Widespread selection for extremely high and low levels of secondary structure in coding sequences across all domains of life.

ABSTRACT: Codon composition, GC content and local RNA secondary structures can have a profound effect on gene expression, and mutations affecting these parameters, even though they do not alter the protein sequence, are not neutral in terms of selection. Although evidence exists that, in some cases, selection favours more stable RNA secondary structures, we currently lack a concrete idea of how many genes are affected within a species, and whether this is a universal phenomenon in nature. We searched for signs of structural selection in a global manner, analysing a set of 1 million coding sequences from 73 species representing all domains of life, as well as viruses, by means of our newly developed software PACKEIS. We show that codon composition and amino acid identity are main determinants of RNA

SUBMITTER: Gebert D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6544989 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature