scholarly journals Evidence for UV-green dichromacy in the basal hymenopteran Sirex noctilio (Siricidae)

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Quentin Guignard ◽  
Johannes Spaethe ◽  
Bernard Slippers ◽  
Martin Strube-Bloss ◽  
Jeremy D. Allison
Keyword(s):  
Colour Vision ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Ultra Violet ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Compound Eyes ◽  
Sirex Noctilio ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Related Group

AbstractA precondition for colour vision is the presence of at least two spectral types of photoreceptors in the eye. The order Hymenoptera is traditionally divided into the Apocrita (ants, bees, wasps) and the Symphyta (sawflies, woodwasps, horntails). Most apocritan species possess three different photoreceptor types. In contrast, physiological studies in the Symphyta have reported one to four photoreceptor types. To better understand the evolution of photoreceptor diversity in the Hymenoptera, we studied the Symphyta Sirex noctilio, which belongs to the superfamily Siricoidea, a closely related group of the Apocrita suborder. Our aim was to (i) identify the photoreceptor types of the compound eye by electroretinography (ERG), (ii) characterise the visual opsin genes of S. noctilio by genomic comparisons and phylogenetic analyses and (iii) analyse opsin mRNA expression. ERG measurements revealed two photoreceptor types in the compound eye, maximally sensitive to 527 and 364 nm. In addition, we identified three opsins in the genome, homologous to the hymenopteran green or long-wavelength sensitive (LW) LW1, LW2 and ultra-violet sensitive (UV) opsin genes. The LW1 and UV opsins were found to be expressed in the compound eyes, and LW2 and UV opsins in the ocelli. The lack of a blue or short-wavelength sensitive (SW) homologous opsin gene and a corresponding receptor suggests that S. noctilio is a UV-green dichromate.

scholarly journals UV-green dichromacy in the basal hymenopteran Sirex noctilio (Hymenoptera: Siricidae).

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quentin Guignard ◽  
Johannes Spaethe ◽  
Bernard Slippers ◽  
Martin Strube-Bloss ◽  
Jeremy D. Allison
Keyword(s):  
Mrna Expression ◽  
Colour Vision ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Sister Group ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Compound Eyes ◽  
Sirex Noctilio ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Physiological Studies

Abstract A precondition for colour vision is the presence of at least two spectral types of photoreceptors in the eye. The order Hymenoptera is traditionally divided into the Apocrita (ants, bees, wasps) and the Symphyta (sawflies, woodwasps, horntails). Most apocritan species possess three different photoreceptor types. In contrast, physiological studies in the Symphyta have reported one to four photoreceptor types. To better understand the evolution of photoreceptor diversity in the Hymenoptera, we studied Sirex noctilio, which belongs to the superfamily Siricoidea, a sister group of the Apocrita. Our aim was to i) identify the photoreceptor types of the compound eye by electroretinography (ERG), ii) characterise the visual opsins genes of S. noctilio by genomic comparisons and phylogenetic analyses and iii) analyse opsin mRNA expression. ERG measurements revealed two photoreceptor types in the compound eye, maximally sensitive to 527 and 364 nm. In addition, we identified three opsins in the genome, homologous to the hymenopteran LW1, LW2 and UV opsin genes. The LW1 and UV opsins were found to be expressed in the compound eyes, and LW2 and UV opsins in the ocelli. The lack of a SW-homologous opsin gene and a corresponding receptor suggests that S. noctilio is a UV-green dichromate.

scholarly journals Opsin gene repertoires in northern archaic hominids

Genome ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 59 (8) ◽  
pp. 541-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
John S. Taylor ◽  
Thomas E. Reimchen
Keyword(s):  
Colour Vision ◽  
Modern Human ◽  
Active Species ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Human Reference Genome ◽  
Northern Latitudes ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Northern Distribution ◽  
Dim Light ◽  
Additional Support

The Neanderthals’ northern distribution, hunting techniques, and orbit breadths suggest that they were more active in dim light than modern humans. We surveyed visual opsin genes from four Neanderthals and two other archaic hominids to see if they provided additional support for this hypothesis. This analysis was motivated by the observation that alleles responsible for anomalous trichromacy in humans are more common in northern latitudes, by data suggesting that these variants might enhance vision in mesopic conditions, and by the observation that dim light active species often have fewer opsin genes than diurnal relatives. We also looked for evidence of convergent amino acid substitutions in Neanderthal opsins and orthologs from crepuscular or nocturnal species. The Altai Neanderthal, the Denisovan, and the Ust’-Ishim early modern human had opsin genes that encoded proteins identical to orthologs in the human reference genome. Opsins from the Vindija Cave Neanderthals (three females) had many nonsynonymous substitutions, including several predicted to influence colour vision (e.g., stop codons). However, the functional implications of these observations were difficult to assess, given that “control” loci, where no substitutions were expected, differed from humans to the same extent. This left unresolved the test for colour vision deficiencies in Vindija Cave Neanderthals.

scholarly journals Homothorax controls a binary Rhodopsin switch in Drosophila ocelli

PLoS Genetics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
pp. e1009460
Author(s):  
Abhishek Kumar Mishra ◽  
Cornelia Fritsch ◽  
Roumen Voutev ◽  
Richard S. Mann ◽  
Simon G. Sprecher
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Visual Perception ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Fruit Fly ◽  
Compound Eyes ◽  
Ancestral Gene ◽  
Evolutionary Diversification ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
A Cell

Visual perception of the environment is mediated by specialized photoreceptor (PR) neurons of the eye. Each PR expresses photosensitive opsins, which are activated by a particular wavelength of light. In most insects, the visual system comprises a pair of compound eyes that are mainly associated with motion, color or polarized light detection, and a triplet of ocelli that are thought to be critical during flight to detect horizon and movements. It is widely believed that the evolutionary diversification of compound eye and ocelli in insects occurred from an ancestral visual organ around 500 million years ago. Concurrently, opsin genes were also duplicated to provide distinct spectral sensitivities to different PRs of compound eye and ocelli. In the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, Rhodopsin1 (Rh1) and Rh2 are closely related opsins that originated from the duplication of a single ancestral gene. However, in the visual organs, Rh2 is uniquely expressed in ocelli whereas Rh1 is uniquely expressed in outer PRs of the compound eye. It is currently unknown how this differential expression of Rh1 and Rh2 in the two visual organs is controlled to provide unique spectral sensitivities to ocelli and compound eyes. Here, we show that Homothorax (Hth) is expressed in ocelli and confers proper rhodopsin expression. We find that Hth controls a binary Rhodopsin switch in ocelli to promote Rh2 expression and repress Rh1 expression. Genetic and molecular analysis of rh1 and rh2 supports that Hth acts through their promoters to regulate Rhodopsin expression in the ocelli. Finally, we also show that when ectopically expressed in the retina, hth is sufficient to induce Rh2 expression only at the outer PRs in a cell autonomous manner. We therefore propose that the diversification of rhodpsins in the ocelli and retinal outer PRs occurred by duplication of an ancestral gene, which is under the control of Homothorax.

scholarly journals Opsin genes of select treeshrews resolve ancestral character states within Scandentia

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 182037
Author(s):  
Gwen Duytschaever ◽  
Mareike C. Janiak ◽  
Perry S. Ong ◽  
Konstans Wells ◽  
Nathaniel J. Dominy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Purifying Selection ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Functional Variation ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Living Fossils ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Senior Synonym ◽  
Peak Sensitivity ◽  
Encoding Genes ◽  
Ancestral Character States

Treeshrews are small, squirrel-like mammals in the order Scandentia, which is nested together with Primates and Dermoptera in the superordinal group Euarchonta. They are often described as living fossils, and researchers have long turned to treeshrews as a model or ecological analogue for ancestral primates. A comparative study of colour vision-encoding genes within Scandentia found a derived amino acid substitution in the long-wavelength sensitive opsin gene ( OPN1LW ) of the Bornean smooth-tailed treeshrew ( Dendrogale melanura ). The opsin, by inference, is red-shifted by ca 6 nm with an inferred peak sensitivity of 561 nm. It is tempting to view this trait as a novel visual adaptation; however, the genetic and functional diversity of visual pigments in treeshrews is unresolved outside of Borneo. Here, we report gene sequences from the northern smooth-tailed treeshrew ( Dendrogale murina ) and the Mindanao treeshrew ( Tupaia everetti , the senior synonym of Urogale everetti ). We found that the opsin genes are under purifying selection and that D. murina shares the same substitution as its congener, a result that distinguishes Dendrogale from other treeshrews, including T. everetti. We discuss the implications of opsin functional variation in light of limited knowledge about the visual ecology of smooth-tailed treeshrews.

scholarly journals Functional preservation and variation in the cone opsin genes of nocturnal tarsiers

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1717) ◽  
pp. 20160075 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian L. Moritz ◽  
Perry S. Ong ◽  
George H. Perry ◽  
Nathaniel J. Dominy
Keyword(s):  
Colour Vision ◽  
Purifying Selection ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Cone Opsin ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Tarsius Bancanus ◽  
Dim Light ◽  
Two Stages ◽  
Functional Preservation

The short-wavelength sensitive (S-) opsin gene OPN1SW is pseudogenized in some nocturnal primates and retained in others, enabling dichromatic colour vision. Debate on the functional significance of this variation has focused on dark conditions, yet many nocturnal species initiate activity under dim (mesopic) light levels that can support colour vision. Tarsiers are nocturnal, twilight-active primates and exemplary visual predators; they also express different colour vision phenotypes, raising the possibility of discrete adaptations to mesopic conditions. To explore this premise, we conducted a field study in two stages. First, to estimate the level of functional constraint on colour vision, we sequenced OPN1SW in 12 wild-caught Philippine tarsiers ( Tarsius syrichta ). Second, to explore whether the dichromatic visual systems of Philippine and Bornean ( Tarsius bancanus ) tarsiers—which express alternate versions of the medium/long-wavelength sensitive (M/L-) opsin gene OPN1MW / OPN1LW —confer differential advantages specific to their respective habitats, we used twilight and moonlight conditions to model the visual contrasts of invertebrate prey. We detected a signature of purifying selection for OPN1SW , indicating that colour vision confers an adaptive advantage to tarsiers. However, this advantage extends to a relatively small proportion of prey–background contrasts, and mostly brown arthropod prey amid leaf litter. We also found that the colour vision of T. bancanus is advantageous for discriminating prey under twilight that is enriched in shorter (bluer) wavelengths, a plausible idiosyncrasy of understorey habitats in Borneo. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Vision in dim light’.

scholarly journals Homothorax Controls a Binary Rhodopsin Switch in Drosophila Ocelli

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abhishek Kumar Mishra ◽  
Cornelia Fritsch ◽  
Roumen Voutev ◽  
Richard S. Mann ◽  
Simon G. Sprecher
Keyword(s):  
Motion Detection ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Fruit Fly ◽  
Compound Eyes ◽  
Light Perception ◽  
Ancestral Gene ◽  
Evolutionary Diversification ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
A Cell

Visual perception of the environment is mediated by specialized photoreceptor (PR) neurons of the eye. Each PR expresses photosensitive opsins, which are activated by a particular wavelength of light. In most insects, the visual system comprises a pair of compound eyes that are mainly associated with motion detection, color or polarized light perception and a triplet of ocelli that are thought to be critical during flight to detect horizon and movements. It is widely believed that evolutionary diversification of compound eye and ocelli in insects occurred from an ancestral visual organ around 500 million years ago. Concurrently, opsin genes were also duplicated to provide distinct spectral sensitivities to different PRs of compound eye and ocelli. In the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, Rhodopsin1 (Rh1) and Rh2 are closely related opsins that are originated from the duplication of a single ancestral gene. However, in the visual organs, Rh2 is uniquely expressed in ocelli whereas Rh1 is uniquely expressed in outer PRs of the compound eye. It is currently unknown how this differential expression of Rh1 and Rh2 in the two visual organs is controlled to provide unique spectral sensitivities to ocelli and compound eyes. Here, we show that Homothorax (Hth) is expressed in ocelli and confers proper rhodopsin expression. We find that Hth controls a binary rhodopsin switch in ocelli to promote Rh2 expression and repress Rh1 expression. Genetic and molecular analysis of rh1 and rh2 supports that Hth acts through their promoters to regulate rhodopsin expression in the ocelli. Finally, we also show that when ectopically expressed in the retina, hth is sufficient to induce Rh2 expression only at the outer PRs in a cell autonomous manner. We therefore propose that the diversification of rhodpsins in the ocelli and retinal outer PRs occurred by duplication of an ancestral gene, which is under the control of Homothorax.

A new rhodopsin in R8 photoreceptors of Drosophila: evidence for coordinate expression with Rh3 in R7 cells

Development ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 124 (9) ◽  
pp. 1665-1673 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Papatsenko ◽  
G. Sheng ◽  
C. Desplan
Keyword(s):  
Concerted Evolution ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Photoreceptor Cells ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
Primary System ◽  
Neighboring Cell ◽  
Coordinate Expression ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Developmental Signaling ◽  
The Brain

The photoreceptor cells of the Drosophila compound eye are precisely organized in elementary units called ommatidia. The outer (R1-R6) and inner (R7, R8) photoreceptors represent two physiologically distinct systems with two different projection targets in the brain (for review see Hardie, 1985). All cells of the primary system, R1-R6, express the same rhodopsin and are functionally identical. In contrast, the R7 and R8 photoreceptors are different from each other. They occupy anatomically precise positions, with R7 on top of R8. In fact, there are several classes of R7/R8 pairs, which differ morphologically and functionally and are characterized by the expression of one of two R7-specific opsins, rh3 or rh4. Here, we describe the identification of a new opsin gene, rhodopsin 5, expressed in one subclass of R8 cells. Interestingly, this subclass represents R8 cells that are directly underneath the R7 photoreceptors expressing rh3, but are never under those expressing rh4. These results confirm the existence of two subpopulations of R7 and R8 cells, which coordinate the expression of their respective rh genes. Thus, developmental signaling pathways between R7 and R8 lead to the exclusive expression of a single rhodopsin gene per cell and to the coordinate expression of another one in the neighboring cell. Consistent with this, rh5 expression in R8 disappears when R7 cells are absent (in sevenless mutant). We propose a model for the concerted evolution of opsin genes and the elaboration of the architecture of the retina.

scholarly journals The evolution of opsin genes in five species of mirid bugs: duplication of long-wavelength opsins and loss of blue-sensitive opsins

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pengjun Xu ◽  
Bin Lu ◽  
Jiangtao Chao ◽  
Robert Holdbrook ◽  
Gemei Liang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Light Trapping ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Purifying Selection ◽  
Color Discrimination ◽  
Duplication Event ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Phototactic Behavior ◽  
Opsin Genes

AbstractBackgroundColor vision and phototactic behavior based on opsins are important for the fitness of insects because of their roles in foraging and mate choice. Related topics, including the duplication and loss of opsin genes, have been well investigated in insect orders such as Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Odonata and Orthoptera, and the findings have been used to develop pest management strategies involving light trapping. Mirid bugs of Hemiptera, which are pests that cause heavy economic losses, show capacity for color discrimination and phototaxis. However, the opsins in mirid bugs remain uncharacterized. Herein, we examined five species to investigate the evolution of opsins in the family Miridae.ResultsUsing RNA-seq, we identified several contigs showing high identity with opsins, including four contigs inApolygus lucorumand three contigs each inAdelphocoris suturalis,Adelphocoris fasciaticollis,Adelphocoris lineolatusandNesidiocoris tenuis. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that one of these genes clustered with ultraviolet-sensitive (UV) opsins and that the others clustered with long-wavelength (LW) opsins, suggesting that duplication of LW opsins and loss of blue light-sensitive (B) opsins occurred in mirid bugs. The existence of introns in the LW opsins of mirid bugs suggested that the duplication events were DNA based. Both LW1 and LW2 opsins of mirid bugs were found to be under strong purifying selection. The LW1 opsins were significantly more highly expressed than the LW2 and UV opsins.ConclusionsWe identified the opsins of mirid bugs using five selected mirid species as a representative sample. Phylogenetic analyses clustered one of the genes with UV opsins and the others with LW opsins, suggesting the occurrence of LW opsin duplication and B opsin loss during the evolution of mirid bugs. Intron detection suggested that the identified duplication event was DNA based. The evidence of strong purifying selection and the relatively high expression levels suggested that these opsins exhibit fundamental functions in mirid bugs.

South American Weakly Electric Fish (Gymnotiformes) Are Long-Wavelength-Sensitive Cone Monochromats

2016 ◽  
Vol 88 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 204-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Da-Wei Liu ◽  
Ying Lu ◽  
Hong Young Yan ◽  
Harold H. Zakon
Keyword(s):  
Short Wavelength ◽  
Electric Fish ◽  
Sister Group ◽  
Weakly Electric Fish ◽  
Opsin Gene ◽  
South American ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Cone Opsin ◽  
Opsin Genes ◽  
Weakly Electric

Losses of cone opsin genes are noted in animals that are nocturnal or rely on senses other than vision. We investigated the cone opsin repertoire of night-active South American weakly electric fish. We obtained opsin gene sequences from genomic DNA of 3 gymnotiforms (Eigenmannia virescens, Sternopygus macrurus, Apteronotus albifrons) and the assembled genome of the electric eel (Electrophorus electricus). We identified genes for long-wavelength-sensitive (LWS) and medium-wavelength-sensitive cone opsins (RH2) and rod opsins (RH1). Neither of the 2 short-wavelength-sensitive cone opsin genes were found and are presumed lost. The fact that Electrophorus has a complete repertoire of extraretinal opsin genes and conservation of synteny with the zebrafish (Danio rerio) for genes flanking the 2 short-wavelength-sensitive opsin genes supports the supposition of gene loss. With microspectrophotometry and electroretinograms we observed absorption spectra consistent with RH1 and LWS but not RH2 opsins in the retinal photoreceptors of E. virescens. This profile of opsin genes and their retinal expression is identical to the gymnotiform's sister group, the catfish, which are also nocturnally active and bear ampullary electroreceptors, suggesting that this pattern likely occurred in the common ancestor of gymnotiforms and catfish. Finally, we noted an unusual N-terminal motif lacking a conserved glycosylation consensus site in the RH2 opsin of gymnotiforms, a catfish and a characin (Astyanax mexicanus). Mutations at this site influence rhodopsin trafficking in mammalian photoreceptors and cause retinitis pigmentosa. We speculate that this unusual N terminus may be related to the absence of the RH2 opsin in the cones of gymnotiforms and catfish.

Three opsin-encoding cDNAS from the compound eye of Manduca sexta.

1997 ◽  
Vol 200 (18) ◽  
pp. 2469-2478 ◽  
Author(s):  
M R Chase ◽  
R R Bennett ◽  
R H White
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Visual Pigments ◽  
Phylogenetic Group ◽  
Amino Acid Residues ◽  
Praying Mantis ◽  
Long Wavelength ◽  
Related Group

Three distinct opsin-encoding cDNAs, designated MANOP1, MANOP2 and MANOP3, were isolated from the retina of the sphingid moth Manduca sexta. MANOP1 codes for a protein with 377 amino acid residues. It is similar in sequence to members of a phylogenetic group of long-wavelength-sensitive arthropod photopigments, most closely resembling the opsins of ants, a praying mantis, a locust and the honeybee. MANOP2 and MANOP3 opsins have 377 and 384 residues respectively. They belong to a related group of insect visual pigments that include the ultraviolet-sensitive rhodopsins of flies as well as other insect rhodopsins that are also thought to absorb at short wavelengths. The retina of Manduca sexta contains three rhodopsins, P520, P450 and P357, with absorbance peaks, respectively, at green, blue and ultraviolet wavelengths. There is evidence that MANOP1 encodes the opsin of P520. We suggest that MANOP2 encodes P357 and that MANOP3, representing a class of blue-sensitive insect photopigments, encodes P450.

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