validate definitively one of the two models, but in any case, the fit of the models to the data suggests that C. albicans and C. dubliniensis constitute so far unique examples of GC content evolution driven either by mitotic recombination or replicative errors.
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Dong CB, Mao JF, Suo YJ, Shi L, Wang J, Zhang PD, Kang XY. A strategy for characterization of persistent heteroduplex DNA in higher plants. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2014; 80:282-291. [PMID: 25073546 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.12631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2013] [Revised: 07/24/2014] [Accepted: 07/25/2014] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Heteroduplex DNA (hDNA) generated during homologous recombination (HR) is an important component that shapes genetic diversity in sexually reproducing organisms. However, studies of this process in higher plants are limited. This is because hDNAs are difficult to capture in higher plants as their reproductive developmental model only produces normal gametes and does not preserve the mitotic products of the post-meiotic segregation (PMS) process which is crucial for studying hDNAs. In this study, using the model system for tree and woody perennial plant biology (Populus), we propose a strategy for characterizing hDNAs in higher plants. We captured hDNAs by constructing triploid hybrids originating from a cross between unreduced 2n eggs (containing hDNA information as a result of inhibition chromosome segregation at the PMS stage) with normal male gametes. These triploid hybrids allowed us to detect the frequency and location of persistent hDNAs resulting from HR at the molecular level. We found that the frequency of persistent hDNAs, which ranged from 5.3 to 76.6%, was related to locations of the simple sequence repeat markers at the chromosomes, such as the locus-centromere distance, the surrounding DNA sequence and epigenetic information, and the richness of protein-coding transcripts at these loci. In summary, this study provides a method for characterizing persistent hDNAs in higher plants. When high-throughput sequencing techniques can be incorporated, genome-wide persistent hDNA assays for higher plants can be easily carried out using the strategy presented in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chun-Bo Dong
- National Engineering Laboratory for Tree Breeding, College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, No. 35, Qinghua East Road, Beijing, 100083, China; Key Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding in Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants, Ministry of Education, College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, No. 35, Qinghua East Road, Beijing, 100083, China
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Seplyarskiy VB, Logacheva MD, Penin AA, Baranova MA, Leushkin EV, Demidenko NV, Klepikova AV, Kondrashov FA, Kondrashov AS, James TY. Crossing-over in a hypervariable species preferentially occurs in regions of high local similarity. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 31:3016-25. [PMID: 25135947 PMCID: PMC4209137 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Recombination between double-stranded DNA molecules is a key genetic process which occurs in a wide variety of organisms. Usually, crossing-over (CO) occurs during meiosis between genotypes with 98.0–99.9% sequence identity, because within-population nucleotide diversity only rarely exceeds 2%. However, some species are hypervariable and it is unclear how CO can occur between genotypes with less than 90% sequence identity. Here, we study CO in Schizophyllum commune, a hypervariable cosmopolitan basidiomycete mushroom, a frequently encountered decayer of woody substrates. We crossed two haploid individuals, from the United States and from Russia, and obtained genome sequences for their 17 offspring. The average genetic distance between the parents was 14%, making it possible to study CO at very high resolution. We found reduced levels of linkage disequilibrium between loci flanking the CO sites indicating that they are mostly confined to hotspots of recombination. Furthermore, CO events preferentially occurred in regions under stronger negative selection, in particular within exons that showed reduced levels of nucleotide diversity. Apparently, in hypervariable species CO must avoid regions of higher divergence between the recombining genomes due to limitations imposed by the mismatch repair system, with regions under strong negative selection providing the opportunity for recombination. These patterns are opposite to those observed in a number of less variable species indicating that population genomics of hypervariable species may reveal novel biological phenomena.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladimir B Seplyarskiy
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Institute of Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Maria D Logacheva
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Institute of Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Aleksey A Penin
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Institute of Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia Department of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Moscow, Russia
| | - Maria A Baranova
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Institute of Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Evgeny V Leushkin
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Institute of Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Natalia V Demidenko
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Department of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Moscow, Russia
| | - Anna V Klepikova
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Department of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Moscow, Russia
| | - Fyodor A Kondrashov
- Bioinformatics and Genomics Programme, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) Barcelona, Spain Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), 23 Pg. Lluís Companys, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alexey S Kondrashov
- School of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Timothy Y James
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
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Bernardi G. Speciation in fishes. Mol Ecol 2013; 22:5487-502. [PMID: 24118417 DOI: 10.1111/mec.12494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2013] [Revised: 08/08/2013] [Accepted: 08/14/2013] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
The field of speciation has seen much renewed interest in the past few years, with theoretical and empirical advances that have moved it from a descriptive field to a predictive and testable one. The goal of this review is to provide a general background on research on speciation as it pertains to fishes. Three major components to the question are first discussed: the spatial, ecological and sexual factors that influence speciation mechanisms. We then move to the latest developments in the field of speciation genomics. Affordable and rapidly available, massively parallel sequencing data allow speciation studies to converge into a single comprehensive line of investigation, where the focus has shifted to the search for speciation genes and genomic islands of speciation. We argue that fish present a very diverse array of scenarios, making them an ideal model to study speciation processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Bernardi
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95076, USA
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Agier N, Romano OM, Touzain F, Cosentino Lagomarsino M, Fischer G. The spatiotemporal program of replication in the genome of Lachancea kluyveri. Genome Biol Evol 2013; 5:370-88. [PMID: 23355306 PMCID: PMC3590768 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evt014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/18/2013] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
We generated a genome-wide replication profile in the genome of Lachancea kluyveri and assessed the relationship between replication and base composition. This species diverged from Saccharomyces cerevisiae before the ancestral whole genome duplication. The genome comprises eight chromosomes among which a chromosomal arm of 1 Mb has a G + C-content much higher than the rest of the genome. We identified 252 active replication origins in L. kluyveri and found considerable divergence in origin location with S. cerevisiae and with Lachancea waltii. Although some global features of S. cerevisiae replication are conserved: Centromeres replicate early, whereas telomeres replicate late, we found that replication origins both in L. kluyveri and L. waltii do not behave as evolutionary fragile sites. In L. kluyveri, replication timing along chromosomes alternates between regions of early and late activating origins, except for the 1 Mb GC-rich chromosomal arm. This chromosomal arm contains an origin consensus motif different from other chromosomes and is replicated early during S-phase. We showed that precocious replication results from the specific absence of late firing origins in this chromosomal arm. In addition, we found a correlation between GC-content and distance from replication origins as well as a lack of replication-associated compositional skew between leading and lagging strands specifically in this GC-rich chromosomal arm. These findings suggest that the unusual base composition in the genome of L. kluyveri could be linked to replication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Agier
- UPMC, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
- CNRS, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
| | | | - Fabrice Touzain
- UPMC, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
- CNRS, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
- Present address: ANSES, Ploufragan/Plouzané Laboratory Viral Genomics and Biosecurity Unit (GVB), Ploufragan, France
| | - Marco Cosentino Lagomarsino
- UPMC, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
- CNRS, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
| | - Gilles Fischer
- UPMC, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
- CNRS, UMR7238, Génomique des Microorganismes, Paris, France
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Gene conversion occurs within the mating-type locus of Cryptococcus neoformans during sexual reproduction. PLoS Genet 2012; 8:e1002810. [PMID: 22792079 PMCID: PMC3390403 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2012] [Accepted: 05/23/2012] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Meiotic recombination of sex chromosomes is thought to be repressed in organisms with heterogametic sex determination (e.g. mammalian X/Y chromosomes), due to extensive divergence and chromosomal rearrangements between the two chromosomes. However, proper segregation of sex chromosomes during meiosis requires crossing-over occurring within the pseudoautosomal regions (PAR). Recent studies reveal that recombination, in the form of gene conversion, is widely distributed within and may have played important roles in the evolution of some chromosomal regions within which recombination was thought to be repressed, such as the centromere cores of maize. Cryptococcus neoformans, a major human pathogenic fungus, has an unusually large mating-type locus (MAT, >100 kb), and the MAT alleles from the two opposite mating-types show extensive nucleotide sequence divergence and chromosomal rearrangements, mirroring characteristics of sex chromosomes. Meiotic recombination was assumed to be repressed within the C. neoformans MAT locus. A previous study identified recombination hot spots flanking the C. neoformans MAT, and these hot spots are associated with high GC content. Here, we investigated a GC-rich intergenic region located within the MAT locus of C. neoformans to establish if this region also exhibits unique recombination behavior during meiosis. Population genetics analysis of natural C. neoformans isolates revealed signals of homogenization spanning this GC-rich intergenic region within different C. neoformans lineages, consistent with a model in which gene conversion of this region during meiosis prevents it from diversifying within each lineage. By analyzing meiotic progeny from laboratory crosses, we found that meiotic recombination (gene conversion) occurs around the GC-rich intergenic region at a frequency equal to or greater than the meiotic recombination frequency observed in other genomic regions. We discuss the implications of these findings with regards to the possible functional and evolutionary importance of gene conversion within the C. neoformans MAT locus and, more generally, in fungi. Recombination has been thought to be repressed within sex chromosomes, as well as within the mating-type (MAT) loci in many fungi, due to the highly diverged and rearranged nature between alleles defining opposite sexes or mating-types. However, it has long been appreciated that recombination can occur within these presumptive recombinational “cold spots,” and recent studies reveal that recombination, including gene conversion, can occur at a frequency higher than previously appreciated and could play important roles in shaping evolution of these chromosomal regions. Here, we provide evidence that, during sexual reproduction of the human pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans, recombination (gene conversion) occurs across a GC-rich intergenic region within the MAT locus. The frequency of this gene conversion is comparable to those of typical meiotic recombination events observed in other chromosomal regions. This is in accord with population genetics analyses, which indicate homogenization between alleles of opposite mating-types within the intergenic region. Gene conversion within these highly rearranged chromosomal regions may serve to ensure proper meiosis and/or rejuvenate genes/chromosomal regions within MAT that are otherwise facing irreversible evolutionary decay. In conclusion, our study provides further experimental evidence that at least some recombinational “cold spots” are not that cold, after all.
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Popa A, Samollow P, Gautier C, Mouchiroud D. The sex-specific impact of meiotic recombination on nucleotide composition. Genome Biol Evol 2012; 4:412-22. [PMID: 22417915 PMCID: PMC3318449 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evs023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Meiotic recombination is an important evolutionary force shaping the nucleotide landscape of genomes. For most vertebrates, the frequency of recombination varies slightly or considerably between the sexes (heterochiasmy). In humans, male, rather than female, recombination rate has been found to be more highly correlated with the guanine and cytosine (GC) content across the genome. In the present study, we review the results in human and extend the examination of the evolutionary impact of heterochiasmy beyond primates to include four additional eutherian mammals (mouse, dog, pig, and sheep), a metatherian mammal (opossum), and a bird (chicken). Specifically, we compared sex-specific recombination rates (RRs) with nucleotide substitution patterns evaluated in transposable elements. Our results, based on a comparative approach, reveal a great diversity in the relationship between heterochiasmy and nucleotide composition. We find that the stronger male impact on this relationship is a conserved feature of human, mouse, dog, and sheep. In contrast, variation in genomic GC content in pig and opossum is more strongly correlated with female, rather than male, RR. Moreover, we show that the sex-differential impact of recombination is mainly driven by the chromosomal localization of recombination events. Independent of sex, the higher the RR in a genomic region and the longer this recombination activity is conserved in time, the stronger the bias in nucleotide substitution pattern, through such mechanisms as biased gene conversion. Over time, this bias will increase the local GC content of the region.
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Giraut L, Falque M, Drouaud J, Pereira L, Martin OC, Mézard C. Genome-wide crossover distribution in Arabidopsis thaliana meiosis reveals sex-specific patterns along chromosomes. PLoS Genet 2011; 7:e1002354. [PMID: 22072983 PMCID: PMC3207851 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2011] [Accepted: 09/08/2011] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In most species, crossovers (COs) are essential for the accurate segregation of homologous chromosomes at the first meiotic division. Their number and location are tightly regulated. Here, we report a detailed, genome-wide characterization of the rate and localization of COs in Arabidopsis thaliana, in male and female meiosis. We observed dramatic differences between male and female meiosis which included: (i) genetic map length; 575 cM versus 332 cM respectively; (ii) CO distribution patterns: male CO rates were very high at both ends of each chromosome, whereas female CO rates were very low; (iii) correlations between CO rates and various chromosome features: female CO rates correlated strongly and negatively with GC content and gene density but positively with transposable elements (TEs) density, whereas male CO rates correlated positively with the CpG ratio. However, except for CpG, the correlations could be explained by the unequal repartition of these sequences along the Arabidopsis chromosome. For both male and female meiosis, the number of COs per chromosome correlates with chromosome size expressed either in base pairs or as synaptonemal complex length. Finally, we show that interference modulates the CO distribution both in male and female meiosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurène Giraut
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, INRA Centre de Versailles-Grignon, Versailles, France
| | - Matthieu Falque
- UMR de Génétique Végétale du Moulon, INRA/CNRS/Univ Paris-Sud/AgroParisTech, Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Jan Drouaud
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, INRA Centre de Versailles-Grignon, Versailles, France
| | - Lucie Pereira
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, INRA Centre de Versailles-Grignon, Versailles, France
| | - Olivier C. Martin
- UMR de Génétique Végétale du Moulon, INRA/CNRS/Univ Paris-Sud/AgroParisTech, Gif sur Yvette, France
| | - Christine Mézard
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, INRA Centre de Versailles-Grignon, Versailles, France
- * E-mail:
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Late replicating domains are highly recombining in females but have low male recombination rates: implications for isochore evolution. PLoS One 2011; 6:e24480. [PMID: 21949720 PMCID: PMC3176772 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0024480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2011] [Accepted: 08/11/2011] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
In mammals sequences that are either late replicating or highly recombining have high rates of evolution at putatively neutral sites. As early replicating domains and highly recombining domains both tend to be GC rich we a priori expect these two variables to covary. If so, the relative contribution of either of these variables to the local neutral substitution rate might have been wrongly estimated owing to covariance with the other. Against our expectations, we find that sex-averaged recombination rates show little or no correlation with replication timing, suggesting that they are independent determinants of substitution rates. However, this result masks significant sex-specific complexity: late replicating domains tend to have high recombination rates in females but low recombination rates in males. That these trends are antagonistic explains why sex-averaged recombination is not correlated with replication timing. This unexpected result has several important implications. First, although both male and female recombination rates covary significantly with intronic substitution rates, the magnitude of this correlation is moderately underestimated for male recombination and slightly overestimated for female recombination, owing to covariance with replicating timing. Second, the result could explain why male recombination is strongly correlated with GC content but female recombination is not. If to explain the correlation between GC content and replication timing we suppose that late replication forces reduced GC content, then GC promotion by biased gene conversion during female recombination is partly countered by the antagonistic effect of later replicating sequence tending increase AT content. Indeed, the strength of the correlation between female recombination rate and local GC content is more than doubled by control for replication timing. Our results underpin the need to consider sex-specific recombination rates and potential covariates in analysis of GC content and rates of evolution.
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Christians JK, Cheema MS, Vergara IA, Watt CA, Pinto LJ, Chen N, Moore MM. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping reveals a role for unstudied genes in Aspergillus virulence. PLoS One 2011; 6:e19325. [PMID: 21559404 PMCID: PMC3084825 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2011] [Accepted: 03/25/2011] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Infections caused by the fungus Aspergillus are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised populations. To identify genes required for virulence that could be used as targets for novel treatments, we mapped quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting virulence in the progeny of a cross between two strains of A. nidulans (FGSC strains A4 and A91). We genotyped 61 progeny at 739 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) spread throughout the genome, and constructed a linkage map that was largely consistent with the genomic sequence, with the exception of one potential inversion of ∼527 kb on Chromosome V. The estimated genome size was 3705 cM and the average intermarker spacing was 5.0 cM. The average ratio of physical distance to genetic distance was 8.1 kb/cM, which is similar to previous estimates, and variation in recombination rate was significantly positively correlated with GC content, a pattern seen in other taxa. To map QTL affecting virulence, we measured the ability of each progeny strain to kill model hosts, larvae of the wax moth Galleria mellonella. We detected three QTL affecting in vivo virulence that were distinct from QTL affecting in vitro growth, and mapped the virulence QTL to regions containing 7-24 genes, excluding genes with no sequence variation between the parental strains and genes with only synonymous SNPs. None of the genes in our QTL target regions have been previously associated with virulence in Aspergillus, and almost half of these genes are currently annotated as "hypothetical". This study is the first to map QTL affecting the virulence of a fungal pathogen in an animal host, and our results illustrate the power of this approach to identify a short list of unknown genes for further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian K Christians
- Department of Biological Sciences and Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.
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Marsolier-Kergoat MC. A simple model for the influence of meiotic conversion tracts on GC content. PLoS One 2011; 6:e16109. [PMID: 21249197 PMCID: PMC3020949 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0016109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2010] [Accepted: 12/10/2010] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
A strong correlation between GC content and recombination rate is observed in many eukaryotes, which is thought to be due to conversion events linked to the repair of meiotic double-strand breaks. In several organisms, the length of conversion tracts has been shown to decrease exponentially with increasing distance from the sites of meiotic double-strand breaks. I show here that this behavior leads to a simple analytical model for the evolution and the equilibrium state of the GC content of sequences devoid of meiotic double-strand break sites. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, meiotic double-strand breaks are practically excluded from protein-coding sequences. A good fit was observed between the predictions of the model and the variations of the average GC content of the third codon position (GC3) of S. cerevisiae genes. Moreover, recombination parameters that can be extracted by fitting the data to the model coincide with experimentally determined values. These results thus indicate that meiotic recombination plays an important part in determining the fluctuations of GC content in yeast coding sequences. The model also accounted for the different patterns of GC variations observed in the genes of Candida species that exhibit a variety of sexual lifestyles, and hence a wide range of meiotic recombination rates. Finally, the variations of the average GC3 content of human and chicken coding sequences could also be fitted by the model. These results suggest the existence of a widespread pattern of GC variation in eukaryotic genes due to meiotic recombination, which would imply the generality of two features of meiotic recombination: its association with GC-biased gene conversion and the quasi-exclusion of meiotic double-strand breaks from coding sequences. Moreover, the model points out to specific constraints on protein fragments encoded by exon terminal sequences, which are the most affected by the GC bias.
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Cutter AD, Moses AM. Polymorphism, divergence, and the role of recombination in Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome evolution. Mol Biol Evol 2011; 28:1745-54. [PMID: 21199893 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msq356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
A contentious issue in molecular evolution and population genetics concerns the roles of recombination as a facilitator of natural selection and as a potential source of mutational input into genomes. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in particular, has injected both insights and confusion into this topic, as an early system subject to genomic analysis with subsequent conflicting reports. Here, we revisit the role of recombination in mutation and selection with recent genome-wide maps of population polymorphism and recombination for S. cerevisiae. We confirm that recombination-associated mutation does not leave a genomic signature in yeast and conclude that a previously observed, enigmatic, negative recombination-divergence correlation is largely a consequence of weak selection and other genomic covariates. We also corroborate the presence of biased gene conversion from patterns of polymorphism. Moreover, we identify significant positive relations between recombination and population polymorphism at putatively neutrally evolving sites, independent of other factors and the genomic scale of interrogation. We conclude that widespread natural selection across the yeast genome has left its imprint on segregating genetic variation, but that this signature is much weaker than in Drosophila and Caenorhabditis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asher D Cutter
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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Genetic and evolutionary correlates of fine-scale recombination rate variation in Drosophila persimilis. J Mol Evol 2010; 71:332-45. [PMID: 20890595 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-010-9388-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2010] [Accepted: 09/08/2010] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Recombination is fundamental to meiosis in many species and generates variation on which natural selection can act, yet fine-scale linkage maps are cumbersome to construct. We generated a fine-scale map of recombination rates across two major chromosomes in Drosophila persimilis using 181 SNP markers spanning two of five major chromosome arms. Using this map, we report significant fine-scale heterogeneity of local recombination rates. However, we also observed "recombinational neighborhoods," where adjacent intervals had similar recombination rates after excluding regions near the centromere and telomere. We further found significant positive associations of fine-scale recombination rate with repetitive element abundance and a 13-bp sequence motif known to associate with human recombination rates. We noted strong crossover interference extending 5-7 Mb from the initial crossover event. Further, we observed that fine-scale recombination rates in D. persimilis are strongly correlated with those obtained from a comparable study of its sister species, D. pseudoobscura. We documented a significant relationship between recombination rates and intron nucleotide sequence diversity within species, but no relationship between recombination rate and intron divergence between species. These results are consistent with selection models (hitchhiking and background selection) rather than mutagenic recombination models for explaining the relationship of recombination with nucleotide diversity within species. Finally, we found significant correlations between recombination rate and GC content, supporting both GC-biased gene conversion (BGC) models and selection-driven codon bias models. Overall, this genome-enabled map of fine-scale recombination rates allowed us to confirm findings of broader-scale studies and identify multiple novel features that merit further investigation.
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Lynch DB, Logue ME, Butler G, Wolfe KH. Chromosomal G + C content evolution in yeasts: systematic interspecies differences, and GC-poor troughs at centromeres. Genome Biol Evol 2010; 2:572-83. [PMID: 20693156 PMCID: PMC2997560 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evq042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The G + C content at synonymous codon positions (GC3s) in genes varies along chromosomes in most eukaryotes. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, regions of high GC3s are correlated with recombination hot spots, probably due to biased gene conversion. Here we examined how GC3s differs among groups of related yeast species in the Saccharomyces and Candida clades. The chromosomal locations of GC3s peaks and troughs are conserved among four Saccharomyces species, but we find that there have been highly consistent small shifts in their GC3s values. For instance, 84% of all S. cerevisiae genes have a lower GC3s value than their S. bayanus orthologs. There are extensive interspecies differences in the Candida clade both in the median value of GC3s (ranging from 22% to 49%) and in the variance of GC3s among genes. In three species—Candida lusitaniae, Pichia stipitis, and Yarrowia lipolytica—there is one region on each chromosome in which GC3s is markedly reduced. We propose that these GC-poor troughs indicate the positions of centromeres because in Y. lipolytica they coincide with the five experimentally identified centromeres. In P. stipitis, the troughs contain clusters of the retrotransposon Tps5. Likewise, in Debaryomyces hansenii, there is one cluster of the retrotransposon Tdh5 per chromosome, and all these clusters are located in GC-poor troughs. Locally reduced G + C content around centromeres is consistent with a model in which G + C content correlates with recombination rate, and recombination is suppressed around centromeres, although the troughs are unexpectedly wide (100–300 kb).
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Affiliation(s)
- Denise B Lynch
- Conway Institute of Biomedical and Biomolecular Sciences, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
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Surprising fitness consequences of GC-biased gene conversion: I. Mutation load and inbreeding depression. Genetics 2010; 185:939-59. [PMID: 20421602 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.110.116368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
GC-biased gene conversion (gBGC) is a recombination-associated process mimicking selection in favor of G and C alleles. It is increasingly recognized as a widespread force in shaping the genomic nucleotide landscape. In recombination hotspots, gBGC can lead to bursts of fixation of GC nucleotides and to accelerated nucleotide substitution rates. It was recently shown that these episodes of strong gBGC could give spurious signatures of adaptation and/or relaxed selection. There is also evidence that gBGC could drive the fixation of deleterious amino acid mutations in some primate genes. This raises the question of the potential fitness effects of gBGC. While gBGC has been metaphorically termed the "Achilles' heel" of our genome, we do not know whether interference between gBGC and selection merely has practical consequences for the analysis of sequence data or whether it has broader fundamental implications for individuals and populations. I developed a population genetics model to predict the consequences of gBGC on the mutation load and inbreeding depression. I also used estimates available for humans to quantitatively evaluate the fitness impact of gBGC. Surprising features emerged from this model: (i) Contrary to classical mutation load models, gBGC generates a fixation load independent of population size and could contribute to a significant part of the load; (ii) gBGC can maintain recessive deleterious mutations for a long time at intermediate frequency, in a similar way to overdominance, and these mutations generate high inbreeding depression, even if they are slightly deleterious; (iii) since mating systems affect both the selection efficacy and gBGC intensity, gBGC challenges classical predictions concerning the interaction between mating systems and deleterious mutations, and gBGC could constitute an additional cost of outcrossing; and (iv) if mutations are biased toward A and T alleles, very low gBGC levels can reduce the load. A robust prediction is that the gBGC level minimizing the load depends only on the mutational bias and population size. These surprising results suggest that gBGC may have nonnegligible fitness consequences and could play a significant role in the evolution of genetic systems. They also shed light on the evolution of gBGC itself.
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Current awareness on yeast. Yeast 2010. [DOI: 10.1002/yea.1716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
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