Oct. 24-26, 2009, Yingjie Overseas Exchange Center, Peking University, Beijing, China中文版

Origin and Functions of New Genes

Wen Wang

CAS-Max Planck Junior Group
State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution
Kunming Institute of Zoology
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China

Abstract

A systems biology-like study of integrating inheritance, development and evolution has been highly challenging. Recently we identified many young Drosophila genes, and based on them we have demonstrated the general patterns and various mechanisms of origin of new genes. One surprising observation form this study is that de novo gene origination, a process that a gene is completely derived from non-coding sequences and was previously thought to be a near-zero probability process, account for a considerable amount of new genes in Drosophuila. Preliminary functional characterization on some of these young genes indicated that appearance of a new gene can cause significant impact on the development and evolution of Drosophila, suggesting young genes can be good systems for integrative study of inheritance, development and evolution. The results shed new light on the origin/evolution of pathways, and thus integrate genetics and evolutionary developmental biology (evo devo) and may eventually pave a new way in the study of evo devo and systems biology.

Wen Wang

Kunming Institute of Zoology, CAS, China

Biosketch

Name: Wen WANG, Ph. D
Professor and Leader of the Max Planck Junior Research Group on Evolutionary Genomics at Kunming Institute of Zoology (since July 2002)
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jiaochang East Road 32, Kunming 650223, China
Tel: ++86-871-5192979
Email: wwang@mail.kiz.ac.cn ,

Curriculum Vitae

Born on 11th August, 1967, in Kunming, China. Postgraduate study of molecular evolution at Kunming Institute of Zoology (Ph.D.1996), postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, USA (1997-2002), Professor and Leader of Max Planck Junior Research Group on Evolutionary Genomics (since 2002), Deputy Director of Kunming Institute of Zoology (since 2005).

Research Focus

Origin of genetic novelties in genomes