The effects of genome size reduction on cellular processes

基因组大小减小对细胞过程的影响

• 批准号: 262988-2013
• 负责人: Fast, Naomi
• 金额: $ 3.64万
• 依托单位: University of British Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2013-01-01 至 2014-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=525601
• 关键词: effects; genome; size; reduction; cellular

The human genome is very large, and our genes contain very long stretches of non-coding sequences called introns. Proper gene expression requires that introns be removed from messenger RNAs prior to their translation into proteins, and this task is carried out by a large, macromolecular, cellular machine called the spliceosome. However, not all genomes are large. As genomes are reduced, non-coding sequences such as introns can be shortened, or lost, and complex cellular machines are reduced in size and have fewer components. I propose to examine the process of splicing in eukaryotes with the smallest nuclear genomes known. Identifying common features of reduced splicing systems in unrelated organisms allows for predicting a functional core of the spliceosome, and identifies other constraints in the system (such as intron sequence features) that might otherwise be obscured in more complex systems.

人类基因组非常大，我们的基因包含很长一段称为内含子的非编码序列。正确的基因表达需要在将信使RNA翻译成蛋白质之前将内含子从信使RNA中移除，而这项任务是由一种称为剪接体的大分子细胞机器执行的。然而，并不是所有的基因组都很大。随着基因组的减少，非编码序列（如内含子）可能会缩短或丢失，复杂的细胞机器的大小也会减少，组件也会减少。我打算用已知最小的核基因组来研究真核生物中的剪接过程。在不相关的生物体中识别减少剪接系统的共同特征允许预测剪接体的功能核心，并识别系统中的其他约束（如内含子序列特征），否则可能在更复杂的系统中被掩盖。