Molecular Evolution of Protein Domains Involved in ProteinTurnover in Eukaryotes: A Comparative Genomics and ORFeomics Approach
2013
Genome sequencing projects have produced vast quantities of data that are stored in different
sequence repositories. Sequences in these databases are annotated taking input from different
experimental methodologies and also computational techniques. Comparative genomics
methods are usually based on the comparison of these sequences at the scale of whole
genomes and generally rely on homology detection based on sequence similarity searches.
This thesis presents an approach of comparative genomics wherein individual catalogues for
protein domain families have been prepared and analyzed to derive additional insights into
the functions of such proteins. Three key domains (FYVE, PX and UIM), which are involved
in protein degradation pathways in eukaryotes were chosen for this study. This present
approach has also facilitated the integration of functional information of these protein domain
families with their taxonomic classification.
So far experiments adopting biochemical and structural biology approaches have assisted in
the identification and characterization of the aforesaid domain families. However, these studies have been
conducted on proteins that were derived from a limited number of organisms. The inherent
restrictions of genetic manoeuvrability, availability of tools such as expression vectors etc.
have been the reasons for these constraints. However, since all the three domains included in
this study are of fundamental importance to the functioning of the cell, they have been
subjected to extensive studies; which have resulted in their detailed characterization. This
pre-existing comprehensive knowledge has served as an excellent foundation for adopting
bioinformatics approach to gain additional insights regarding the possible functions of these
proteins, especially by encompassing data from organisms where biochemical studies are not
possible.
This study further strengthens the utility of whole genome comparison method in combining
the wealth of information present in different sequence resources and assisting in the
identification of new members of protein families that are encoded in less-studied organisms.
As a whole, this thesis has uncovered various new aspects of the aforesaid three domain
families.
Keywords:
- Correction
- Source
- Cite
- Save
- Machine Reading By IdeaReader
0
References
0
Citations
NaN
KQI