The evolution of ADAM gene family in eukaryotes

The ADAM ( A D isintegrin A nd M etalloprotease) gene family encodes proteins with adhesion and proteolytic functions. ADAM proteins are associated with diseases like cancers. Twenty ADAM genes have been identified in humans. However, little is known about the evolution of the family. We analyzed the repertoire of ADAM genes in a vast number of eukaryotic genomes to clarify the main gene copy number expansions. For the first time, we provide...