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Horizontal Transfer, Not Duplication, Drives the Expansion of Protein Families in Prokaryotes
Open accessAbstract
Gene duplication followed by neo- or sub-functionalization deeply impacts the evolution of protein families and is regarded as the main source of adaptive functional novelty in eukaryotes. While there is ample evidence of adaptive gene duplication in prokaryotes, it is not clear whether duplication outweighs the contribution of horizontal gene transfer in the expansion of protein families. We analyzed closely related prokaryote strains or species with small genomes (Helicobacter, Neisseria, Streptococcus, Sulfolobus), average-sized genomes (Bacillus, Enterobacteriaceae), and large genomes (Pseudomonas, Bradyrhizobiaceae) to untangle the effects of duplication and horizontal transfer. After removing the effects of transposable elements and phages, we show that the vast majority of expansions of protein families are due to transfer, even among large genomes. Transferred genes--xenologs--persist longer in prokaryotic lineages possibly due to a higher/longer adaptive role. On the other hand, duplicated genes--paralogs--are expressed more, and, when persistent, they evolve slower. This suggests that gene transfer and gene duplication have very different roles in shaping the evolution of biological systems: transfer allows the acquisition of new functions and duplication leads to higher gene dosage. Accordingly, we show that paralogs share most protein-protein interactions and genetic regulators, whereas xenologs share very few of them. Prokaryotes invented most of life's biochemical diversity. Therefore, the study of the evolution of biology systems should explicitly account for the predominant role of horizontal gene transfer in the diversification of protein families.
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“Recent theoretical, comparative genomic and experimental research on microbial evolution clearly indicates that HGT is the principal factor in microbial adaptation and innovation (46, 65, 66, 80).”
From Origin and Evolution of the Universal Genetic Code (2017) · cites this paper as [80]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn the citing paper
“Given that HGT, even if limited by both physical and selective barriers, remained a key factor of microbial evolution [36,37,38,39,40], and apparently, a condition for long term survival of microbial populations [41,42]”
From Frozen Accident Pushing 50: Stereochemistry, Expansion, and Chance in the Evolution of the Genetic Code (2017) · cites this paper as [40]
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“Given the relative rareness of paralogy to xenology in prokaryotes (Treangen and Rocha 2011; see also section Quartet Decomposition), it is most parsimonious to interpret highly supported discordant trees as evidence for HGT.”
BackgroundResultKoonin, E. (2017) · Life · doi:10.3390/life7020022 · Cited by 85
“Given that HGT, even if limited by both physical and selective barriers, remained a key factor of microbial evolution [36-40], and apparently, a condition for long term survival of microbial populations [41, 42], it stands to reason that it played a key role not only in the primordial universalization of the code but…”
BackgroundMerlo, M. A., Cross, I., Palazón-Fernández, J. L., Úbeda-Manzanaro, M., Sarasquete, C., & Rebordinos, L. G. (2012) · BMC Evolutionary Biology · doi:10.1186/1471-2148-12-201 · Cited by 83
“The HT phenomenon has been documented extensively in prokaryotes, and is a well-known mechanism of gene exchange [25]; it has been assumed that between 88% and 98% of the expansion of protein families in prokaryotes is due to HT [26].”
BackgroundThe Modern Synthesis in the Light of Microbial Genomics
Booth, A., Mariscal, C., & Doolittle, W. F. (2016) · Annual Review of Microbiology · doi:10.1146/annurev-micro-102215-095456 · Cited by 83
“Indeed, it is now thought likely that, within prokaryotes, what appear to be duplications are more often the product of LGT events introducing orthologs from other strains or species (119).”
BackgroundGenomic evolution and adaptation of arthropod-associated Rickettsia
Karkouri, K. E., Ghigo, É., Raoult, D., & Fournier, P. (2022) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-022-07725-z · Cited by 81
Alexander, W. G., Wisecaver, J. H., Rokas, A., & Hittinger, C. T. (2016) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1517242113 · Cited by 82
MVP: a microbe–phage interaction database
Gao, N., Zhang, C., Zhang, Z., Hu, S., Lercher, M. J., Zhao, X., Bork, P., Liu, Z., & Chen, W.-H. (2017) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gkx1124 · Cited by 80
“In addition, lateral gene transfers frequently occur and contribute significantly to the expansion of gene repertoire in prokaryotes (48).”
BackgroundGene duplication drives genome expansion in a major lineage of Thaumarchaeota
Sheridan, P. O., Raguideau, S., Quince, C., Holden, J. M., Zhang, L., Gaze, W. H., Holden, J. M., Mead, A., Raguideau, S., Quince, C., et al. (2020) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-020-19132-x · Cited by 80
Ares-Arroyo, M., Coluzzi, C., & Rocha, E. P. C. (2022) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gkac1079 · Cited by 78
“Plasmids are extra-chromosomal DNA molecules that have an important role in horizontal gene transfer (1), being key contributors to the spread of antimicrobial resistance genes, virulence factors, and metabolic traits (2).”
BackgroundSelf-citationRemigi, P., Capela, D., Clérissi, C., Tasse, L., Torchet, R., Bouchez, O., Batut, J., Cruveiller, S., Rocha, E. P. C., & Masson‐Boivin, C. (2014) · PLoS Biology · doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001942 · Cited by 81
“HGT plays a ubiquitous role in the diversification of prokaryotes and exploration of new ecological niches [1,2].”
Self-citationHow enzyme promiscuity and horizontal gene transfer contribute to metabolic innovation
Glasner, M. E., Truong, D. P., & Morse, B. C. (2019) · FEBS Journal · doi:10.1111/febs.15185 · Cited by 76
Copy Number Change: Evolving views on Gene Amplification
Elliott, K. T., Cuff, L. E., & Neidle, E. L. (2013) · Future Microbiology · doi:10.2217/fmb.13.53 · Cited by 80
“Despite the challenge in detailed characterization, there is intensive interest in the role of intrachromosomal gene duplication in evolution [14,21,30].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialGlobal Patterns of Protein Domain Gain and Loss in Superkingdoms
Nasir, A., Kim, K. M., & Caetano‐Anollés, G. (2014) · PLoS Computational Biology · doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003452 · Cited by 74
“Finally, changes to domain repertoires are also possible by HGT that is believed to occur with high frequency in microbial species, especially Bacteria [25,26].”
BackgroundTransfer of noncoding DNA drives regulatory rewiring in bacteria
Oren, Y., Smith, M. B., Johns, N. I., Zeevi, M. K., Biran, D., Ron, E. Z., Corander, J., Wang, H. H., Alm, E. J., & Pupko, T. (2014) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1413272111 · Cited by 75
“These striking findings have led many to believe that changes in gene content underlie the rapid pace of bacterial evolution (5, 6).”
BackgroundMechanisms That Shape Microbial Pangenomes
Domingo-Sananes, M. R., & McInerney, J. O. (2021) · Trends in Microbiology · doi:10.1016/j.tim.2020.12.004 · Cited by 74
Coevolution of the Organization and Structure of Prokaryotic GenomesPreprint
Touchon, M., & Rocha, E. P. C. (2016) · Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology · doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a018168 · Cited by 81
“2013), and acquisitions of new genes occur mostly by horizontal gene transfer (Treangen and Rocha 2011).”
BackgroundSelf-citationInter-phylum HGT has shaped the metabolism of many mesophilic and anaerobic bacteria
Caro‐Quintero, A., & Konstantinidis, K. T. (2014) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/ismej.2014.193 · Cited by 76
Dmitrijeva, M., Tackmann, J., Matias Rodrigues, J. F., Huerta-Cepas, J., Coelho, L. P., & von Mering, C. (2024) · Nature Ecology & Evolution · doi:10.1038/s41559-024-02357-0 · Cited by 72
“Gene gain through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in particular is a driving force in prokaryotic genome evolution 1,2 , and most genes have been shown to undergo HGT at least once in their evolutionary history 3,4 .”
BackgroundThe Extent of Genome Flux and Its Role in the Differentiation of Bacterial Lineages
Nowell, R. W., Green, S., Laue, B. E., & Sharp, P. M. (2014) · Genome Biology and Evolution · doi:10.1093/gbe/evu123 · Cited by 70
“We demonstrate a history of extensive genome fluctuation for this species and show that individual lineages could have acquired thousands of genes in the same period in which a 1% amino acid divergence accrues in thecoregenome.”
BackgroundAn Emerging Mycoplasma Associated with Trichomoniasis, Vaginal Infection and Disease
Fettweis, J. M., Serrano, M. G., Huang, B., Brooks, J. P., Glascock, A. L., Sheth, N. U., Strauss, J. F., Jefferson, K. K., & Buck, G. A. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0110943 · Cited by 71
“Although these organisms exhibit a low level of horizontal gene transfer, expanded families of surface proteins are an exception [43–45].”
BackgroundThe chromosomal accommodation and domestication of mobile genetic elements
Touchon, M., Bobay, L., & Rocha, E. P. C. (2014) · Current Opinion in Microbiology · doi:10.1016/j.mib.2014.09.010 · Cited by 73
Self-citationGrammar of protein domain architectures
Yu, L., Tanwar, D. K., Penha, E. D. D. S., Wolf, Y. I., Koonin, E. V., & Basu, M. K. (2019) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1814684116 · Cited by 68
The complex evolutionary history of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases
Chaliotis, A., Vlastaridis, P., Mossialos, D., Ibba, M., Becker, H. D., Stathopoulos, C., & Amoutzias, G. D. (2016) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gkw1182 · Cited by 69
“This calculation is in accordance with previous large-scale analyses on other protein families, where HGT instead of intra-chromosomal gene duplication is considered the main driving force behind protein family expansion in prokaryotes with an estimated contribution of 88–98% (61).”
ResultAndreini, C., Rosato, A., & Banci, L. (2017) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0171279 · Cited by 73
The Ingenuity of Bacterial Genomes
Kirchberger, P. C., Schmidt, M. L., & Ochman, H. (2020) · Annual Review of Microbiology · doi:10.1146/annurev-micro-020518-115822 · Cited by 68
Early evolution without a tree of life
Martin, W. F. (2011) · Biology Direct · doi:10.1186/1745-6150-6-36 · Cited by 70
“In prokaryote genome evolution, lateral gene transfer (LGT) is an important mechanism of natural variation [4], while the prokaryote-to-eukaryote transition involved the wholesale merger of prokaryotic genomes via endosymbiosis [5-7].”
BackgroundAlienness: Rapid Detection of Candidate Horizontal Gene Transfers across the Tree of Life
Rancurel, C., Legrand, L., & Danchin, É. (2017) · Genes · doi:10.3390/genes8100248 · Cited by 68
Sitaraman, R. (2018) · Microbiome · doi:10.1186/s40168-018-0551-z · Cited by 71
Mao, M., Yang, X., & Bennett, G. M. (2018) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1811932115 · Cited by 67
“Gene duplications are an important source of functional novelty in organismal adaptation (59, 60).”
BackgroundThe Turbulent Network Dynamics of Microbial Evolution and the Statistical Tree of Life
Koonin, E. V. (2015) · Journal of Molecular Evolution · doi:10.1007/s00239-015-9679-7 · Cited by 62
“Acquisition of new genes and whole suits of genes, such as operons, appears to be the principal way of expanding metabolic networks in microbes (Andersson 2009; Treangen and Rocha 2011).”
BackgroundPredictive microbiology theory and application: Is it all about rates?
McMeekin, T. A., Olley, J. N., Ratkowsky, D. A., Corkrey, R., & Ross, T. (2012) · Food Control · doi:10.1016/j.foodcont.2012.06.001 · Cited by 69
“Treangen and Rocha (2011) compared the roles of HGT and gene duplication showing that the vast majority of expansions in protein families are due to transfer.”
BackgroundGenome plasticity and systems evolution in Streptomyces
Zhou, Z. M., Gu, J., Li, Y.-Q., & Wang, Y. (2012) · BMC Bioinformatics · doi:10.1186/1471-2105-13-s10-s8 · Cited by 71
“LGT is particularly important for bacteria as it is a general mechanism for them to acquire genetic materials from other organisms via transformation, conjugation, bacterial phage transduction, and acquisition of plasmids [8,12-14].”
BackgroundAdaptation in Natural Microbial Populations
Koskella, B., & Vos, M. (2015) · Annual Review of Ecology Evolution and Systematics · doi:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-112414-054458 · Cited by 67
Metadata
- Authors
- Treangen, T. J., & Rocha, E. P. C.
- Affiliations
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Corresponding author
- Treangen, Todd J.
- Venue
- PLoS Genetics
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- Published
- 2011-01-27
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- e1001284
- ISSN
- 1553-7390 (ISSN-L)
- 1553-7404
- PMC
- PMC3029252
- OpenAlex
- W2022927779
- Cited by
- 509
- References
- 75
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 34 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 29 · 2021: 32 · 2020: 52 · 2019: 27 · 2018: 33 · 2017: 31 · 2016: 38 · 2015: 29 · 2014: 34 · 2013: 33 · 2012: 28
- FWCI
- 15.99
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- PLoS Genetics (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Chromosomal and Genetic Variations
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Keywords
- horizontal gene transfer, gene duplication, protein family expansion, prokaryotes, paralogs, functional novelty, gene dosage, protein-protein interaction, regulatory genes, genome size, Helicobacter, Neisseria, Streptococcus, Sulfolobus, Bacillus, Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas, Bradyrhizobiaceae
- MeSH terms
- Bacillus, Bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, Multigene Family, Neisseria, Phylogeny, Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Genome, Bacterial, Sulfolobus, Helicobacter, Evolution, Molecular, Computational Biology, Gene Duplication, Gene Transfer, Horizontal, Bradyrhizobiaceae
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