Clues to evolution of the SERA multigene family in 18 Plasmodium species.
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 21423628.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0017775 and PMC identifier 3058004.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
SERA gene sequences were newly determined from 11 primate Plasmodium species including two human parasites, P. ovale and P. malariae, and the evolutionary history of SERA genes was analyzed together with 7 known species. All have one each of Group I to III cysteine-type SERA genes and varying number of Group IV serine-type SERA genes in tandem cluster. Notably, Group IV SERA genes were ascertained in all mammalian parasite lineages; and in two primate parasite lineages gene events such as duplication, truncation, fragmentation and gene loss occurred at high frequency in a manner that mimics the birth-and-death evolution model. Transcription profile of individual SERA genes varied greatly among rodent and monkey parasites. Results support the lineage-specific evolution of the Plasmodium SERA gene family. These findings provide further impetus for studies that could clarify/provide proof-of-concept that duplications of SERA genes were associated with the parasites' expansion of host range and the evolutionary conundrums of multigene families in Plasmodium.
Medical subject headings
- Antigens, Protozoan
- Evolution, Molecular
- Multigene Family
- Plasmodium