Widespread adaptive evolution of Drosophila genes with sex-biased expression.

Many genes in higher eukaryotes show sexually dimorphic expression, and these genes tend to be among the most divergent between species. In most cases, however, it is not known whether this rapid divergence is caused by positive selection or if it is due to a relaxation of selective constraint. To distinguish between these two possibilities, we surveyed DNA sequence polymorphism in 91 Drosophila melanogaster genes with male-, female-, or nonsex-biased expression and determined their divergence from the sister species D. simulans. Using several single- and multilocus statistical tests, we estimated the type and strength of selection influencing the evolution of the proteins encoded by genes of each expression class. Adaptive evolution, as indicated by a relative excess of nonsynonymous divergence between species, was common among the sex-biased genes (both male and female). Male-biased genes, in particular, showed a strong and consistent signal of positive selection, while female-biased genes showed more variation in the type of selection they experience. Genes expressed equally in the two sexes, in contrast, showed no evidence for adaptive evolution between D. melanogaster and D. simulans. This suggests that sexual selection and intersexual coevolution are the major forces driving genetic differentiation between species.

The phosphatidylserine receptor from Hydra is a nuclear protein with potential Fe(II) dependent oxygenase activity.

BACKGROUND: Apoptotic cell death plays an essential part in embryogenesis, development and maintenance of tissue homeostasis in metazoan animals. The culmination of apoptosis in vivo is the phagocytosis of cellular corpses. One morphological characteristic of cells undergoing apoptosis is loss of plasma membrane phospholipid asymmetry and exposure of phosphatidylserine on the outer leaflet. Surface exposure of phosphatidylserine is recognised by a specific receptor (phosphatidylserine receptor, PSR) and is required for phagocytosis of apoptotic cells by macrophages and fibroblasts. RESULTS: We have cloned the PSR receptor from Hydra in order to investigate its function in this early metazoan. Bioinformatic analysis of the Hydra PSR protein structure revealed the presence of three nuclear localisation signals, an AT-hook like DNA binding motif and a putative 2-oxoglutarate (2OG)-and Fe(II)-dependent oxygenase activity. All of these features are conserved from human PSR to Hydra PSR. Expression of GFP tagged Hydra PSR in hydra cells revealed clear nuclear localisation. Deletion of one of the three NLS sequences strongly diminished nuclear localisation of the protein. Membrane localisation was never detected. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that Hydra PSR is a nuclear 2-oxoglutarate (2OG)-and Fe(II)-dependent oxygenase. This is in contrast with the proposed function of Hydra PSR as a cell surface receptor involved in the recognition of apoptotic cells displaying phosphatidylserine on their surface. The conservation of the protein from Hydra to human infers that our results also apply to PSR from higher animals.