Journal
NATURE GENETICS
Volume 46, Issue 1, Pages 88-+Publisher
NATURE PORTFOLIO
DOI: 10.1038/ng.2835
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Funding
- Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST) in-house program, the Marine and Extreme Genome Research Center program of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Korea [PE98993]
- Industrial Strategic Technology Development Program, Bioinformatics Platform Development for Next-Generation Bioinformation Analysis [10040231]
- Russian Ministry of Science [11.G34.31.0068]
- NATIONAL HUMAN GENOME RESEARCH INSTITUTE [R01HG006876, R01HG005852] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
- NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF GENERAL MEDICAL SCIENCES [R01GM104973] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
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The shift from terrestrial to aquatic life by whales was a substantial evolutionary event. Here we report the whole-genome sequencing and de novo assembly of the minke whale genome, as well as the whole-genome sequences of three minke whales, a fin whale, a bottlenose dolphin and a finless porpoise. Our comparative genomic analysis identified an expansion in the whale lineage of gene families associated with stress-responsive proteins and anaerobic metabolism, whereas gene families related to body hair and sensory receptors were contracted. Our analysis also identified whale-specific mutations in genes encoding antioxidants and enzymes controlling blood pressure and salt concentration. Overall the whale-genome sequences exhibited distinct features that are associated with the physiological and morphological changes needed for life in an aquatic environment, marked by resistance to physiological stresses caused by a lack of oxygen, increased amounts of reactive oxygen species and high salt levels.
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