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Evolution of variable lymphocyte receptor B antibody loci in jawless vertebrates
journal contribution
posted on 2021-12-14, 00:00 authored by S Das, J P Rast, J Li, M Kadota, John DonaldJohn Donald, S Kuraku, M Hirano, M D CooperSignificance
Jawless vertebrates, lampreys and hagfish, use three types of variable leucine-rich repeat proteins as antigen receptors: VLRB on B-like cells and VLRA or VLRC on T-like lymphocytes. In their incomplete germline status, the
VLRB
genes in different lamprey species uniquely possess long noncoding intervening regions, which contain different sets of transposable elements and potential donor cassettes. Phylogenetic analysis of the germline
VLR
genes reveals ongoing evolution over the last 250 million y. Comparative assessment of genomic sequences in two lamprey species yields a detailed map of their
VLRB
loci. The use of this map, together with an analysis of cassette usage in a large repertoire of expressed
VLRB
s, supports a fragmented Lego-like model of
VLRB
assembly.
Jawless vertebrates, lampreys and hagfish, use three types of variable leucine-rich repeat proteins as antigen receptors: VLRB on B-like cells and VLRA or VLRC on T-like lymphocytes. In their incomplete germline status, the
VLRB
genes in different lamprey species uniquely possess long noncoding intervening regions, which contain different sets of transposable elements and potential donor cassettes. Phylogenetic analysis of the germline
VLR
genes reveals ongoing evolution over the last 250 million y. Comparative assessment of genomic sequences in two lamprey species yields a detailed map of their
VLRB
loci. The use of this map, together with an analysis of cassette usage in a large repertoire of expressed
VLRB
s, supports a fragmented Lego-like model of
VLRB
assembly.
