The coordinated evolution of yeast proteins is constrained by functional modularity

• Published in: Trends in genetics Vol. 22; no. 8; pp. 416 - 419
• Main Authors: Chen, Yiwen, Dokholyan, Nikolay V.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01-08-2006; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; coordinated evolution; evolution; Evolution, Molecular; functional modularity; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; fungal proteins; gene expression; Gene Expression - genetics; Gene Expression - physiology; Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution; microbial genetics; Molecular and cellular biology; Mutation; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - chemistry; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - genetics; Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins - chemistry; Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins - genetics; Sequence Analysis, Protein; yeasts; Molecular evolution; Genetics; Yeast; Protein
• ISSN: 0168-9525
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2006.06.008

Functional modularity is a key attribute of cellular systems and has important roles in evolution. However, the extent to which functional modularity affects protein evolution is largely unknown. Here, we analyzed the evolution of both sequence and expression level of proteins in the yeast
Saccharomyces cerevisiae and found that proteins within the same functional modules evolve at more similar rates than those between different modules. We also found stronger co-evolution of expression levels between proteins within functional modules than between them. These results suggest that a coordinated evolution of both the sequence and expression level of proteins is constrained by functional modularity.