Recurrent Co-Option and Recombination of Cytokine and Three Finger Proteins in Multiple Reproductive Tissues Throughout Salamander Evolution.

Reproductive proteins evolve at unparalleled rates, resulting in tremendous diversity of both molecular composition and biochemical function between gametes of different taxonomic clades. To date, the proteomic composition of amphibian gametes is largely a molecular mystery, particularly for Urodeles (salamanders and newts) for which few genomic-scale resources exist. In this study, we provide the first detailed molecular characterization of gametes from two salamander species ( and ) that are models of reproductive behavior.