Question

Two eukaryotic proteins have one domain in common but are otherwise very different. Which of the following processes is the most likely to have contributed to this similarity?

A) exon shuffling
B) gene duplication
C) histone modifications
D) random point mutations

Answer 1

A) exon shuffling

Step-by-step explanation:

Exon shuffling refers to the process of evolution of a new gene that consists of unique combinations of preexisting exons. These novel combinations of preexisting exons are formed when the interspersed repeats of introns of two different genes undergo the process of recombination.

The process of exon reshuffling is responsible for the presence of common domains between two otherwise different proteins of eukaryotes.

Example: Tissue plasminogen activator and epidermal growth factor are very different proteins but share the EGF domain.