據(jù)國(guó)外媒體報(bào)道,，科學(xué)家最新研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，幾乎所有生物體內(nèi)（包括?？?、蠕蟲(chóng)、昆蟲(chóng),、海洋無(wú)脊椎動(dòng)物,、魚(yú)類(lèi)、人類(lèi)）精子中含有一種相同的基因,。地球生物于6億年前開(kāi)始擁有這種精子基因,，并在逐漸進(jìn)化中保存在各種生物體內(nèi)。
一篇有關(guān)此項(xiàng)研究的報(bào)告于7月15日發(fā)表在PLoS Genetics雜志上,，來(lái)自美國(guó)西北大學(xué)的遺傳學(xué)家徐尤金（Eugene Xu）是該項(xiàng)研究報(bào)告的聯(lián)合作者之一,。他表示：“精子在許多動(dòng)物的體內(nèi)繁殖，但是之前并沒(méi)有確鑿的證據(jù)能夠證明這些動(dòng)物體內(nèi)繁殖的精子是來(lái)自一個(gè)共同的起源：”
來(lái)自斯坦福大學(xué)的干細(xì)胞研究中心的主任勒內(nèi)·銳捷·佩拉(Renee Reijo Pera)表示,，此項(xiàng)研究結(jié)果相當(dāng)有趣,，動(dòng)物體內(nèi)的精子細(xì)胞有如此多的相似之處,，但是各個(gè)物種之間的精子細(xì)胞又有許多的不同點(diǎn)以示區(qū)別。她說(shuō)：“如果人類(lèi)產(chǎn)生的卵子可以被一只猴子受精,，那是相當(dāng)怪異的,。而基因最大的特點(diǎn)就在于，除了有許多的共同點(diǎn)，來(lái)保持其基本的功能之外，各個(gè)物種之間又存在的許多差異性,。”
為了證實(shí)這種被稱(chēng)為博爾（BOULE）的基因的存在,，徐和他的團(tuán)隊(duì)通過(guò)研究不同物種的演化過(guò)程，終于在海葵，海膽，果蠅,，虹鱒魚(yú)，公雞和老鼠的精子中找到了答案,。在?？@種地球上最原始的動(dòng)物以及其他動(dòng)物體內(nèi)發(fā)現(xiàn)博爾（BOULE）的存在，證實(shí)了這種基因的古老起源,。
徐還表示,，博爾（BOULE）是唯一的一種被科學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)的只有制造精子功能的基因，這將為男性避孕藥的設(shè)計(jì)提供新的思路,，并且可以將這種特性運(yùn)用到防止傳染病,、寄生蟲(chóng)和病菌的繁殖的發(fā)生，因?yàn)樗粫?huì)對(duì)人類(lèi)身體的其他進(jìn)程造成傷害,。博爾（BOULE）不是科學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)的唯一的一種被所有動(dòng)物所共享的基因,，除此之外，還有一些共享基因,，例如控制眼睛和心臟發(fā)育的基因,。
植物與真菌的體內(nèi)缺乏博爾（BOULE）基因，這意味著植物精子,，或者花粉很有可能是完全不同于動(dòng)物精子的產(chǎn)生的,。(生物谷Bioon.net)
生物谷推薦原文出處：
PLoS Genetics doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1001022
Widespread Presence of Human BOULE Homologs among Animals and Conservation of Their Ancient Reproductive Function
Chirag Shah#, Michael J. W. VanGompel#, Villian Naeem, Yanmei Chen, Terrance Lee, Nicholas Angeloni, Yin Wang, Eugene Yujun Xu*
Division of Reproductive Biology Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Center for Genetic Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
Sex-specific traits that lead to the production of dimorphic gametes, sperm in males and eggs in females, are fundamental for sexual reproduction and accordingly widespread among animals. Yet the sex-biased genes that underlie these sex-specific traits are under strong selective pressure, and as a result of adaptive evolution they often become divergent. Indeed out of hundreds of male or female fertility genes identified in diverse organisms, only a very small number of them are implicated specifically in reproduction in more than one lineage. Few genes have exhibited a sex-biased, reproductive-specific requirement beyond a given phylum, raising the question of whether any sex-specific gametogenesis factors could be conserved and whether gametogenesis might have evolved multiple times. Here we describe a metazoan origin of a conserved human reproductive protein, BOULE, and its prevalence from primitive basal metazoans to chordates. We found that BOULE homologs are present in the genomes of representative species of each of the major lineages of metazoans and exhibit reproductive-specific expression in all species examined, with a preponderance of male-biased expression. Examination of Boule evolution within insect and mammalian lineages revealed little evidence for accelerated evolution, unlike most reproductive genes. Instead, purifying selection was the major force behind Boule evolution. Furthermore, loss of function of mammalian Boule resulted in male-specific infertility and a global arrest of sperm development remarkably similar to the phenotype in an insect boule mutation. This work demonstrates the conservation of a reproductive protein throughout eumetazoa, its predominant testis-biased expression in diverse bilaterian species, and conservation of a male gametogenic requirement in mice. This shows an ancient gametogenesis requirement for Boule among Bilateria and supports a model of a common origin of spermatogenesis.
