Mitochondrial selfish elements and the evolution of biological novelties.

ABSTRACT: We report the present knowledge about RPHM21, a novel male-specific mitochondrial protein with a putative role in the paternal inheritance of sperm mitochondria in the Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum, a species with doubly uniparental inheritance of mitochondria (DUI). We review all the available data on rphm21 transcription and translation, analyze in detail its female counterpart, RPHF22, discuss the homology with RPHM21, the putative function and origin, and analyze their polymorphism. The available evidence is compatible with a viral origin of RPHM21 and supports its activity during spermatogenesis. RPHM21 is progressively accumulated in mitochondria and nuclei of spermatogenic cells, and we hypothesize it can influence mitochondrial inheritance and sexual differentia

SUBMITTER: Milani L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5804245 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature