Characterization & evolutionary analysis of human CD36 gene.
OBJECTIVE
Understanding evolutionary genetic details of immune system genes responsible for infectious diseases is of prime importance concerning disease pathogenecity. Considering malaria as a devastating disease in the world including India, detail evolutionary understanding on human immune system gene is essential. The primary aim of this study was to initiate work on one such gene, the human CD36 gene responsible in malaria pathogenesis.


METHODS
DNA sequences of the human CD36 gene was retrieved from public domain and fine-scale details were characterized. Both comparative and evolutionary analyses were performed with sequences from six other taxa (5 mammalian one avian) where CD36 homologs are present. Different statistical analyses were also performed.


RESULTS
Differential distribution in number and length of exons and introns was detected in CD36 gene across seven taxa. The CpG islands were also found to be distributed unevenly across the gene and taxa. Neighbour-joining tree was constructed and it was observed that the chimpanzee and human are diverged at the CD36 gene relatively recently. The chicken, Gallus gallus was found to be diverged from rest of the taxa significantly. Also copy number variation was observed across different taxa.


CONCLUSIONS
Comparative genomic study of a human immune system gene CD36 show relationships among different taxa at the evolutionary level. The information can be of help to study genetic diversity in malaria endemic zones and to correlate it with malaria pathogenecity.
Awasthi
Gauri
G
Evolutionary Genomics & Bioinformatics Laboratory, National Institute of Malaria Research (ICMR) New Delhi, India.
Dash
Aditya P
AP
Das
Aparup
A
D018955:CD36 Antigens / Q000235:genetics*; D002897:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 7 / Q000235:genetics*; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D018899:CpG Islands / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D040461:Gene Components; D014644:Genetic Variation; D023281:Genomics / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007109:Immunity / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D013045:Species Specificity
D018955:CD36 Antigens