title: Evolution of new protein function: recombinational enhancer Fis originated by horizontal gene transfer from the transcriptional regulator NtrC.
abstract: New protein function is thought to evolve mostly by gene duplication and divergence. Here we present phylogenetic evidence that the multifunctional protein Fis of the gamma proteobacterial species derived from the COOH-terminal domain of an ancestral alpha proteobacterial NtrC transcriptional regulatory protein. All of the known enterobacterial fis genes are preceded by an open reading frame, named yhdG, that is highly similar to nifR3, a gene that forms an operon with ntrC in several alpha proteobacterial species. Thus, we propose that yhdG and fis were acquired by a lineage ancestral to the gamma proteobacteria in a single horizontal gene transfer event, and later diverged to their present functions.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuernavaca, Mor. emorett@ibt.unam.mx
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Morett
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bork
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D004742:Enhancer Elements, Genetic; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D035021:Factor For Inversion Stimulation Protein; D006193:Haemophilus influenzae / Q000235:genetics; D034982:Integration Host Factors; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D009876:Operon; D051922:PII Nitrogen Regulatory Proteins; D015661:Pasteurellaceae / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D015534:Trans-Activators; D014157:Transcription Factors
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D035021:Factor For Inversion Stimulation Protein; D034982:Integration Host Factors; D051922:PII Nitrogen Regulatory Proteins; D015534:Trans-Activators; D014157:Transcription Factors; C497876:glnG protein, E coli; C440502:integration host factor, E coli