A novel nuclear genetic code alteration in yeasts and the evolution of codon reassignment in eukaryotes.

ABSTRACT: The genetic code is the cellular translation table for the conversion of nucleotide sequences into amino acid sequences. Changes to the meaning of sense codons would introduce errors into almost every translated message and are expected to be highly detrimental. However, reassignment of single or multiple codons in mitochondria and nuclear genomes, although extremely rare, demonstrates that the code can evolve. Several models for the mechanism of alteration of nuclear genetic codes have been proposed (including "codon capture," "genome streamlining," and "ambiguous intermediate" theories), but with little resolution. Here, we report a novel sense codon reassignment in Pachysolen tannophilus, a yeast related to the Pichiaceae. By generating proteomics data and using tRNA sequence comparison

SUBMITTER: Muhlhausen S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4937558 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature