Functional and evolutionary implications of gene orthology
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Updated: May 12, 2026

A Bioinformatics Pipeline for Investigating Molecular Evolution and Gene Expression using RNA-seq
Published on: May 28, 2021
Toni Gabaldón1, Eugene V Koonin
1Bioinformatics and Genomics Programme, Centre for Genomic Regulation and Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain. tgabaldon@crg.es
Abstract:
Orthologues and paralogues are types of homologous genes that are related by speciation or duplication, respectively. Orthologous genes are generally assumed to retain equivalent functions in different organisms and to share other key properties. Several recent comparative genomic studies have focused on testing these expectations. Here we discuss the complexity of the evolution of gene-phenotype relationships and assess the validity of the key implications of orthology and paralogy relationships as general statistical trends and guiding principles.
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