title: Helitron mediated amplification of cytochrome P450 monooxygenase gene in maize.
abstract: The mass movement of gene sequences by Helitrons has significantly contributed to the lack of gene collinearity reported between different maize inbred lines. However, Helitron captured-genes reported to date represent truncated versions of their progenitor genes. In this report, we provide evidence that maize CYP72A27-Zm gene represents a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (P450) gene recently captured by a Helitron and transposed into an Opie-2 retroposon. The four exons of the CYP72A27 gene contained within the element contain a putative open reading frame (ORF) for 428 amino acid residues. We provide evidence that Helitron captured CYP72A27-Zm is transcribed. To identify the progenitor gene and the evolutionary time of capture, we searched the plant genome database and discovered other closely related CYP72A27-Zm genes in maize and grasses. Our analysis indicates that CYP72A27-Zm represents an almost complete copy of maize CYP72A26-Zm gene captured by a Helitron about 3.1 million years ago (mya). The Helitron-captured gene then duplicated twice, approximately 1.5-1.6 mya giving rise to CYP72A36-Zm and CYP72A37-Zm. These data provide evidence that Helitrons can capture and mobilize intact genes that are transcribed and potentially encode biologically relevant proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309-4401, USA.
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Jameson
authors.forename: Nikolaos
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Georgelis
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fouladbash
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Martens
authors.forename: L Curtis
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Hannah
authors.forename: Shailesh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lal
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D020029:Base Pairing; D001483:Base Sequence; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D005091:Exons; D005784:Gene Amplification; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D003313:Zea mays / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System