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Gene families: the taxonomy of protein paralogs and chimeras

Item Type:Article
Title:Gene families: the taxonomy of protein paralogs and chimeras
Creators Name:Henikoff, S. and Greene, E.A. and Pietrokovski, S. and Bork, P. and Attwood, T.K. and Hood, L.
Abstract:Ancient duplications and rearrangements of protein-coding segments have resulted in complex gene family relationships. Duplications can be tandem or dispersed and can involve entire coding regions or modules that correspond to folded protein domains. As a result, gene products may acquire new specificities, altered recognition properties, or modified functions. Extreme proliferation of some families within an organism, perhaps at the expense of other families, may correspond to functional innovations during evolution. The underlying processes are still at work, and the large fraction of human and other genomes consisting of transposable elements may be a manifestation of the evolutionary benefits of genomic flexibility.
Keywords:Amino Acid Sequence, Base Sequence, Computer Communication Networks, Databases as Topic, Genetic Variation, Molecular Evolution, Multigene Family, Nucleic Acid Repetitive Sequences, Phylogeny, Proteins, Animals
Source:Science
ISSN:0036-8075
Publisher:American Association for the Advancement of Science
Volume:278
Number:5338
Page Range:609-614
Date:24 October 1997
Official Publication:https://doi.org/10.1126/science.278.5338.609
PubMed:View item in PubMed

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