title: Two chaperonin systems in bacterial genomes with distinct ecological roles.
abstract: Bacterial chaperonins are essential to cell viability and have a role in endosymbiosis, which leads to increased biological complexity. However, the extent to which chaperonins promote ecological innovation is unknown. We screened 622 bacterial genomes for genes encoding chaperonins, and found archaeal-like chaperonins in bacteria that inhabit archaeal ecological niches. We found that chaperonins encoded in pathogenic bacteria are the most functionally divergent. We identified the molecular basis of the dramatic structural changes in mitochondrial GROEL, a highly derived chaperonin gene. Our analysis suggests that chaperonins are important capacitors of evolutionary and ecological change.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, University of Dublin, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Tom A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Francisco M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Codoñer
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Toft
authors.forename: Mario A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Fares
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D018833:Chaperonins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D017753:Ecosystem; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D050296:Microbial Viability
chemical_list: D018833:Chaperonins