Unassigned MURF1 of kinetoplastids codes for NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2
2008

MURF1 Protein in Kinetoplastids and Its Role as NADH Dehydrogenase Subunit 2

publication Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Kannan Sivakumar, Burger Gertraud

Primary Institution: Université de Montréal

Hypothesis

MURF1 is a highly derived distant homolog of NAD2.

Conclusion

The study provides convincing evidence that MURF1 is a highly derived homolog of NAD2.

Supporting Evidence

  • MURF1 was predicted to be a divergent NADHdh subunit 2 (NAD2) by a machine-learning-based classifier.
  • Profile HMM comparisons identified MURF1 as NAD2 with high confidence.
  • No previously annotated nad2 gene was found in the mitochondrial or nuclear genomes of kinetoplastids.

Takeaway

Scientists studied a protein called MURF1 in certain tiny organisms and found out that it is actually a part of a bigger machine that helps these organisms breathe.

Methodology

The study used bioinformatics methods including sequence comparisons and profile HMM comparisons to analyze the MURF1 protein.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1471-2164-9-455

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