Parallel evolution of the genetic code in arthropod mitochondrial genomes.

ABSTRACT: The genetic code provides the translation table necessary to transform the information contained in DNA into the language of proteins. In this table, a correspondence between each codon and each amino acid is established: tRNA is the main adaptor that links the two. Although the genetic code is nearly universal, several variants of this code have been described in a wide range of nuclear and organellar systems, especially in metazoan mitochondria. These variants are generally found by searching for conserved positions that consistently code for a specific alternative amino acid in a new species. We have devised an accurate computational method to automate these comparisons, and have tested it with 626 metazoan mitochondrial genomes. Our results indicate that several arthropods have a new g

SUBMITTER: Abascal F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1440934 | biostudies-literature | 2006 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature