Table 1.

Cytoskeletal comparative genomic analysis of the Excavata

	Euglenozoa	Heterolobosea	Parabasalia	Fornicata	Fungi
	T. brucei	N. gruberi	T. vaginalis	G. lamblia	S. cerevisae
Genome size (Mb)	26.1	41.0	176.4	11.0	12.5
Protein-encoding genes	10533	15727	99009	5901	6607
Hypothetical proteins	5827	5411	9801	1466	846 (2504)
Conserved Hypothetical proteins	4642	5938	76496	2370	n.a.
GO Term-annotated proteins	5928	n.a.	13172	1777	6383
MT-associated	79	143	122	75	168
Tubulin gene family	11	24	16	8	4
Kinesin gene family	43	40	18	24	6
Dynein (DHC) gene family	12	15	36	13	1
Actin-Associated	16	137	73	4	42
Actin	1	29	12	1	1
Actin Related Proteins (ARPs)	7	49	11	3	10
Myosins (MHC) gene family	2	11	0	0	5

Comparison of four representative excavate genomes (Trypanosoma brucei strain 927 [30]; Naegleria gruberi strain NEG [7]; Trichomonas vaginalis isolate G3 [29]; Giardia lamblia isolate WBC6 [11]) with baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cervisae [70,71]). The amount of genetic novelty is estimated based on gene annotation as represented by protein-encoding genes lacking orthologs in other eukaryotes (hypothetical genes) and genes with a lack of structural or functional information based on Gene Ontology (GO) annotations. In yeast, both hypothetical and “dubious” annotations are noted with parentheses. Roughly 30-50% of protein-encoding genes in each genome have little annotation. Also shown are the relative complements of microtubule-associated and actin-associated genes. Note: yeast microtubule-associated proteins are obtained via Gene Ontology assignments, whereas those of the excavates are obtained via comparative genomic analyses). Although all excavates have a full complement of microtubule-associated proteins (as well as expanded kinesin and dynein motor families), there is a large variation in the numbers and types of actin-associated genes in excavate genomes.