List of unusual biological names
The trouble with unusual names have not been lost on scientists when needing to explain genetic diseases to lay-people.[1] This has particularly been noted in patients with a defect in the sonic hedgehog gene pathway and the disease formerly named CATCH22 for "cardiac anomaly, T-cell deficit, clefting and hypocalcaemia for chromosome 22q11.2 microdeletions". This name was abandoned due to the no-win connotations.[2]
In 1993, a researcher at the University of Cambridge was ordered to change the name of the gene he had discovered, VELCRO, because of copyright issues with Velcro.[3] The gene was re-named to puckered.[4] In 2005, Pokémon threatened to sue the discoverer of POKEMON because the name was attracting attention when its link to the development of cancer was published.[3]
Genes and proteins
In the early discovery days of genomics, genes were often given creative names upon discovery. Although a nomenclature committee has now been formed, several of these names remain.[5]
| Name | Explanation | Biological role |
|---|---|---|
| Bag-of-marbles | ||
| Buttonhead | ||
| Cheap date[6] | mutations in this gene cause marked susceptibility to alcohol intoxication | |
| Deadpan | ||
| DIABLO | Direct IAP binding protein, low | |
| Dreadlocks | mutations in this gene cause cell projections to clump together like dreadlocks | murine ortholog of Nck |
| Dunce | a memory-related gene | a memory-related gene associated with Rutabaga |
| ELMO | Engulfment and Cell Motility | contains the family ELMO1, ELMO2, and ELMO3 |
| Exuperantia | named after St. Exuperantia who was beheaded | a gene associated with dividing the head and body into regions |
| Fizzy-related | ||
| Flippase | a protein that "flips" phosphatidylserines on the inner side of the cell membrane | |
| Floppase | a protein that "flops" phosphatidylserines on the outer side of the cell membrane | |
|
named for the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog | critical gene involved in development and tumorigenesis |
| Headcase[7] | ||
| Hunchback | ||
| Indy | short for I'm not dead yet | |
| Ken and Barbie[8] | drosophila gene | |
| Lunatic Fringe, Manic Fringe, and Radical Fringe | ||
| MAP kinase kinase kinase and MAP kinase kinase kinase kinase | ||
| Mothers against decapentaplegic 1-9, and the associated Daughters against dpp[9] | Takes the name from "Mothers against drunk driving" and similar campaigns | Mutations in the gene of the mother cause improper development in the offspring |
| NEMO | NF-kappa-B essential modulator | |
| Methuselah-like proteins | named for Methuselah, extends the lifespan of an organism | |
| POKEMON | POK erythroid myeloid ontogenic factor, changed to Zbtb7 after a lawsuit was threatened | |
| Pikachurin | ||
| Salvador | ||
| Scramblase | an enzyme that "scrambles" phospholipids between the inside and outside of the cell membrane | |
| Slingshot homolog | ||
| Slit-Robo and the associated Netrin-Frazzled | ||
| SMURF1 and SMURF2, which interacts with Mothers against decapentaplegic 7 | SMAD Ubiquitination Regulatory Factor 1/2 | |
| SPOCK1 | Zebrafish with this mutation develop pointed-ears reminiscent of Spock | |
| Swiss cheese[10] | mutations cause the brain to develop with lesions resembling Swiss cheese | |
| Tinman gene | named for the tinman, required for proper development of the heart |
Molecules
- Moronic acid, a natural triterpene
- Traumatic acid, a monounsaturated dicarboxylic acid naturally occurring in plants
Species
- Aerodactylus, a disputed pterosaur genus named for the Pokémon Aerodactyl.
- Midichloria, a genus of Gram-negative, non spore-forming bacteria, is derived from the midi-chlorians, a symbiotic, microscopic life form described in the fictional Star Wars universe.[11]
- Yoda purpurata, a species of acorn worm from the North Atlantic ocean, was named after the fictional character Yoda from the Star Wars franchise.[12][13] It is the only known hermaphroditic member within the phylum.[14]
Techniques
See also
References
- ↑ Hopkin, Michael (2006). "Troublesome gene names get the boot". News@nature. doi:10.1038/news061106-2.
- ↑ MacLean, Ken (2006). "Humour of gene names lost in translation to patients". Nature. 439 (7074): 266. Bibcode:2006Natur.439..266M. doi:10.1038/439266d. PMID 16421543.
- 1 2 Simonite, Tom (2005). "Pokémon blocks gene name". Nature. 438 (7070): 897. Bibcode:2005Natur.438..897S. doi:10.1038/438897a. PMID 16355177.
- ↑ "puc puckered [ Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) ]".
- ↑ https://psmag.com/sonic-hedgehog-dicer-and-the-problem-with-naming-genes-113c58df8f7a%5Bfull+citation+needed%5D
- ↑ Moore, Monica S; Dezazzo, Jim; Luk, Alvin Y; Tully, Tim; Singh, Carol M; Heberlein, Ulrike (1998). "Ethanol Intoxication in Drosophila: Genetic and Pharmacological Evidence for Regulation by the cAMP Signaling Pathway". Cell. 93 (6): 997–1007. doi:10.1016/S0092-8674(00)81205-2. PMID 9635429.
- ↑ http://www.sdbonline.org/sites/fly/dbzhnsky/headcse1.htm%5Bfull+citation+needed%5D
- ↑ Lukacsovich, Tamas; Yuge, Kazuya; Awano, Wakae; Asztalos, Zoltan; Kondo, Shunzo; Juni, Naoto; Yamamoto, Daisuke (2003). "Theken and barbie gene encoding a putative transcription factor with a BTB domain and three zinc finger motifs functions in terminalia development of Drosophila". Archives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology. 54 (2): 77–94. doi:10.1002/arch.10105. PMID 14518006.
- ↑ http://flybase.org/reports/FBgn0020493.html%5Bfull+citation+needed%5D
- ↑ Kretzschmar, D; Hasan, G; Sharma, S; Heisenberg, M; Benzer, S (1997). "The swiss cheese mutant causes glial hyperwrapping and brain degeneration in Drosophila". The Journal of Neuroscience. 17 (19): 7425–32. PMID 9295388.
- ↑ Sassera, D; Beninati, T; Bandi, C; Bouman, EA; Sacchi, L; Fabbi, M; Lo, N (November 2006). "'Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii', an endosymbiont of the tick Ixodes ricinus with a unique intramitochondrial lifestyle". International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. 56 (Pt 11): 2535–40. doi:10.1099/ijs.0.64386-0. PMID 17082386.
- ↑ Newly Discovered Acorn Worm Named After Yoda, retrieved 2012-10-06 18:05 UTC
- ↑ Priede, Imants G.; Osborn, Karen J.; Gebruk, Andrey V.; Jones, Dan; Shale, David; Rogacheva, Antonina; Holland, Nicholas D. (2012). "Observations on torquaratorid acorn worms (Hemichordata, Enteropneusta) from the North Atlantic with descriptions of a new genus and three new species". Invertebrate Biology. 131 (3): 244–257. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7410.2012.00266.x. ISSN 1077-8306.
- ↑ Priede, Imants G. (2012). "Observations on torquaratorid acorn worms (Hemichordata, Enteropneusta) from the North Atlantic with descriptions of a new genus and three new species". Invertebrate Biology. 131 (3): 244–257. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7410.2012.00266.x.
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