Linked Life Data

17367857

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/17367857

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
10
pubmed:dateCreated
2007-7-30
pubmed:abstractText
Alpha-defensins are essential molecules of the innate immune system that have broad spectrum antimicrobial activity against a range of bacteria and viruses. To date, alpha-defensins have only been identified in the Euarchontoglires branch of the mammals. This has led to speculation that alpha-defensins may be specific to this group, a somewhat surprising finding, given their importance in the immune system. The mammalian genome project provided us with the opportunity to search for alpha-defensins in previously unexamined mammalian superorders. Using hidden Markov model (HMM) profile searching, we report the discovery of alpha-defensins in the African savanna elephant, the lesser hedgehog tenrec, and the nine-banded armadillo genomes representing two of the most basal mammalian superorders, Afrotheria and Xenarthra. Furthermore, we identify an alpha-defensin-like gene in the gray short-tailed opossum, suggesting that alpha-defensins may have evolved much earlier than previously thought, before the divergence of placental mammals and marsupials approximately 130 mya.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
0145-305X
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
31
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
963-7
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2007
pubmed:articleTitle
Discovery of alpha-defensins in basal mammals.
pubmed:affiliation
Smurfit Institute of Genetics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland. david.lynn@tcd.ie
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Comparative Study, Review, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't