Ancient Monosaccharide Transporter Gene Family in Land Plants
Author Information
Author(s): Deborah A Johnson, Jeffrey P Hill, Michael A Thomas
Primary Institution: Idaho State University
Hypothesis
The seven subfamilies of MST genes identified in Arabidopsis are ancient, with ancestral homologs of each subfamily likely present in the earliest land plants.
Conclusion
The seven subfamilies of the Arabidopsis MST gene family are ancient in land plants and show differential subfamily expression and lineage-specific subfamily expansions.
Supporting Evidence
- Homologs of all seven MST subfamilies were present in land plants at least 400 million years ago.
- Subfamily expression levels vary across lineages with greater relative expression of the STP, ERD6-like, INT and PLT subfamilies in vascular plants.
- Large subfamily expansions appear to be due to multiple gene duplications arising from single ancestral genes.
Takeaway
This study found that certain genes in plants, which help transport sugars, have been around for a very long time and behave differently in different types of plants.
Methodology
The study utilized expressed sequence tag (EST) data to analyze gene duplication and expression patterns in the MST gene family across various land plant lineages.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in the cDNA libraries from which ESTs were derived may affect the representation of certain genes.
Limitations
The absence of certain subfamilies in some early lineages may be due to limitations in the EST databases searched.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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