Gain and loss of elongation factor genes in green algae

Abstract

Background. Two key genes of the translational apparatus, elongation factor-1 alpha (EF-1) and elongation factor-like (EFL) have an almost mutually exclusive distribution in eukaryotes. In the green plant lineage, the Chlorophyta encode EFL except Acetabularia where EF-1 is found, and the Streptophyta possess EF-1 except Mesostigma, which has EFL. These results raise questions about evolutionary patterns of gain and loss of EF-1 and EFL. A previous study launched the hypothesis that EF-1 was the primitive state and that EFL was gained once in the ancestor of the green plants, followed by differential loss of EF-1 or EFL in the principal clades of the Viridiplantae. In order to gain more insi..