Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

The molecular evolution of actin.

R C Hightower, R B Meagher

    Genetics
    |September 1, 1986
    PubMed
    Summary

    Molecular evolution reveals plant and non-plant actin genes diverged significantly, suggesting an ancient actin gene family. Soybean and maize actin gene families originated from a common ancestor before monocot-dicot divergence.

    Related Concept Videos

    You might also read

    Related Articles

    Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

    Sort by
    Same author

    Making the most of the imaging we have: using head MRI to estimate body composition.

    Clinical radiology·2016
    Same author

    Purification and restriction endonuclease mapping of soybean 18 S and 25 S ribosomal RNA genes.

    Planta·2013
    Same author

    Two soybean ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase small subunit genes share extensive homology even in distant flanking sequences.

    Plant molecular biology·2013
    Same author

    Determination of copy number and linkage relationships among five actin gene subfamilies in Petunia hybrida.

    Plant molecular biology·2013
    Same author

    Association of volumetric bone mineral density with abdominal aortic calcification in African ancestry men.

    Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA·2013
    Same author

    Association of PNPLA3 SNP rs738409 with liver density in African Americans with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

    Diabetes & metabolism·2011

    Area of Science:

    • Molecular Biology
    • Evolutionary Biology
    • Genetics

    Background:

    • Actin proteins are essential cytoskeletal components conserved across eukaryotes.
    • Understanding actin gene evolution provides insights into plant and animal lineage divergence.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate the molecular evolution of plant and non-plant actin genes.
    • To compare nucleotide and amino acid sequences of diverse actin genes.
    • To infer the evolutionary history and divergence patterns of plant actin gene families.

    Main Methods:

    • Comparative analysis of nucleotide and amino acid sequences from 20 actin genes.
    • Calculation of replacement substitution rates between various plant and non-plant actin genes.
    • Hydropathy profiling to assess protein sequence similarity.

    Main Results:

    • Plant and non-plant actin genes show 11-15% replacement substitution, with exceptions.
    • Soybean and maize actin gene families exhibit divergence rates similar to animal actins.
    • Soybean actin multigene family encodes at least three distinct actin classes (kappa, lambda, mu).
    • Despite sequence divergence, plant and non-plant actins share strong hydropathic similarity.

    Conclusions:

    • The plant actin gene family is ancient, originating before monocot-dicot divergence.
    • Soybean and maize actin gene families evolved from a single common ancestral plant actin gene.
    • Actin's fundamental role and conserved protein character are maintained despite evolutionary divergence.

    Related Experiment Videos