Hot off the presses! Nov 01 TRENDS GENET

The Nov 01 issue of the TRENDS GENET is now up on Pubget (About TRENDS GENET): if you're at a subscribing institution, just click the link in the latest link at the home page. (Note you'll only be able to get all the PDFs in the issue if your institution subscribes to Pubget.)

Latest Articles Include:

• Editorial Board
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):i (2010)
  
• Illusions of scientific legitimacy: misrepresented science in the direct-to-consumer genetic-testing marketplace
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):459-461 (2010)
  Marketers of genetic tests often openly or implicitly misrepresent the utility of genetic information. Scientists who are well aware of the current limitations to the utility of such tests are best placed to publicly counter misrepresentations of the science.
• Moving from transcriptional to phospho-evolution: generalizing regulatory evolution?
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):462-467 (2010)
  Much of biological diversity is thought to arise from changes in regulatory networks. Although the role of transcriptional regulation has been well established, the contribution to evolution of changes at other levels of regulation has yet to be addressed. Using examples from the literature and recent studies on the evolution of protein phosphorylation, we argue that protein regulatory networks also play a prime role in generating diversity within and between species. Because there are several analogies between the regulation of protein functions by kinases and the regulation of gene expression by transcription factors, the principles that guide transcriptional regulatory evolution can also be explored in kinase–substrate networks. These comparisons will allow us to generalize existing models of evolution across the complex layers of the cell's regulatory links.
• Transcription factor binding variation in the evolution of gene regulation
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):468-475 (2010)
  Transcription factor interactions with DNA are one of the primary mechanisms by which expression is modulated, yet their evolution remains poorly understood. Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by microarray (ChIP-chip) or sequencing (ChIP-Seq) has revolutionized the study of protein–DNA interactions. However, only recently has attention focused on determining to what extent these regulatory interactions vary between species across entire genomes. A series of recent studies have compared in vivo binding data across a range of evolutionary distances. Binding events diverge rapidly, indicating gene regulation is an evolutionarily flexible process.
• Gene regulation by nucleosome positioning
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):476-483 (2010)
  To achieve high compaction, most genomic DNA in eukaryotes is incorporated into nucleosomes; however, regulatory factors and transcriptional machinery must gain access to chromatin to extract genetic information. This conflict is partially resolved by a particular arrangement of nucleosome locations on the genome. Across all eukaryotic species, promoters and other regulatory sequences are more nucleosome-depleted, whereas transcribed regions tend to be occupied with well-positioned, high-density nucleosomal arrays. This nucleosome positioning pattern, as well as its dynamic regulation, facilitates the access of transcription factors to their target sites and plays a crucial role in determining the transcription level, cell-to-cell variation and activation or repression dynamics.
• A golden age for evolutionary genetics? Genomic studies of adaptation in natural populations
  - TRENDS GENET 26(11):484-492 (2010)
  Studies of the genetic basis of adaptive changes in natural populations are now addressing questions that date back to the beginning of evolutionary biology, such as whether evolution proceeds in a gradual or discontinuous manner, and whether convergent evolution involves convergent genetic changes. Studies that combine quantitative genetics and population genomics provide a powerful tool for identifying genes controlling recent adaptive change. Accumulating evidence shows that single loci, and in some cases single mutations, often have major effects on phenotype. This implies that discontinuous evolution, with rapid changes in phenotype, could occur frequently in natural populations. Furthermore, convergent evolution commonly involves the same genes. This implies a surprising predictability underlying the genetic basis of evolutionary changes. Nonetheless, most studies of recent evolution involve the loss of traits, and we still understand little of the genetic change! s needed in the origin of novel traits.