Phylogenetic analysis of six-domain multi-copper blue proteins

PLoS Curr. 2013 Mar 13:5:ecurrents.tol.574bcb0f133fe52835911abc4e296141. doi: 10.1371/currents.tol.574bcb0f133fe52835911abc4e296141.

Abstract

Multicopper blue proteins, composed of several repetitive copper-binding domains similar to one-domain cupredoxin-like proteins, were found in almost all organisms. They are classified into the three different groups, based on their two-, three- or six-domain organization. We found orthologs of chordate six-domain copper-binding proteins in animals, plants, bacteria and archea. The phylogenetic analysis of 183 multicopper blue proteins and their copper-binding sites comparison make us think that all the modern six-domain blue proteins have originated from the common ancestral six-domain protein in the process of gene duplication and copper-binding sites loss as a result of amino acid substitutions.

Grants and funding

Research was supported by the President’s grant RF MK-605.2008.4.