Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, University of Toronto, 160 College Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3E1, Canada.
Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, University of Toronto, 160 College Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3E1, Canada.
Trends Genet. 2018 Aug;34(8):578-586. doi: 10.1016/j.tig.2018.05.006. Epub 2018 Jun 11.
The phenotypic consequences of a given mutation can vary across individuals. This so-called background effect is widely observed, from mutant fitness of loss-of-function variants in model organisms to variable disease penetrance and expressivity in humans; however, the underlying genetic basis often remains unclear. Taking insights gained from recent large-scale surveys of genetic interaction and suppression analyses in yeast, we propose that the genetic network context for a given mutation may shape its propensity of exhibiting background-dependent phenotypes. We argue that further efforts in systematically mapping the genetic interaction networks beyond yeast will provide not only key insights into the functional properties of genes, but also a better understanding of the background effects and the (un)predictability of traits in a broader context.
给定突变的表型后果在个体之间可能有所不同。这种所谓的背景效应广泛存在，从模式生物中丧失功能变异体的突变体适应性到人类中可变的疾病外显率和表现度；然而，潜在的遗传基础通常仍不清楚。利用最近在酵母中进行的大规模遗传相互作用和抑制分析调查中获得的见解，我们提出给定突变的遗传网络背景可能会影响其表现出依赖背景表型的倾向。我们认为，进一步努力系统地绘制除酵母以外的遗传相互作用网络图谱，不仅将为基因的功能特性提供关键见解，还将更好地理解更广泛背景下的背景效应和性状的（不可预测性）。
