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GENE NETWORKS FOR ADAPTATION. "In order to study the genetics of adaptation in floral form, the full developmental networks underlying organ morphology must be determined for the lineage under study. Using a comparative approach among related species or within polymorphic populations, mutation(s) causing an observed change in gene expression or alterations in protein interactions can be identified." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

UNDERLYING NUANCES. "Differential expression and interactions of the network genes can underlie symmetry differences among flowers by influencing characters such as petal shape, stamen growth and cell type differentiation within flowers and lineage-specific changes in copy numbers of these genes, each copy having the potential to acquire mutations in regulatory or coding regions, provide opportunities for novel developmental and morphological consequences." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

GENE NETWORKS BEAT CANDIDATE GENES. "Studies in both model systems and in diverse plant lineages have demonstrated that floral morphology is not controlled by a single candidate symmetry gene or even a single set of genes, but rather by a complex network of genes that regulate symmetry patterns and lead to the diversity in shape within lineages." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

DOWNSTREAM OF THE CANDIDATE GENES. "While the expression of TCP genes is spatially restricted in similar ways in groups in which bilateral symmetry has evolved independently, the expression patterns are not identical for each evolutionary event. Additionally, TCP gene expression is acting to regulate a cascade of genes that vary in their copy number and expression patterns." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

CANDIDATE GENE QUESTIONS. "What is not clear from these studies, however, is the diversity of mechanisms by which the TCP genes may underlie changes in floral symmetry across these diverse lineages, or the selection process by which the genetic modifications underlying shifts in patterns of symmetry occurred." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

WIDESPREAD CANDIDATE GENE. "A relationship was drawn between the differential expression of the TCP developmental gene(s) and phenotypic variation associated with fixed morphological diversification across angiosperm flowers. This fixed diversity is demonstrated across large evolutionary distances and across floral organ types, demonstrating the conserved nature of the TCP gene lineage and its role in floral symmetry patterns." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

VIRAL DNA INSERTED INTO HOST. "The replication cycle of a retrovirus entails the insertion ("integration") of a DNA copy of the viral genome into the nuclear genome of the host cell. Most retroviruses infect somatic cells, but occasional infection of germline cells (cells that produce eggs and sperm) can also occur. The retroviral proteins themselves have (sometimes) been co-opted to serve novel host functions, particularly in reproduction and development. " https://lnkd.in/dwG2wT9 View in LinkedIn

VIRAL UPPER RANGE. "Some of them (e.g., T4-phages) have reached a high level of complexity in their DNA replication machinery, and consequently encode functional analogs for all proteins involved in cellular DNA replication." https://lnkd.in/dNTbYMw View in LinkedIn

EXOTIC VIRUS PROPERTIES. "Viruses can have exotic properties: they can replicate in dead cells, repair radiation-damaged hosts, or recombine with other dead viruses and generate an intact cell. In some cases, hosts can benefit from viruses. An ancient retrovirus supported the development of the placenta in mammals." https://lnkd.in/eGaw2Kq View in LinkedIn

RANGE OF SOPHISTICATION. "Some DNA viruses replicate their genome using only replication proteins encoded by their host (with the exception of initiator proteins). However, many large DNA viruses encode also several proteins involved in the elongation step of DNA replication." https://lnkd.in/dNTbYMw View in LinkedIn