A COMPARATIVE-STUDY OF VICILIN GENES IN LENS - NEGATIVE EVIDENCE OF CONCERTED EVOLUTION

Genes for vicilin, a component of legume seed storage proteins, have b een identified in the cultivated lentil (Lens culinaris ssp. culinaris ) and in wild species of the genus Lens. Five different types of vicil in sequences (designated A-E) have been identified in each lentil indi vidual. The different types of sequences, and some possible variants o f them (also present in each individual) are part of the vicilin famil y of genes. Type D sequences have the characteristics of nonprocessed pseudogenes. Comparison of nucleotide sequences indicates that lentil vicilin sequences are similar to vicilin sequences of other legume spe cies, in particular to those of the tribe Vicieae, in which the genus Lens is included. Sequence comparison and distance and parsimony trees indicated that two groups or subfamilies of sequences, including, res pectively, types A, B, and E (47 kDa vicilins) and types C and D (50 k Da), can be distinguished in lentil and other Vicieae species, and tha t in the Vicieae species there is no evidence of concerted evolution a mong the vicilin sequences of different gene subfamilies or sequence g roups, as has been suggested for other legume species.