Identification of non-tissue-specific helix-loop-helix genes in Xenopus laevis

We have isolated four non-tissue-specific helix-loop-helix (HLH) transcription factors from Xenopus laevis (Xl). While some are clearly orthologous to known mammalian HLH proteins, others have dramatic amino-acid differences in otherwise highly conserved protein domains. We propose that these changes arose following the tetraploidization of Xl approx. 30 Myr ago.