Genome-wide mapping of cis-regulatory elements conserved in vertebrates

我们使用比较基因组学方法和一种高效的非洲爪哇转基因技术，在全基因组范围内对参与发育和疾病的基因进行了顺式调控分析。在包括Pax家族和Polycomb相关基因在内的多种基因中都发现了保守的增强子。此外，脊椎动物和文昌鱼顺式调控元件的比较功能分析表明，在脊椎动物进化过程中，沉默因子的创新而不是增强子的退化对Paralog表达的多样化至关重要。

We performed cis-regulatory analyses of genes involved in development and disease in a genome-wide manner, using comparative genomics approach and an efficient transgenesis technique in Xenopus. Conserved enhancers were identified in a variety of genes including Pax family and Polycomb-related genes. Furthermore, comparative functional analysis between the vertebrate and amphioxus cis-regulatory elements revealed that silencer innovation, rather than enhancer degeneration, was crucial for the diversification of paralog expression during vertebrate evolution.