Statistical tests for natural selection on regulatory regions based on the strength of transcription factor binding sites.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Although cis-regulatory changes play an important role in evolution, it remains difficult to establish the contribution of natural selection to regulatory differences between species. For protein coding regions, powerful tests of natural selection have been developed based on comparisons of synonymous and non-synonymous substitutions, and analogous tests for regulatory regions would be of great utility.

Results

Here, tests for natural selection on regulatory regions are proposed based on nucleotide substitutions that occur in characterized transcription factor binding sites (an important type functional element within regulatory regions). In the absence of selection, these substitutions will tend to reduce the strength of existing binding sites. On the other hand,

SUBMITTER: Moses AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2800119 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature