Diverse origins of near-identical antifreeze proteins in unrelated fish lineages provide insights into evolutionary mechanisms of new gene birth and protein sequence convergence.

ABSTRACT: Determining the origins of novel genes and the genetic mechanisms underlying the emergence of new functions is challenging yet crucial for understanding evolutionary innovations. The convergently evolved fish antifreeze proteins provide excellent opportunities to investigate evolutionary origins and pathways of new genes. Particularly notable is the near-identical type I antifreeze proteins (AFPI) in four phylogenetically divergent fish taxa. This study tested the hypothesis of protein sequence convergence beyond functional convergence in three unrelated AFPI-bearing fish lineages, revealing different paths by which a similar protein arose from diverse genomic resources. Comprehensive comparative analyses of de novo sequenced genome of the winter flounder and grubby sculpin, availab

SUBMITTER: Rives N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10980009 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature