Host-Virus Arms Races Drive Elevated Adaptive Evolution in Viral Receptors.

ABSTRACT: Viral receptors are the cell surface proteins that are hijacked by viruses to initialize their infections. Viral receptors are subject to two conflicting directional forces, namely, negative selection due to functional constraints and positive selection due to host-virus arms races. It remains largely obscure whether negative pleiotropy limits the rate of adaptation in viral receptors. Here, we perform evolutionary analyses of 96 viral receptor genes in primates and find that 41 out of 96 viral receptors experienced adaptive evolution. Many positively selected residues in viral receptors are located at the virus-receptor interfaces. Compared with control proteins, viral receptors exhibit significantly elevated rate of adaptation. Further analyses of genetic polymorphisms in human populatio

SUBMITTER: Wang W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7394895 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature