In molecular biology, messenger RNA is a single-stranded molecule of RNA that corresponds to the genetic sequence of a gene and is read by a ribosome in the process of synthesizing a protein. In this research, kidney and liver mRNA from a young-adult female whale were sequenced using some previously well-known sequencing techniques.
To understand which gene subsets are most expressed in both tissues and represent the most active processes in an organism, they conducted a Gene Ontology (Gene Ontology is a major bioinformatics initiative to unify gene and gene representation product attributes across all species) enrichment analysis. The results from this Gene Ontology highlighted the potential importance of these genes in lifespan determination and in linking human longevity and age-related diseases. They also concluded that large and especially long-lived species like the gray whale develop robust tumor suppressor mechanisms to compensate for having more somatic cells, hence a lower risk of developing cancer. This is because the immune system and mechanisms of organ regeneration and cell proliferation regulation are crucial for preventing cell transformation and eliminating cancer cells.
The researcher also found out that 35% of all assembled protein-coding genes remained unidentified. Generally, unknown sequences might result from (i) mapping errors or (ii) still uncharacterized sequences. However, such a large number of unidentified genes made them investigate their functional significance. The fact that unknown genes still exist even in a significantly reduced genome suggests that many unannotated genes found in the gray whale transcriptome should be further investigated as they might be involved in fundamental processes.
To identify expression patterns that are species-specific or shared across species, they undertook a comparative analysis of the transcriptomes of the gray whale and seven other mammalian species, including humans. Apart from a high similarity of overall transcription patterns with other whale species, the gray whale exhibits several exceptionally high expression ranks for specific gene categories, including gene ontologies relevant to several longevity-related processes.
Autophagy is the natural, regulated mechanism of the cell that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components. Similarly, ubiquitylation (also known as ubiquitination or ubiquitinylation) is an enzymatic post-translational modification in which a ubiquitin-protein is attached to a substrate protein. As described above, in the gray whale transcriptome, pathways related to DNA repair, autophagy, and ubiquitination appear to have increased activity. The gray whale transcriptome analysis and comparison with other mammalian species suggest that the gray whale potentially possesses high resistance to cancer and stress, in part ensuring its longevity.
To understand which gene subsets are most expressed in both tissues and represent the most active processes in an organism, they conducted a Gene Ontology (Gene Ontology is a major bioinformatics initiative to unify gene and gene representation product attributes across all species) enrichment analysis. The results from this Gene Ontology highlighted the potential importance of these genes in lifespan determination and in linking human longevity and age-related diseases. They also concluded that large and especially long-lived species like the gray whale develop robust tumor suppressor mechanisms to compensate for having more somatic cells, hence a lower risk of developing cancer. This is because the immune system and mechanisms of organ regeneration and cell proliferation regulation are crucial for preventing cell transformation and eliminating cancer cells.
The researcher also found out that 35% of all assembled protein-coding genes remained unidentified. Generally, unknown sequences might result from (i) mapping errors or (ii) still uncharacterized sequences. However, such a large number of unidentified genes made them investigate their functional significance. The fact that unknown genes still exist even in a significantly reduced genome suggests that many unannotated genes found in the gray whale transcriptome should be further investigated as they might be involved in fundamental processes.
To identify expression patterns that are species-specific or shared across species, they undertook a comparative analysis of the transcriptomes of the gray whale and seven other mammalian species, including humans. Apart from a high similarity of overall transcription patterns with other whale species, the gray whale exhibits several exceptionally high expression ranks for specific gene categories, including gene ontologies relevant to several longevity-related processes.
Autophagy is the natural, regulated mechanism of the cell that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components. Similarly, ubiquitylation (also known as ubiquitination or ubiquitinylation) is an enzymatic post-translational modification in which a ubiquitin-protein is attached to a substrate protein. As described above, in the gray whale transcriptome, pathways related to DNA repair, autophagy, and ubiquitination appear to have increased activity. The gray whale transcriptome analysis and comparison with other mammalian species suggest that the gray whale potentially possesses high resistance to cancer and stress, in part ensuring its longevity.
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