@article{TEXTUAL,
      recid = {9585},
      author = {Gordon, Kacy L. and Arthur, Robert K. and Ruvinsky, Ilya},
      title = {Phylum-Level Conservation of Regulatory Information in  Nematodes despite Extensive Non-coding Sequence Divergence},
      journal = {PLOS Genetics},
      address = {2015-05-28},
      number = {TEXTUAL},
      abstract = {Gene regulatory information guides development and shapes  the course of evolution. To test conservation of gene  regulation within the phylum Nematoda, we compared the  functions of putative cis-regulatory sequences of four sets  of orthologs (unc-47, unc-25, mec-3 and elt-2) from  distantly-related nematode species. These species,  Caenorhabditis elegans, its congeneric C. briggsae, and  three parasitic species Meloidogyne hapla, Brugia malayi,  and Trichinella spiralis, represent four of the five major  clades in the phylum Nematoda. Despite the great  phylogenetic distances sampled and the extensive sequence  divergence of nematode genomes, all but one of the  regulatory elements we tested are able to drive at least a  subset of the expected gene expression patterns. We show  that functionally conserved cis-regulatory elements have no  more extended sequence similarity to their C. elegans  orthologs than would be expected by chance, but they do  harbor motifs that are important for proper expression of  the C. elegans genes. These motifs are too short to be  distinguished from the background level of sequence  similarity, and while identical in sequence they are not  conserved in orientation or position. Functional tests  reveal that some of these motifs contribute to proper  expression. Our results suggest that conserved regulatory  circuitry can persist despite considerable turnover within  cis elements.},
      url = {http://knowledge.uchicago.edu/record/9585},
}