Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
Nat Rev Genet. 2018 Oct;19(10):635-648. doi: 10.1038/s41576-018-0035-9.
The partitioning of genetic material between the nucleus and cytoplasmic (mitochondrial and plastid) genomes within eukaryotic cells necessitates coordinated integration between these genomic compartments, with important evolutionary and biomedical implications. Classic questions persist about the pervasive reduction of cytoplasmic genomes via a combination of gene loss, transfer and functional replacement - and yet why they are almost always retained in some minimal form. One striking consequence of cytonuclear integration is the existence of 'chimeric' enzyme complexes composed of subunits encoded in two different genomes. Advances in structural biology and comparative genomics are yielding important insights into the evolution of such complexes, including correlated sequence changes and recruitment of novel subunits. Thus, chimeric cytonuclear complexes provide a powerful window into the mechanisms of molecular co-evolution.
真核细胞的核基因组与细胞质基因组（线粒体基因组和质体基因组）之间的遗传物质分配需要这些基因组区域之间的协调整合，这具有重要的进化和生物医学意义。通过基因丢失、转移和功能替代的组合，细胞质基因组普遍减少的问题仍然存在——但为什么它们几乎总是以某种最小的形式保留下来。核质整合的一个显著后果是存在由两个不同基因组编码的亚基组成的“嵌合”酶复合物。结构生物学和比较基因组学的进展为这些复合物的进化提供了重要的见解，包括相关序列变化和新亚基的招募。因此，嵌合的核质复合物为分子共同进化的机制提供了一个有力的窗口。
