灵长类动物的表达特征分析揭示了人类转录因子的快速演变
Yoav Gilad1, Alicia Oshlack, Gordon K Smyth
1Department of Genetics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06510, USA. gilad@uchicago.edu
Nature
|March 10, 2006
概括
研究人员研究了灵长类动物的基因表达进化. 他们发现了稳定选择在某些基因中保持恒定表达的证据,而定向选择改变了人类血统中的表达,特别是转录因子.
科学领域:
- 进化生物学是进化的生物学.
- 基因组学就是基因组学.
- 分子生物学分子生物学
背景情况:
- 人类适应的假设是由于基因调节的变化而产生的.
- 对灵长类动物基因调节的自然选择的理解是有限的.
研究的目的:
- 为了确定在自然选择下演变的基因.
- 研究对灵长类动物基因调节起作用的选择模式.
主要方法:
- 利用了多个物种互补的DNA阵列.
- 在人类,黑猩猩,猩猩和 rhesus macaques 的肝脏组织中比较信使RNA (mRNA) 水平.
- 采用线性混合模型进行遗传学分析.
主要成果:
- 鉴定了在7000万年内表达稳定的基因,这表明选择稳定.
- 检测到具有人类特异性表达变化的基因,表明方向选择.
- 在人类特异性表达增加的基因中发现了转录因子的丰富.
结论:
- 基因表达是灵长类动物自然选择的目标.
- 稳定和定向选择已经塑造了基因调节.
- 人类特异性的监管变化可能涉及转录因子并影响进化.
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