Work

Macroevolutionary divergence of gene expression driven by selection on protein abundance

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The regulation of messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein abundances is well-studied, but less is known about the evolutionary processes shaping their relationship. To address this, we derived a new phylogenetic model and applied it to multispecies mammalian data. Our analyses reveal (i) strong stabilizing selection on protein abundances over macroevolutionary time, (ii) mutations affecting mRNA abundances minimally impact protein abundances, (iii) mRNA abundances evolve under selection to align with protein abundances, and (iv) mRNA abundances adapt faster than protein abundances owing to greater mutational opportunity. These conclusions are supported by comparisons of model parameters with independent functional genomic data. By decomposing mutational and selective influences on mRNA-protein dynamics, our approach provides a framework for discovering the evolutionary rules that drive divergence in gene expression.

Source: Science

DOI: 10.1126/science.ads2658

Authors: Alexander L. Cope, Joshua G. Schraiber, Matt Pennell

Institutions: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Vanderbilt University, University of Southern California, Cornell University

Language: English

Topic: Evolution and Genetic Dynamics

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Institute of General Medical Sciences

Awards: IRACDA at Rutgers: INSPIRE Postdoctoral Training Program, Leveraging phylogenetic approaches to investigate the evolution of geneexpression