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Widespread decay of vitamin-related pathways: coincidence or consequence?

Katherine E Helliwell1, Glen L Wheeler, Alison G Smith

  • 1Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EA, UK. keh53@cam.ac.uk

Trends in Genetics : TIG
|April 30, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Modern genomics reveals gene loss in vitamin pathways, leading to auxotrophy. This evolutionary process is linked to organism interdependence and symbiosis.

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Genomics
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Modern genomics enables study of dormant metabolic pathways.
  • Gene loss in vitamin synthesis pathways leads to auxotrophy.
  • Nonfunctional pseudogenes indicate recent evolutionary events.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Examine commonalities in vitamin cellular roles and metabolism driving gene loss.
  • Investigate the evolutionary patterns of vitamin auxotrophy.
  • Understand the role of organism interdependence in these losses.

Main Methods:

  • Genomic analysis of gene complements.
  • Comparative analysis of metabolic pathways.
  • Examination of pseudogene evolution.

Main Results:

  • Identified frequent gene loss events in vitamin synthesis pathways.
  • Observed a complex pattern of vitamin auxotrophy across eukaryotes.
  • Linked vitamin auxotrophy to organism interdependence and symbiosis.

Conclusions:

  • Gene loss is a recent evolutionary process shaping vitamin metabolism.
  • Organism interdependence is a key factor in vitamin auxotrophy.
  • This process influences community structure and facilitates symbioses.
Keywords:
algaecomparative genomicsevolutionpseudogenessymbiosisvitamin auxotrophy

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