Remarkable Conservation of Translation Initiation Factors: IF1/eIF1A and IF2/eIF5B are Universally Distributed Phylogenetic Markers

Initiation of protein biosynthesis is an essential process occurring in cells throughout the three phylogenetic domains, Bacteria, Archaea, and Eucarya. IF1/eIF1A and IF2/eIF5B, two conserved translation initiation factors are involved in this important step of protein biosynthesis. The essentiality...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IUBMB life 2001-05, Vol.51 (5), p.321-327
Main Authors: Sørensen, Hans Peter, Hedegaard, Jakob, Sperling‐Petersen, Hans Uffe, Mortensen, Kim Kusk
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amino Acid Sequence
Biosynthesis
Components
Conserved Sequence
Escherichia coli - genetics
Eukaryotic Initiation Factor-1 - genetics
Eukaryotic Initiation Factor-5
Evolution
Evolution, Molecular
Genetic Markers
Genome
Geobacillus stearothermophilus - genetics
Haemophilus - genetics
Humans
If1/EIF1A
If2/EIF5B
Initiation
Markers
Methanobacterium - genetics
Molecular
Molecular Sequence Data
Peptide Initiation Factors - genetics
Phylogeny
Protein
Ribosomal
Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
Translation
Universal
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Summary:Initiation of protein biosynthesis is an essential process occurring in cells throughout the three phylogenetic domains, Bacteria, Archaea, and Eucarya. IF1/eIF1A and IF2/eIF5B, two conserved translation initiation factors are involved in this important step of protein biosynthesis. The essentiality, universal distribution, conservation, and interspecies functional homology of both factors are a unique combination of properties ideal for molecular phylogenetic studies as demonstrated by the extensively compared SSU rRNAs. Here, we assess the use of IF1/eIF1A and IF2/eIF5B in universal and partial phylogenetic studies by comparison of sequence information from species within all three phylogenetic domains and among closely related strains of Haemophilus parainfluenzae . We conclude that the amino acid sequence of IF1/eIF1A‐IF2/eIF5B is a universal phylogenetic marker and that the nucleotide sequence of the IF2/eIF5B G‐domain is more credible than SSU rRNA for the construction of partial phylogenies among closely related species and strains. Because of these two application levels, IF1/eIF1AIF2/eIF5B is a phylogenetic “dual level” marker.
ISSN:1521-6543
1521-6551
DOI:10.1080/152165401317190842