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Constitutive and Regulated Gene Expression01:27

Constitutive and Regulated Gene Expression

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Gene expression in prokaryotes is governed by constitutive and regulated systems, allowing cells to balance the production of essential proteins with adaptive responses to environmental changes.Constitutive Gene ExpressionConstitutive, or housekeeping, genes are continuously expressed as they encode proteins vital for fundamental cellular processes. These include enzymes for glycolysis, ribosomal components for protein synthesis, and proteins involved in DNA replication. Their constant...
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A gene is the fundamental unit of heredity. Every individual has two copies of each gene, one inherited from each parent. Although most people contain the same genes, there is a small fraction that is slightly different amongst people. A gene with a small difference in its sequence of DNA bases forms different alleles, contributing to different phenotypes.
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Other than maintaining genome stability via DNA repair, homologous recombination plays an important role in diversifying the genome. In fact, the recombination of sequences forms the molecular basis of genomic evolution. Random and non-random permutations of genomic sequences create a library of new amalgamated sequences. These newly formed genomes can determine the fitness and survival of cells. In bacteria, homologous and non-homologous types of recombination lead to the evolution of new...
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The histone proteins have a flexible N-terminal tail extending out from the nucleosome. These histone tails are often subjected to post-translational modifications such as acetylation, methylation, phosphorylation, and ubiquitination. Particular combinations of these modifications form “histone codes” that influence the chromatin folding and tissue-specific gene expression.
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What are housekeeping genes?

Chintan J Joshi1, Wenfan Ke2, Anna Drangowska-Way2

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, La Jolla, California, United States of America.

Plos Computational Biology
|July 13, 2022
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Housekeeping genes are essential for cell survival but their definition is loose. This study provides a quantitative, validated definition using genomic screens, revealing conserved pathways despite differing essential genes across species.

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Area of Science:

  • Genomics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • The definition of housekeeping genes, essential for cellular functions, is poorly defined and lacks experimental validation.
  • Existing definitions suggest stable expression correlates with essentiality across diverse conditions and organisms, but this link is not well-supported.
  • A precise, experimentally validated definition is needed to understand housekeeping gene biology and evolution.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a quantitative and experimentally validated definition of housekeeping genes.
  • To identify and characterize housekeeping genes across multiple species using this new definition.
  • To explore the evolutionary conservation of housekeeping genes and their associated pathways.

Main Methods:

  • Genome-scale functional genomic screens were employed to assess gene essentiality.
  • Bulk and single-cell sequencing technologies were utilized to analyze gene expression patterns.
  • Comparative genomics across human and 10 animal species were performed to evaluate cross-species conservation.

Main Results:

  • Stable gene expression does not always correlate with essentiality; essential and stably expressed genes vary significantly between organisms.
  • Enriched pathways among housekeeping genes demonstrate conservation across species, indicating evolutionary relevance.
  • The conservation patterns of housekeeping genes reflect taxonomic relationships between species.

Conclusions:

  • A quantitative, experimentally supported definition of housekeeping genes has been established.
  • This new definition facilitates a better understanding of the unique biological and evolutionary characteristics of housekeeping genes.
  • The study provides valuable resources of housekeeping gene lists for various species.