Evolution of the DAN gene family in vertebrates

The DAN gene family (DAN, Differential screening-selected gene Aberrant in Neuroblastoma) is a group of genes that is expressed during development and plays fundamental roles in limb bud formation and digitation, kidney formation and morphogenesis and left-right axis specification. During adulthood the expression of these genes are associated with diseases, including cancer. Although most of the attention to this group of genes has been dedicated to understanding its role in physiology and development, its evolutionary history remains poorly understood. Thus, the goal of this study is to investigate the evolutionary history of the DAN gene family in vertebrates, with the objective of complementing the already abundant physiological information with an evolutionary context. Our results recovered the monophyly of all DAN gene family members and divide them into five main groups. In addition to the well-known DAN genes, our phylogenetic results revealed the presence of two new DAN gene lineages; one is only retained in cephalochordates, whereas the other one (GREM3) was only identified in cartilaginous fish, holostean fish, and coelacanth. According to the phyletic distribution of the genes, the ancestor of gnathostomes possessed a repertoire of eight DAN genes, and during the radiation of the group GREM1, GREM2, SOST, SOSTDC1, and NBL1 were retained in all major groups, whereas, GREM3, CER1, and DAND5 were differentially lost.