Parallel Evolution of X Chromosome-Specific Structural Maintenance of Chromosomes Complexes in Two Nematode Lineages.

ABSTRACT: Mechanisms of X chromosome dosage compensation have been studied in model organisms with distinct sex chromosome ancestry. However, the diversity of mechanisms as a function of sex chromosome evolution is largely unknown. Here, we anchor ourselves to the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, where dosage compensation is accomplished by an X chromosome-specific condensin that belongs to the family of structural maintenance of chromosomes (SMC) complexes. By combining a phylogenetic analyses of the C. elegans dosage compensation complex with a comparative analysis of its epigenetic signatures, such as X-specific topologically associating domains and enrichment of H4K20me1, we show that the condensin-mediated mechanism evolved recently in the lineage leading to Caenorhabditis following an SMC-4 du

SUBMITTER: Aharonoff A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12629237 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature