Using paleogenomics to study the evolution of gene families: origin and duplication history of the relaxin family hormones and their receptors.

ABSTRACT: Recent progress in the analysis of whole genome sequencing data has resulted in the emergence of paleogenomics, a field devoted to the reconstruction of ancestral genomes. Ancestral karyotype reconstructions have been used primarily to illustrate the dynamic nature of genome evolution. In this paper, we demonstrate how they can also be used to study individual gene families by examining the evolutionary history of relaxin hormones (RLN/INSL) and relaxin family peptide receptors (RXFP). Relaxin family hormones are members of the insulin superfamily, and are implicated in the regulation of a variety of primarily reproductive and neuroendocrine processes. Their receptors are G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR's) and include members of two distinct evolutionary groups, an unusual characteristic

SUBMITTER: Yegorov S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3310001 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature