Comparative Analysis Reveals Different Evolutionary Fates and Biological Functions in Wheat Duplicated Genes
Licao Cui1,2, Hao Cheng1,3, Zhe Yang1
1Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China.
Abstract:
Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a staple food crop that provides 20% of total human calorie consumption. Gene duplication has been considered to play an important role in evolution by providing new genetic resources. However, the evolutionary fates and biological functions of the duplicated genes in wheat remain to be elucidated. In this study, the resulting data showed that the duplicated genes evolved faster with shorter gene lengths, higher codon usage bias, lower expression levels, and higher tissue specificity when compared to non-duplicated genes. Our analysis further revealed functions of duplicated genes in various biological processes with significant enrichment to environmental stresses. In addition, duplicated genes derived from dispersed, proximal, tandem, transposed, and whole-genome duplication differed in abundance, evolutionary rate, gene compactness, expression pattern, and genetic diversity. Tandem and proximal duplicates experienced stronger selective pressure and showed a more compact gene structure with diverse expression profiles than other duplication modes. Moreover, genes derived from different duplication modes showed an asymmetrical evolutionary pattern for wheat A, B, and D subgenomes. Several candidate duplication hotspots associated with wheat domestication or polyploidization were characterized as potential targets for wheat molecular breeding. Our comprehensive analysis revealed the evolutionary trajectory of duplicated genes and laid the foundation for future functional studies on wheat.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Gene Duplication and Divergence
The duplicated copies of the gene are called Paralogs. Paralogs with similar sequences and functions form a gene family. Across several species, a large number of gene families are...
Gene Families
Occasionally these regions can be adapted to take on new roles within the organism, becoming novel genes...
Evolutionary Relationships through Genome Comparisons
Gene Evolution - Fast or Slow?
In contrast, regions which code...
Gene Conversion
Genome Size and the Evolution of New Genes


