Abstract
The actin filament is astonishingly well conserved across a diverse set of eukaryotic species. It has essentially remained unchanged in the billion years that separate yeast, Arabidopsis and man. In contrast, bacterial actin-like proteins have diverged to the extreme, and many of them are not readily identified from sequence-based homology searches. Here, we present phylogenetic analyses that point to an evolutionary drive to diversify actin filament composition across kingdoms. Bacteria use a one-filament-one-function system to create distinct filament systems within a single cell. In contrast, eukaryotic actin is a universal force provider in a wide range of processes. In plants, there has been an expansion of the number of closely related actin genes, whereas in fungi and metazoa diversification in tropomyosins has increased the compositional variety in actin filament systems. Both mechanisms dictate the subset of actin-binding proteins that interact with each filament type, leading to specialization in function. In this Hypothesis, we thus propose that different mechanisms were selected in bacteria, plants and metazoa, which achieved actin filament compositional variation leading to the expansion of their functional diversity.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 2009-2019 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of cell science |
| Volume | 128 |
| Issue number | 11 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 1 2015 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- Actin
- Evolution
- Filament
- Tropomyosin
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cell Biology
Cite this
The evolution of compositionally and functionally distinct actin filaments. / Gunning, Peter W.; Ghoshdastider, Umesh; Whitaker, Shane; Popp, David; Robinson, Robert C.
In: Journal of cell science, Vol. 128, No. 11, 01.01.2015, p. 2009-2019.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - The evolution of compositionally and functionally distinct actin filaments
AU - Gunning, Peter W.
AU - Ghoshdastider, Umesh
AU - Whitaker, Shane
AU - Popp, David
AU - Robinson, Robert C.
PY - 2015/1/1
Y1 - 2015/1/1
N2 - The actin filament is astonishingly well conserved across a diverse set of eukaryotic species. It has essentially remained unchanged in the billion years that separate yeast, Arabidopsis and man. In contrast, bacterial actin-like proteins have diverged to the extreme, and many of them are not readily identified from sequence-based homology searches. Here, we present phylogenetic analyses that point to an evolutionary drive to diversify actin filament composition across kingdoms. Bacteria use a one-filament-one-function system to create distinct filament systems within a single cell. In contrast, eukaryotic actin is a universal force provider in a wide range of processes. In plants, there has been an expansion of the number of closely related actin genes, whereas in fungi and metazoa diversification in tropomyosins has increased the compositional variety in actin filament systems. Both mechanisms dictate the subset of actin-binding proteins that interact with each filament type, leading to specialization in function. In this Hypothesis, we thus propose that different mechanisms were selected in bacteria, plants and metazoa, which achieved actin filament compositional variation leading to the expansion of their functional diversity.
AB - The actin filament is astonishingly well conserved across a diverse set of eukaryotic species. It has essentially remained unchanged in the billion years that separate yeast, Arabidopsis and man. In contrast, bacterial actin-like proteins have diverged to the extreme, and many of them are not readily identified from sequence-based homology searches. Here, we present phylogenetic analyses that point to an evolutionary drive to diversify actin filament composition across kingdoms. Bacteria use a one-filament-one-function system to create distinct filament systems within a single cell. In contrast, eukaryotic actin is a universal force provider in a wide range of processes. In plants, there has been an expansion of the number of closely related actin genes, whereas in fungi and metazoa diversification in tropomyosins has increased the compositional variety in actin filament systems. Both mechanisms dictate the subset of actin-binding proteins that interact with each filament type, leading to specialization in function. In this Hypothesis, we thus propose that different mechanisms were selected in bacteria, plants and metazoa, which achieved actin filament compositional variation leading to the expansion of their functional diversity.
KW - Actin
KW - Evolution
KW - Filament
KW - Tropomyosin
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84930806696&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84930806696&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1242/jcs.165563
DO - 10.1242/jcs.165563
M3 - Article
C2 - 25788699
AN - SCOPUS:84930806696
VL - 128
SP - 2009
EP - 2019
JO - Journal of Cell Science
JF - Journal of Cell Science
SN - 0021-9533
IS - 11
ER -