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Evolution of the protein repertoire
Cyrus Chothia1, Julian Gough, Christine Vogel
1Structural Studies Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 2QH, UK.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|June 14, 2003
Summary
Most proteins originate from gene duplication, recombination, and divergence. Analyzing known protein structures against genome sequences offers insights into these evolutionary processes.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genomics
Background:
- Proteins are fundamental molecular machines essential for life.
- Understanding protein origins is key to deciphering evolutionary pathways.
- Gene duplication, recombination, and divergence are recognized mechanisms in protein evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively describe the origins of proteins.
- To explore the relationship between known protein structures and genome sequences.
- To generate hypotheses regarding protein evolutionary processes.
Main Methods:
- Structural bioinformatics analysis of known proteins.
- Genome sequence comparison and matching.
- Quantitative data analysis to correlate structure and sequence.
Main Results:
- Approximately 50% of genome sequences can be matched to proteins with known structures.
- This data provides a quantitative basis for understanding protein evolution.
- The findings support hypotheses about gene duplication, recombination, and divergence as primary drivers.
Conclusions:
- A significant portion of the proteome is structurally characterized and linked to evolutionary mechanisms.
- The study provides a quantitative framework for investigating protein origins.
- Further research can build upon these findings to explore the evolution of protein function and diversity.