Molecular Evolution of Aerobic Energy in Primates: The Cytochrome bc1 Complex

灵长类动物有氧能量的分子进化：细胞色素 bc1 复合物

• 批准号: 9910679
• 负责人: Lawrence Grossman
• 金额: $ 35.9万
• 依托单位: Wayne State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2000
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2000-05-01 至 2004-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9910679&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Molecular; Evolution; Aerobic; Energy; Primates

Adaptive changes in oxidative energy metabolism may be a key process in the origins of humankind. Subunits of cytochrome c oxidase, the terminal enzyme complex in the electron transport chain, and cytochrome c, the electron carrier between cytochrome bc1 and cytochrome oxidase, were previously shown to have both undergone periods of rapid amino acid substitutions in primates. These studies will now be extended to cytochrome bc1, an 11-subunit complex. Two problems will be addressed whose solutions will help provide insights into the evolution and function of cytochrome bc1 and its potential role in anthropoid primates: (1) Cytochrome bc1 subunit genes and also cytochrome c will be examined to determine whether the encoded proteins underwent bursts of rapid amino acid substitutions in lineages leading to the anthropoid primates. (2) Positively selected changes in primates will be tested as to whether they take place not only via amino acid coding region changes but also via regulatory changes in the elements that control expression of the genes. This work will characterize some of the important genetic changes that allowed the emergence of the large-brained primates.

氧化能量代谢的适应性变化可能是人类起源的关键过程。细胞色素 c 氧化酶（电子传递链中的末端酶复合物）的亚基和细胞色素 c（细胞色素 bc1 和细胞色素氧化酶之间的电子载体）的亚基先前已被证明在灵长类动物中都经历了快速氨基酸替换期。这些研究现在将扩展到细胞色素 bc1，一种 11 个亚基复合物。将解决两个问题，其解决方案将有助于深入了解细胞色素 bc1 的进化和功能及其在类人灵长类动物中的潜在作用：（1）将检查细胞色素 bc1 亚基基因和细胞色素 c，以确定编码的蛋白质是否经历了爆发导致类人灵长类谱系的快速氨基酸替换。 (2) 将测试灵长类动物中积极选择的变化，以确定它们是否不仅通过氨基酸编码区变化发生，而且还通过控制基因表达的元件的调节变化发生。这项工作将描述一些重要的基因变化，这些变化使得大脑灵长类动物的出现。