Publication Date:
2007-10-13
Description:
Theory suggests it should be difficult for asexual organisms to adapt to a changing environment because genetic diversity can only arise from mutations accumulating within direct antecedents and not through sexual exchange. In an asexual microinvertebrate, the bdelloid rotifer, we have observed a mechanism by which such organisms could acquire the diversity needed for adaptation. Gene copies most likely representing former alleles have diverged in function so that the proteins they encode play complementary roles in survival of dry conditions. One protein prevents desiccation-sensitive enzymes from aggregating during drying, whereas its counterpart does not have this activity, but is able to associate with phospholipid bilayers and is potentially involved in maintenance of membrane integrity. The functional divergence of former alleles observed here suggests that adoption of asexual reproduction could itself be an evolutionary mechanism for the generation of diversity.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Pouchkina-Stantcheva, Natalia N -- McGee, Brian M -- Boschetti, Chiara -- Tolleter, Dimitri -- Chakrabortee, Sohini -- Popova, Antoaneta V -- Meersman, Filip -- Macherel, David -- Hincha, Dirk K -- Tunnacliffe, Alan -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 2007 Oct 12;318(5848):268-71.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Institute of Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QT, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17932297" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Adaptation, Biological
;
*Alleles
;
Amino Acid Sequence
;
Animals
;
Biological Evolution
;
Chromosomes/genetics
;
DNA, Complementary
;
Dehydration
;
Gene Dosage
;
*Genes, Helminth
;
*Genetic Variation
;
Helminth Proteins/chemistry/genetics/*physiology
;
Lipid Bilayers
;
Molecular Sequence Data
;
Protein Structure, Secondary
;
*Reproduction, Asexual
;
Rotifera/*genetics/*physiology
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
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