MBE Advance Access published online on February 4, 2003
Molecular Biology and Evolution, doi:10.1093/molbev/msg030
Molecular Biology and Evolution © Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution 2003; all rights reserved
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1 Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USA
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: tbarkman{at}wmich.edu.
Isoeugenol-O-methyltransferase (IEMT) is an enzyme involved in the production of the floral volatile compounds methyl eugenol and methyl isoeugenol in Clarkia breweri (Onagraceae). IEMT likely evolved by gene duplication from caffeic acid-O-methyltransferase followed by amino acid divergence leading to the acquisition of its novel function. To investigate the selective context under which IEMT evolved, maximum likelihood methods that estimate variable dN/dS ratios among lineages, sites, and a combination of both lineages and sites were utilized. Statistically significant support was obtained for a hypothesis of positive selection driving the evolution of IEMT since its origin. Subsequent Bayesian analyses identified several sites in IEMT that have experienced positive selection. Most of these positions are in the active site of IEMT and have been shown by site-directed mutagenesis to have large effects on substrate specificity. Although the selective agent is unknown, the adaptive evolution of this gene may have resulted in increased effectiveness of pollinator attraction or herbivore repellence. Key Words:
Keywords: Clarkia breweri, Evolution of floral scent, Gene duplication, Maximum likelihood, Positive selection
© 2003 Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
Original Articles
Evidence for positive selection on the floral scent gene Isoeugenol-O-methyltransferase
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