Functional Diversification of Transcription Factors
Author Information
Author(s): Larry N. Singh, Sridhar Hannenhalli, Emmanouil T. Dermitzakis
Primary Institution: Penn Center for Bioinformatics, Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania
Hypothesis
The relationship between DNA binding site motif divergence and expression divergence in transcription factor paralogs has not been previously investigated.
Conclusion
Transcription factor paralogs tend to diversify in their DNA binding site motifs or tissue-specific expression levels to survive extinction.
Supporting Evidence
- Paralogous transcription factors with similar DNA binding motifs tend to have diverged expression patterns.
- In general, at most one of the paralogs is highly expressed in a tissue.
- Paralogs with diverged DNA binding site motifs tend to have diverged functions.
Takeaway
When two similar genes are present, usually only one is very active in a tissue, while the other is not. This helps them to work better together.
Methodology
The study analyzed 95 pairs of human paralogous transcription factors using DNA binding site motifs and expression data across multiple tissues.
Potential Biases
Potential biases due to cross-hybridization in microarray data.
Limitations
The analysis may not account for all factors influencing gene expression and functional divergence.
Participant Demographics
Human transcription factors.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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