Molecular Biology and Evolution, Vol 2, 279-288, Copyright © 1985 by Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
Y Quax-Jeuken, S Bruisten, H Bloemendal, WW de Jong and E Nevo
The mole (Talpa europaea; Insectivora) and the mole rat (Spalax ehrenbergi;
Rodentia) both have degenerated eyes as a convergent adaptation to
subterranean life. The rudimentary eye lenses of these blind mammals no
longer function in a visual process. The crystallin genes, which display a
lens-specific expression pattern, were studied in these blind mammals and
in related species with normal eyes by hybridizing their genomic DNAs with
probes obtained from cDNA clones for alpha A-, alpha B-, and beta
Bp-crystallins from calf and gamma 3- crystallin from the rat. For all
crystallin genes examined, the hybridization signals of mole and mole rat
genomic DNA were comparable, respectively, with those of shrew and of rat
and mouse, normal-vision representatives of the orders Insectivora and
Rodentia. The expression of the crystallins at the protein level was tested
by using antiserum specific for alpha-crystallin in immunofluorescence
reactions on lens sections of mole and mole rat eyes and by using antisera
against the beta- and gamma-crystallins on sections of the mole eye. All
antisera gave positive fluorescence reactions exclusively with lens tissue
of these blind mammals, indicating that the crystallins are still normally
expressed despite the fact that these lenses have had no function in a
visual process in these mammals for at least many million years. These
findings apparently imply that some unknown selective advantage has
conserved the crystallin genes and their expression after the loss of
normal function of the lenses.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Evolution of crystallins: expression of lens-specific proteins in the blind mammals mole (Talpa europaea) and mole rat (Spalax ehrenbergi)
Department of Biochemistry, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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