Functional conservation between members of an ancient duplicated transcription factor family, LSF/Grainyhead.
Nucleic Acids Res
; 31(15): 4304-16, 2003 Aug 01.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-12888489
ABSTRACT
The LSF/Grainyhead transcription factor family is involved in many important biological processes, including cell cycle, cell growth and development. In order to investigate the evolutionary conservation of these biological roles, we have characterized two new family members in Caenorhabditis elegans and Xenopus laevis. The C.elegans member, Ce-GRH-1, groups with the Grainyhead subfamily, while the X.laevis member, Xl-LSF, groups with the LSF subfamily. Ce-GRH-1 binds DNA in a sequence-specific manner identical to that of Drosophila melanogaster Grainyhead. In addition, Ce-GRH-1 binds to sequences upstream of the C.elegans gene encoding aromatic L-amino-acid decarboxylase and genes involved in post-embryonic development, mab-5 and dbl-1. All three C.elegans genes are homologs of D.melanogaster Grainyhead-regulated genes. RNA-mediated interference of Ce-grh-1 results in embryonic lethality in worms, accompanied by soft, defective cuticles. These phenotypes are strikingly similar to those observed previously in D.melanogaster grainyhead mutants, suggesting conservation of the developmental role of these family members over the course of evolution. Our phylogenetic analysis of the expanded LSF/GRH family (including other previously unrecognized proteins/ESTs) suggests that the structural and functional dichotomy of this family dates back more than 700 million years, i.e. to the time when the first multicellular organisms are thought to have arisen.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Filogenia
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Fatores de Transcrição
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Evolução Molecular
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Proteínas de Xenopus
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Proteínas de Caenorhabditis elegans
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Proteínas de Ligação a DNA
Limite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Nucleic Acids Res
Ano de publicação:
2003
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos