Mutation and selection on the wobble nucleotide in tRNA anticodons in marine bivalve mitochondrial genomes.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Animal mitochondrial genomes typically encode one tRNA for each synonymous codon family, so that each tRNA anticodon essentially has to wobble to recognize two or four synonymous codons. Several factors have been hypothesized to determine the nucleotide at the wobble site of a tRNA anticodon in mitochondrial genomes, such as the codon-anticodon adaptation hypothesis, the wobble versatility hypothesis, the translation initiation and elongation conflict hypothesis, and the wobble cost hypothesis.

Principal findings

In this study, we analyzed codon usage and tRNA anticodon wobble sites of 29 marine bivalve mitochondrial genomes to evaluate features of the wobble nucleotides in tRNA anticodons. The strand-specific mutation bias favors G and T on the H strand in all th

SUBMITTER: Yu H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3022732 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature