Neofunctionalization in vertebrates: the example of retinoic acid receptors.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the role of gene duplications in establishing vertebrate innovations is one of the main challenges of Evo-Devo (evolution of development) studies. Data on evolutionary changes in gene expression (i.e., evolution of transcription factor-cis-regulatory elements relationships) tell only part of the story; protein function, best studied by biochemical and functional assays, can also change. In this study, we have investigated how gene duplication has affected both the expression and the ligand-binding specificity of retinoic acid receptors (RARs), which play a major role in chordate embryonic development. Mammals have three paralogous RAR genes--RAR alpha, beta, and gamma--which resulted from genome duplications at the origin of vertebrates. By using pharmacological ligands selec

SUBMITTER: Escriva H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1500811 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature