At the Root of T2R Gene Evolution: Recognition Profiles of Coelacanth and Zebrafish Bitter Receptors.

ABSTRACT: The careful evaluation of food is important for survival throughout the animal kingdom, and specialized chemoreceptors have evolved to recognize nutrients, minerals, acids, and many toxins. Vertebrate bitter taste, mediated by the taste receptor type 2 (T2R) family, warns against potentially toxic compounds. During evolution T2R receptors appear first in bony fish, but the functional properties of bony fish T2R receptors are mostly unknown. We performed a phylogenetic analysis showing the "living fossil" coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) to possess T2R repertoires typical for early-diverged species in the lobe-finned and the ray-finned clade, respectively. Receptors from these two species were selected for heterologous expression assays using a diverse panel of b

SUBMITTER: Behrens M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7851594 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature