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Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Babbitt, CC; Haygood, R; Nielsen, WJ; Wray, GA
Published in: BMC genomics
June 2017

Despite evidence for adaptive changes in both gene expression and non-protein-coding, putatively regulatory regions of the genome during human evolution, the relationship between gene expression and adaptive changes in cis-regulatory regions remains unclear.Here we present new measurements of gene expression in five tissues of humans and chimpanzees, and use them to assess this relationship. We then compare our results with previous studies of adaptive noncoding changes, analyzing correlations at the level of gene ontology groups, in order to gain statistical power to detect correlations.Consistent with previous studies, we find little correlation between gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes at the level of individual genes; however, we do find significant correlations at the level of biological function ontology groups. The types of function include processes regulated by specific transcription factors, responses to genetic or chemical perturbations, and differentiation of cell types within the immune system. Among functional categories co-enriched with both differential expression and noncoding adaptation, prominent themes include cancer, particularly epithelial cancers, and neural development and function.

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Published In

BMC genomics

DOI

EISSN

1471-2164

ISSN

1471-2164

Publication Date

June 2017

Volume

18

Issue

1

Start / End Page

435

Related Subject Headings

  • Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid
  • RNA, Untranslated
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Pan troglodytes
  • Organ Specificity
  • Humans
  • Genomics
  • Genome, Human
  • Genetic Variation
  • Gene Ontology
 

Citation

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Babbitt, C. C., Haygood, R., Nielsen, W. J., & Wray, G. A. (2017). Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution. BMC Genomics, 18(1), 435. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-017-3831-2
Babbitt, Courtney C., Ralph Haygood, William J. Nielsen, and Gregory A. Wray. “Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution.BMC Genomics 18, no. 1 (June 2017): 435. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-017-3831-2.
Babbitt CC, Haygood R, Nielsen WJ, Wray GA. Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution. BMC genomics. 2017 Jun;18(1):435.
Babbitt, Courtney C., et al. “Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution.BMC Genomics, vol. 18, no. 1, June 2017, p. 435. Epmc, doi:10.1186/s12864-017-3831-2.
Babbitt CC, Haygood R, Nielsen WJ, Wray GA. Gene expression and adaptive noncoding changes during human evolution. BMC genomics. 2017 Jun;18(1):435.
Journal cover image

Published In

BMC genomics

DOI

EISSN

1471-2164

ISSN

1471-2164

Publication Date

June 2017

Volume

18

Issue

1

Start / End Page

435

Related Subject Headings

  • Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid
  • RNA, Untranslated
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Pan troglodytes
  • Organ Specificity
  • Humans
  • Genomics
  • Genome, Human
  • Genetic Variation
  • Gene Ontology