Back to Search
Start Over
Identification of Parthenogenesis-Inducing Effector Proteins in Wolbachia.
- Source :
-
Genome Biology & Evolution . Apr2024, Vol. 16 Issue 4, p1-14. 14p. - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Bacteria in the genus Wolbachia have evolved numerous strategies to manipulate arthropod sex, including the conversion of would-be male offspring to asexually reproducing females. This so-called "parthenogenesis induction" phenotype can be found in a number of Wolbachia strains that infect arthropods with haplodiploid sex determination systems, including parasitoid wasps. Despite the discovery of microbe-mediated parthenogenesis more than 30 yr ago, the underlying genetic mechanisms have remained elusive. We used a suite of genomic, computational, and molecular tools to identify and characterize two proteins that are uniquely found in parthenogenesis-inducing Wolbachia and have strong signatures of host-associated bacterial effector proteins. These putative parthenogenesis-inducing proteins have structural homology to eukaryotic protein domains including nucleoporins, the key insect sex determining factor Transformer, and a eukaryotic-like serine–threonine kinase with leucine-rich repeats. Furthermore, these proteins significantly impact eukaryotic cell biology in the model Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We suggest that these proteins are parthenogenesis-inducing factors and our results indicate that this would be made possible by a novel mechanism of bacterial-host interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 17596653
- Volume :
- 16
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Genome Biology & Evolution
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 176933227
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evae036