scholarly journals Ectodysplasin signalling genes and phenotypic evolution in sculpins ( Cottus )

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1815) ◽  
pp. 20150746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Cheng ◽  
Fritz Sedlazek ◽  
Janine Altmüller ◽  
Arne W. Nolte
Keyword(s):  
Body Shape ◽  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Phenotypic Evolution ◽  
Natural Hybrid ◽  
Microevolutionary Change ◽  
Trait Locus ◽  
Locus Mapping ◽  
Edar Gene

Despite their deeply conserved function among vertebrates, ectodysplasin (Eda) signalling genes are involved in microevolutionary change in humans and sticklebacks. If such a dual role is common, Eda signalling genes constitute hotspots for morphological evolution. Variation in sculpin ( Cottus ) skin prickling and body shape resembles patterns caused by variation in Eda signalling in sticklebacks. We mapped Eda signalling genes and performed quantitative trait locus mapping in crosses between Cottus rhenanus and Cottus perifretum . A genomic region containing the Eda receptor (Edar) was strongly associated with prickling and contributed to shape. The expression of Edar in developing prickles and skeletal elements in Cottus was confirmed by in situ hybridization. Coding sequence changes between Edar alleles in C. rhenanus and C. perifretum exceeded sequence differentiation in other vertebrates. However, it is likely that additional genetic elements besides coding changes affect the phenotypic variation. Although the phenotype in a natural hybrid lineage between C. rhenanus and C. perifretum resembles C. perifretum , the respective coding Edar alleles are not fully fixed (88.6%). Hence, our results support an involvement of Eda signalling in microevolutionary changes, but imply that the Edar gene is affected by multiple evolutionary processes that vary among freshwater sculpins.

scholarly journals Morphology, Ecology, and Biogeography of Independent Origins of Cleaning Behavior Around the World

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 625-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vikram B Baliga ◽  
Rita S Mehta
Keyword(s):  
Body Shape ◽  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Character Displacement ◽  
Phenotypic Evolution ◽  
Ecological Specialization ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Cleaning Behavior ◽  
Marine Habitats ◽  
The Caribbean

Abstract Members of an ecological guild may be anticipated to show morphological convergence, as similar functional demands exert similar selective pressures on phenotypes. Nature is rife with examples, however, where such taxa instead exhibit ‘incomplete’ convergence or even divergence. Incorporating factors such as character displacement by other guild members or variation in ecological specialization itself may therefore be necessary to gain a more complete understanding of what constrains or promotes diversity. Cleaning, a behavior in which species remove and consume ectoparasites from “clientele,” has been shown to exhibit variation in specialization and has evolved in a variety of marine habitats around the globe. To determine the extent to which specialization in this tropic strategy has affected phenotypic evolution, we examined the evolution of cleaning behavior in five marine fish families: Labridae, Gobiidae, Pomacanthidae, Pomacentridae, and Embiotocidae. We used a comparative framework to determine patterns of convergence and divergence in body shape and size across non-cleaning and cleaning members within these five clades. Highly specialized obligate cleaning, found in the Indo-Pacific and the Caribbean, evolved in the Labridae and Gobiidae at strikingly similar times. In these two regions, obligate cleaning evolves early, shows convergence on an elongate body shape, and is restricted to species of small body size. Facultative cleaning, shown either throughout ontogeny or predominately in the juvenile phase, exhibits a much more varied phenotype, especially in geographic regions where obligate cleaning occurs. Collectively, our results are consistent with varying extents of an ecological specialization constraining or spurring morphological evolution in recurrent ways across regions.

scholarly journals High-resolution quantitative trait locus mapping for body weight in mice by recombinant progeny testing

2001 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
XIAOJUN LIU ◽  
FIONA OLIVER ◽  
STEVE D. M. BROWN ◽  
PAUL DENNY ◽  
PETER D. KEIGHTLEY
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Trait ◽  
Positional Cloning ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Progeny Testing ◽  
Likelihood Analysis ◽  
Trait Locus ◽  
Locus Mapping ◽  
Map Location ◽  
Unambiguous Assignment

A major obstacle to the positional cloning of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) lies in resolving genetic factors whose allelic effects are blurred by environmental and background genetic variation. We investigate a fine-mapping approach that combines the use of an interval-specific congenic strain with progeny testing of recombinants for markers flanking a QTL. We apply the approach to map a murine QTL with an approximately 20% effect on growth rate by progeny testing 39 recombinants in a 12 cM region of the X chromosome. We use a likelihood analysis in an attempt to maximize the information on QTL map location and effect. The major X-linked effect is mapped to an approximately 2 cM region flanked by markers about 5 cM apart, outside which LOD support for the QTL drops extremely steeply by about 80. Nearly unambiguous assignment of the QTL genotypic state is obtained for each recombinant. The resolution of individual recombinants in the region is therefore sufficiently high to facilitate the positional cloning of the locus, although progress has been hampered because the genomic region containing the QTL shows an exceptionally low level of polymorphism in comparison with recent studies.

scholarly journals Transcriptomic profiling of wheat near-isogenic lines reveals candidate genes on chromosome 3A for pre-harvest sprouting resistance

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xingyi Wang ◽  
Hui Liu ◽  
Kadambot H. M. Siddique ◽  
Guijun Yan
Keyword(s):  
Candidate Genes ◽  
Quantitative Trait ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Near Isogenic Lines ◽  
Gene Effects ◽  
Isogenic Lines ◽  
Trait Locus ◽  
Grain Yield And Quality ◽  
Sprouting Resistance

Abstract Background Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) in wheat can cause severe damage to both grain yield and quality. Resistance to PHS is a quantitative trait controlled by many genes located across all 21 wheat chromosomes. The study targeted a large-effect quantitative trait locus (QTL) QPhs.ccsu-3A.1 for PHS resistance using several sets previously developed near-isogenic lines (NILs). Two pairs of NILs with highly significant phenotypic differences between the isolines were examined by RNA sequencing for their transcriptomic profiles on developing seeds at 15, 25 and 35 days after pollination (DAP) to identify candidate genes underlying the QTL and elucidate gene effects on PHS resistance. At each DAP, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the isolines were investigated. Results Gene ontology and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses of key DEGs suggested that six candidate genes underlie QPhs.ccsu-3A.1 responsible for PHS resistance in wheat. Candidate gene expression was further validated by quantitative RT-PCR. Within the targeted QTL interval, 16 genetic variants including five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 11 indels showed consistent polymorphism between resistant and susceptible isolines. Conclusions The targeted QTL is confirmed to harbor core genes related to hormone signaling pathways that can be exploited as a key genomic region for marker-assisted selection. The candidate genes and SNP/indel markers detected in this study are valuable resources for understanding the mechanism of PHS resistance and for marker-assisted breeding of the trait in wheat.

On The Optimized Nucleation of Near-Single-Crystal Cvd Diamond Film

1995 ◽  
Vol 416 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. C. Chen ◽  
C. C. Juan ◽  
J. Y. Wu ◽  
K. H. Chen ◽  
J. W. Teng
Keyword(s):  
Single Crystal ◽  
Photoelectron Spectroscopy ◽  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Present Report ◽  
Ex Situ ◽  
Nucleation Density ◽  
Induced Current ◽  
Current Time ◽  
Single Crystal Diamond

ABSTRACTNear-single-crystal diamond films have been obtained in a number of laboratories recently. The optimization of nucleation density by using a bias-enhanced nucleation (BEN) method is believed to be a critical step. However, the condition of optimized nucleation has never been clearly delineated. In the present report, a novel quantitative technique was established to monitor the nucleation of diamond in-situ. Specifically, the induced current was measured as a function of nucleation time during BEN. The timedependence of induced current was studied under various methane concentrations as well as substrate temperatures. The optimized nucleation condition can be unambiguously determined from the current-time plot. Besides the in-situ current probe, ex-situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were also used to investigate the chemical and morphological evolution. Characteristic XPS and AFM features of optimized nucleation is discussed.

Evolution of early Eocene Palaeosinopa (Mammalia, Pantolestidae) in the Willwood Formation of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming

2015 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 665-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel H. Dunn ◽  
Kenneth D. Rose
Keyword(s):  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Distal Tibia ◽  
Distinct Species ◽  
Powder River Basin ◽  
Ancestral Population ◽  
Bighorn Basin ◽  
New Material ◽  
Size And Morphology ◽  
Willwood Formation

AbstractSpecies-level diversity and evolution of Palaeosinopa from the Willwood Formation of the Bighorn Basin is reassessed based on substantial new material from the Bighorn, Powder River, and Wind River basins. We recognize three species of Palaeosinopa in the Willwood Formation of the Bighorn Basin: P. lutreola, P. incerta, and P. veterrima. The late Wasatchian species P. didelphoides is not present in the Bighorn Basin. The Willwood species can be differentiated based only on size. P. veterrima is the most common and wide-ranging species and is the most variable in size and morphology: the stratigraphically lowest individuals are smaller, with narrower, more crestiform lower molars; whereas the highest are larger, with wider, more bunodont teeth. Although it could be argued that these represent distinct species, we demonstrate that this morphological evolution occurred as the gradual and mosaic accumulation of features, suggesting in situ anagenetic evolution. The two smaller species are present only low in the section (biochrons Wa0–Wa4) and show no discernable evolution in size or morphology. A new skeleton of Palaeosinopa veterrima from the Willwood Formation is described, and other new postcrania are reported. The skeleton is the oldest associated skeleton of Palaeosinopa known, yet it is remarkably similar to those of younger, more derived pantolestids, the primary disparities being minor differences in proportions of the innominate, femur, and tibia, and co-ossification of the distal tibia and fibula. Either P. incerta or P. lutreola was likely the ancestral population that gave rise to the other Wasatchian Palaeosinopa. Alternatively, P. veterrima may have migrated into the Bighorn Basin from the Powder River Basin.

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