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Contrasting modes of macro and microsynteny evolution in a eukaryotic subphylum
Yuanning Li1, Hongyue Liu1, Jacob L Steenwyk2
1Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China.
Current Biology : CB
|November 5, 2022
Summary
Genome evolution in budding yeasts shows rapid loss of large chromosome structures but deep conservation of gene order, especially in metabolic clusters. This reveals distinct evolutionary patterns compared to animals and plants.
Area of Science:
- Comparative genomics
- Eukaryotic genome evolution
- Molecular evolution
Background:
- Understanding genome evolution requires examining gene order changes across eukaryotes.
- Previous studies show conserved genomes in vertebrates, animals, and fungi over long evolutionary periods.
- Genome organization evolution within and between major eukaryotic lineages is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze genome organization evolution in 120 budding yeast species (Saccharomycotina) over ~400 million years.
- To compare budding yeast genome evolution with that of animals and plants.
- To investigate the tempo and mode of gene and genome organization evolution in eukaryotes.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of high-quality genomes from 120 representative budding yeast species.
- Comparative analysis of macrosynteny (chromosome conservation) and microsynteny (local gene order conservation).
- Comparison of conservation levels across different evolutionary divergence times and lineages (budding yeasts, animals, fungi, angiosperms).
Main Results:
- Macrosynteny decayed rapidly within ~100 million years across budding yeast clades.
- Microsynteny, particularly for genes in metabolic clusters, showed deep conservation across the subphylum.
- Budding yeasts exhibited lower macrosynteny than animals/fungi but higher than angiosperms; microsynteny conservation was comparable to mammals.
Conclusions:
- Genome organization evolution in budding yeasts is characterized by rapid loss of macrosynteny and stable microsynteny.
- Metabolic gene clusters demonstrate remarkable evolutionary stability within budding yeasts.
- Budding yeasts present a unique model for studying eukaryotic genome evolution, with distinct patterns compared to other eukaryotes.
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