Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan

Tan, Jiabo; Li, Xiaohan; Wang, Qi; Xu, Weiqi; Liu, Jixiang; He, Yunlong; Yin, Wenhui; Li, Jiahao; Li, Xinyu; Song, Xiaojun; Xu, Kefeng; Wang, Guodong

doi:10.3390/ijms262311363

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Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan

by

Jiabo Tan

^1,†,

Xiaohan Li

^1,†,

Qi Wang

²,

Weiqi Xu

³,

Jixiang Liu

¹,

Yunlong He

¹,

Wenhui Yin

¹,

Jiahao Li

¹,

Xinyu Li

¹,

Xiaojun Song

¹

,

Kefeng Xu

^2,* and

Guodong Wang

^1,*

¹

School of Marine Science and Engineering, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China

²

Marine Science Research Institute of Shandong Province, National Oceanographic Center, Qingdao 266104, China

³

Fisheries College, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(23), 11363; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311363

Submission received: 9 October 2025 / Revised: 18 November 2025 / Accepted: 19 November 2025 / Published: 24 November 2025

(This article belongs to the Section Molecular Biology)

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Abstract

To broaden the scope of research on the characteristics and evolutionary relationships within the heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) family, encompassing its non-canonical members, amino acid sequences of Hsp70-12, Hsp70-13, and Hsp70-14, alongside those of traditional Hsp70, were collected and analyzed. The findings indicate that, during the evolution of metazoans, the various Hsp70 groups diverged from one another. Specifically, Hsp70-12 emerges as the least conserved member, as evidenced by structural alignment data and the Ka/Ks ratio. It not only represents the most distantly related group to traditional Hsp70 but also stands out as the sole alkaline group within the family. In contrast, Hsp70-13 exhibits a close evolutionary relationship with traditional Hsp70, albeit with the notable loss of its C-terminal domain. Hsp70-14 occupies an intermediate position between Hsp70-12 and Hsp70-13. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that these groups diverged prior to the advent of invertebrates. Furthermore, five conserved motifs within the ATP-binding domain of Hsp70, which serve as distinguishing features for Hsp70 groups, were identified. The diverse characters of the non-canonical Hsp70s are probably related to their special cellular location and tissue specificity. Together, the results of this research will help identify and categorize Hsp70s. Further research that aims at identifying additional non-canonical Hsp70 members and elucidating the distinct characteristics and functions of these molecular chaperones will enhance our comprehension of the origin and evolutionary trajectory of the Hsp70 family.

Keywords: heat shock protein 70; non-canonical; cellular and molecular function; conserved motif; evolutionary

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MDPI and ACS Style

Tan, J.; Li, X.; Wang, Q.; Xu, W.; Liu, J.; He, Y.; Yin, W.; Li, J.; Li, X.; Song, X.; et al. Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26, 11363. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311363

AMA Style

Tan J, Li X, Wang Q, Xu W, Liu J, He Y, Yin W, Li J, Li X, Song X, et al. Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025; 26(23):11363. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311363

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tan, Jiabo, Xiaohan Li, Qi Wang, Weiqi Xu, Jixiang Liu, Yunlong He, Wenhui Yin, Jiahao Li, Xinyu Li, Xiaojun Song, and et al. 2025. "Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 26, no. 23: 11363. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311363

APA Style

Tan, J., Li, X., Wang, Q., Xu, W., Liu, J., He, Y., Yin, W., Li, J., Li, X., Song, X., Xu, K., & Wang, G. (2025). Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(23), 11363. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311363

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Characterization and Evolutionary Analysis of Non-Canonical Heat Shock Protein 70 Family Members in Metazoan

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