Origin and evolution of a new exon of 14-3-3ξ in bees and phylogenetic analysis
Mutually exclusive splicing, one type of alternative splicing, involves selection of alternatively spliced exons arranged in tandem and creates protein products with substitution of one segment of the amino acid sequence for another. Previous studies revealed that exon 5 of 14-3-3ξ from Apis mellifera (western honeybee) had three mutually exclusive exons, while orthologous exon of Nasonia vitripennis (parasitic wasp) had only two, suggesting that cases of exon gain or loss might have happened during the evolution of hymenopteran species. In the current study, we annotated and analyzed the 14-3-3ξ genes from 20 hymenopteran species successfully, and the results of phylogenetic analysis revealed the presence of a new mutually exclusive exon in corbiculate bees. In addition, we found that duplication via staggered homologous recombination was responsible for the origin of the new exon.