title: Fox gene loci in Takifugu rubripes and Tetraodon nigroviridis genomes and comparison with those of medaka and zebrafish genomes.
abstract: Members of the Fox gene family of transcriptional regulators are essential for animal development and have been extensively studied in vertebrates. The mouse and human genomes contain at least 40 FOX genes which are divided into 19 subclasses based on the sequence similarity of the highly conserved forkhead domain. Using the genome sequence of the  Takifugu rubripes  and  Tetraodon nigroviridis , we examined the genomic complement of fox genes in these organisms to gain insight into the evolutionary relationship of this gene family. We identified 53 fox genes in Tetraodon nigroviridis and Takifugu rubripes genome by searching the forkhead domain. These genes are divided into 18 subclasses as follows: 8 fox genes in subclass O; 6 in subclass P ; 4 in subclasses D, J, and N; 3 in subclasses A, B, C, E, F, and I; 2 in subclasses K, L, and Q; and 1 in subclasses G, H, M, and R. Together with the forkhead domain sequences of human, chicken, frog, zebrafish, medaka, and Caenorhabditis elegans, the phylogenetic relationship of the fox genes in Takifugu rubripes and Tetraodon nigroviridis were analyzed and compared. The genes structure, general features, and the three-dimensional model of these genes were also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Genomics Group, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, Singapore 117604, Singapore.
authors.forename: Xueyan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Jianzhou
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Qingli
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Gong
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D033481:Chromosomes, Mammalian / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics*; D020440:Gene Duplication; D056426:Genetic Loci; D015894:Genome, Human; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009990:Oryzias / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D026801:Synteny; D023721:Tetraodontiformes / Q000235:genetics*; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins