Elephant shark sequence reveals unique insights into the evolutionary history of vertebrate genes: A comparative analysis of the protocadherin cluster.

ABSTRACT: Cartilaginous fishes are the oldest living phylogenetic group of jawed vertebrates. Here, we demonstrate the value of cartilaginous fish sequences in reconstructing the evolutionary history of vertebrate genomes by sequencing the protocadherin cluster in the relatively small genome (910 Mb) of the elephant shark (Callorhinchus milii). Human and coelacanth contain a single protocadherin cluster with 53 and 49 genes, respectively, that are organized in three subclusters, Pcdhalpha, Pcdhbeta, and Pcdhgamma, whereas the duplicated protocadherin clusters in fugu and zebrafish contain >77 and 107 genes, respectively, that are organized in Pcdhalpha and Pcdhgamma subclusters. By contrast, the elephant shark contains a single protocadherin cluster with 47 genes organized in four subclusters (Pcdhd

SUBMITTER: Yu WP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2268768 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature