Sequences of isopenicillin N synthetase genes suggest horizontal gene transfer from prokaryotes to eukaryotes.
Evolutionary distances between bacterial and fungal isopenicillin N synthetase (IPNS) genes have been compared to distances between the corresponding 5S rRNA genes. The presence of sequences homologous to the IPNS gene has been examined in DNAs from representative prokaryotic organisms and Ascomycotina. The results of both analyses strongly support two different events of horizontal transfer of the IPNS gene from bacteria to filamentous fungi. This is the first example of such a type of transfer from prokaryotes to eukaryotes.
Peñalva
M A
MA
Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del C.S.I.C., Madrid, Spain.
Moya
A
A
Dopazo
J
J
Ramón
D
D
D000164:Acremonium / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D001233:Aspergillus nidulans / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D005800:Genes, Fungal; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics*; D010408:Penicillium chrysogenum / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D014162:Transfection
D010088:Oxidoreductases; C038370:isopenicillin N synthetase