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MBE Advance Access published online on April 15, 2008
Molecular Biology and Evolution, doi:10.1093/molbev/msn094
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Research Article

Molecular evolution of a primate-specific microRNA family

Rui Zhang*,{dagger},§, Yin-Qiu Wang*,{dagger} and Bing Su*,{dagger}

* State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
{dagger} Kunming Primate Research Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China
§ Graduate School of Chinese Academy Sciences, Beijing 100039, China

Corresponding author: E-mail: sub{at}mail.kiz.ac.cn; Tel: 86-871-5120212; Fax: 86-871-5193137

Received for publication March 7, 2008. Revision received April 9, 2008. Accepted for publication April 10, 2008.

Lineage-specific microRNA (miRNA) families may contribute to developmental novelties during evolution. However, little is known about the origin and evolution of new miRNA families. We report evidence of an Alu-mediated rapid expansion of miRNA genes in a previously-identified primate-specific miRNA family, drawn from sequencing and comparative analysis of nine diverse primate species. Evolutionary analysis reveals similar divergence among miRNA copies whether they are within or between species, lineage-specific gain and loss of miRNAs, and gene pseudolization in multiple species. These observations support a birth-and-death process of miRNA genes in this family, implicating functional diversification during primate evolution. In addition, both secondary structure conservation and reduced SNP density attest to functional constraint of this family in primates. Finally, we observed preferential expression of miRNAs in human placenta and fetal brain, suggesting a functional importance of this family for primate development.

Key Words: MicroRNA • Birth-and-death evolution • Alu • Primates


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