Tandem Repeats Provide Evidence for Convergent Evolution to Similar Protein Structures.

ABSTRACT: Homology is a key concept underpinning the comparison of sequences across organisms. Sequence-level homology is based on a statistical framework optimized over decades of work. Recently, computational protein structure prediction has enabled large-scale homology inference beyond the limits of accurate sequence alignment. In this regime, it is possible to observe nearly identical protein structures lacking detectable sequence similarity. In the absence of a robust statistical framework for structure comparison, it is largely assumed similar structures are homologous. However, it is conceivable that matching structures could arise through convergent evolution, resulting in analogous proteins without shared ancestry. Large databases of predicted structures offer a means of determining whether

SUBMITTER: Wright ES 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11812678 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature