Molecular evolution of ubiquitin genes

P M Sharp; W H Li

doi:10.1016/0169-5347(87)90108-X

Molecular evolution of ubiquitin genes

Trends Ecol Evol. 1987 Nov;2(11):328-32. doi: 10.1016/0169-5347(87)90108-X.

Authors

P M Sharp¹, W H Li

Affiliation

¹ Dept of Genetics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland.

PMID: 21227875
DOI: 10.1016/0169-5347(87)90108-X

Abstract

Ubiquitin is a singular protein with multiple functions. It is probably the most slowly evolving protein known, is encoded by genes with a unique structure, and provides an intriguing case study for various aspects of molecular evolution. In particular, the multiple ubiquitin-coding repeats which have been characterized in man, yeast and a slime mould graphically illustrate the dynamics of concerted evolution, but cast doubts on the effectiveness of this process for unlinked arrays in this repeat family.