Phylogenetic comparison and splice site conservation of the animal SMNDC1 gene family

Alternative splicing is the process of multiple mRNAs from a single pre mRNA under the action of the spliceosome and other splicing factors. SMNDC1 (survival motor neuron domain containing 1) has been identified as a constituent of the spliceosome complex. Previous studies indicated that SMNDC1 is required for splicing catalysis in vitro and regulates intron retention in cancer. However, the phylogenetic relationships and expression profiles of SMNDC1 have not been systematically studied in the animal kingdom. To this end, in our work, the phylogenetic analysis of SMNDC1 genes was widely performed in the animal kingdom. Specifically, a total of 72 SMNDC1 genes were identified from 66 animal species. Bioinformatics analysis showed that the gene structure and function of SMNDC1 proteins are relatively conserved, and only a few members have two copies. In particular, the human SMNDC1 gene is highly expressed in multiple cancer types, including breast cancer, colon cancer and rectal cancer, indicating that SMNDC1 may play an essential role in cancer development and may be used as a valuable diagnostic or therapeutic protein target in clinical treatment. In summary, our findings facilitated a comprehensive overview of the animal SMNDC1 gene family, and provided a basic data and potential clues for the further study of molecular functions of SMNDC1.