Molecular Biology and Evolution, Vol 6, 186-197, Copyright © 1989 by Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
S Yokoyama and R Yokoyama
By comparing the published DNA sequences for (a) the genes encoding the
human visual color pigments (red, green, and blue) with (b) the genes
encoding human, bovine, and Drosophila rhodopsins, a phylogenetic tree for
the mammalian pigment genes has been constructed. This evolutionary tree
shows that the common ancestor of the visual color pigment genes diverged
first from that of the rhodopsin genes; then the common ancestor of the red
and green pigment genes and the ancestor of the blue pigment gene diverged;
and finally the red and green pigment genes diverged from each other much
more recently. Nucleotide substitutions in the rhodopsin genes are best
explained by the neutral theory of molecular evolution. However, important
functional adaptations seem to have occurred twice during the evolution of
the color pigment genes in humans: first, to the common ancestor of the
three color pigment genes after its divergence from the ancestor of the
rhodopsin gene and, second, to the ancestor of the red pigment gene after
its divergence from that of the green pigment gene.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Molecular evolution of human visual pigment genes
Department of Ecology, Ethology, and Evolution, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 61820.
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