scholarly journals Unique genetic signatures of local adaptation over space and time for diapause, an ecologically relevant complex trait, in Drosophila melanogaster

PLoS Genetics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. e1009110
Author(s):  
Priscilla A. Erickson ◽  
Cory A. Weller ◽  
Daniel Y. Song ◽  
Alyssa S. Bangerter ◽  
Paul Schmidt ◽  
...  

Organisms living in seasonally variable environments utilize cues such as light and temperature to induce plastic responses, enabling them to exploit favorable seasons and avoid unfavorable ones. Local adapation can result in variation in seasonal responses, but the genetic basis and evolutionary history of this variation remains elusive. Many insects, including Drosophila melanogaster, are able to undergo an arrest of reproductive development (diapause) in response to unfavorable conditions. In D. melanogaster, the ability to diapause is more common in high latitude populations, where flies endure harsher winters, and in the spring, reflecting differential survivorship of overwintering populations. Using a novel hybrid swarm-based genome wide association study, we examined the genetic basis and evolutionary history of ovarian diapause. We exposed outbred females to different temperatures and day lengths, characterized ovarian development for over 2800 flies, and reconstructed their complete, phased genomes. We found that diapause, scored at two different developmental cutoffs, has modest heritability, and we identified hundreds of SNPs associated with each of the two phenotypes. Alleles associated with one of the diapause phenotypes tend to be more common at higher latitudes, but these alleles do not show predictable seasonal variation. The collective signal of many small-effect, clinally varying SNPs can plausibly explain latitudinal variation in diapause seen in North America. Alleles associated with diapause are segregating in Zambia, suggesting that variation in diapause relies on ancestral polymorphisms, and both pro- and anti-diapause alleles have experienced selection in North America. Finally, we utilized outdoor mesocosms to track diapause under natural conditions. We found that hybrid swarms reared outdoors evolved increased propensity for diapause in late fall, whereas indoor control populations experienced no such change. Our results indicate that diapause is a complex, quantitative trait with different evolutionary patterns across time and space.

Author(s):  
Priscilla A. Erickson ◽  
Cory A. Weller ◽  
Daniel Y. Song ◽  
Alyssa S. Bangerter ◽  
Paul Schmidt ◽  
...  

AbstractOrganisms living in seasonally variable environments utilize cues such as light and temperature to induce plastic responses, enabling them to exploit favorable seasons and avoid unfavorable ones. Local adapation can result in variation in seasonal responses, but the genetic basis and evolutionary history of this variation remains elusive. Many insects, including Drosophila melanogaster, are able to undergo an arrest of reproductive development (diapause) in response to unfavorable conditions. In D. melanogaster, the ability to diapause is more common in high latitude populations, where flies endure harsher winters, and in the spring, reflecting differential survivorship of overwintering populations. Using a novel hybrid swarm-based genome wide association study, we examined the genetic basis and evolutionary history of ovarian diapause. We exposed outbred females to different temperatures and day lengths, characterized ovarian development for over 2800 flies, and reconstructed their complete, phased genomes. We found that diapause, scored at two different developmental cutoffs, has modest heritability, and we identified hundreds of SNPs associated with each of the two phenotypes. Alleles associated with one of the diapause phenotypes tend to be more common at higher latitudes, but these alleles do not show predictable seasonal variation. The collective signal of many small-effect, clinally varying SNPs can plausibly explain latitudinal variation in diapause seen in North America. Alleles associated with diapause are segregating at relatively high frequencies in Zambia, suggesting that variation in diapause relies on ancestral polymorphisms, and both pro- and anti-diapause alleles have experienced selection in North America. Finally, we utilized outdoor mesocosms to track diapause under natural conditions. We found that hybrid swarms reared outdoors evolved increased propensity for diapause in late fall, whereas indoor control populations experienced no such change. Our results indicate that diapause is a complex, quantitative trait with different evolutionary patterns across time and space.Author SummaryAnimals exhibit diverse strategies to cope with unfavorable conditions in temperate, seasonally varying environments. The model fly, Drosophila melanogaster, can enter a physiological state known as diapause under winter-like conditions. Diapause is characterized by an absence of egg maturation in females and is thought to conserve energy for survival during stressful times. The ability to diapause is more common in flies from higher latitudes and in offspring from flies that have recently overwintered. Therefore, diapause has been thought to be a recent adaptation to temperate climates. We identified hundreds of genetic variants that affect diapause and found that some vary predictably across latitudes in North America. We found little signal of repeated seasonality in diapause-associated genetic variants, but our populations evolved an increased ability to diapause in the winter when they were exposed to natural conditions. Combined, our results suggest that diapause-associated variants evolve differently across space and time. We find little evidence that diapause evolved recently in temperate environments; rather, SNPs associated with diapause tend to be quite common in Zambia, suggesting that diapause may promote survival under stresses other than cold. Our results provide future targets for research into the genetic underpinnings of this complex, ecologically relevant trait.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nashaiman Pervaiz ◽  
Hongen Kang ◽  
Yiming Bao ◽  
Amir Ali Abbasi

Abstract Background There has been a rapid increase in the brain size relative to body size during mammalian evolutionary history. In particular, the enlarged and globular brain is the most distinctive anatomical feature of modern humans that set us apart from other extinct and extant primate species. Genetic basis of large brain size in modern humans has largely remained enigmatic. Genes associated with the pathological reduction of brain size (primary microcephaly-MCPH) have the characteristics and functions to be considered ideal candidates to unravel the genetic basis of evolutionary enlargement of human brain size. For instance, the brain size of microcephaly patients is similar to the brain size of Pan troglodyte and the very early hominids like the Sahelanthropus tchadensis and Australopithecus afarensis. Results The present study investigates the molecular evolutionary history of subset of autosomal recessive primary microcephaly (MCPH) genes; CEP135, ZNF335, PHC1, SASS6, CDK6, MFSD2A, CIT, and KIF14 across 48 mammalian species. Codon based substitutions site analysis indicated that ZNF335, SASS6, CIT, and KIF14 have experienced positive selection in eutherian evolutionary history. Estimation of divergent selection pressure revealed that almost all of the MCPH genes analyzed in the present study have maintained their functions throughout the history of placental mammals. Contrary to our expectations, human-specific adoptive evolution was not detected for any of the MCPH genes analyzed in the present study. Conclusion Based on these data it can be inferred that protein-coding sequence of MCPH genes might not be the sole determinant of increase in relative brain size during primate evolutionary history.


Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 373 (6551) ◽  
pp. 226-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasuka Toda ◽  
Meng-Ching Ko ◽  
Qiaoyi Liang ◽  
Eliot T. Miller ◽  
Alejandro Rico-Guevara ◽  
...  

Early events in the evolutionary history of a clade can shape the sensory systems of descendant lineages. Although the avian ancestor may not have had a sweet receptor, the widespread incidence of nectar-feeding birds suggests multiple acquisitions of sugar detection. In this study, we identify a single early sensory shift of the umami receptor (the T1R1-T1R3 heterodimer) that conferred sweet-sensing abilities in songbirds, a large evolutionary radiation containing nearly half of all living birds. We demonstrate sugar responses across species with diverse diets, uncover critical sites underlying carbohydrate detection, and identify the molecular basis of sensory convergence between songbirds and nectar-specialist hummingbirds. This early shift shaped the sensory biology of an entire radiation, emphasizing the role of contingency and providing an example of the genetic basis of convergence in avian evolution.


2013 ◽  
Vol 58 (7) ◽  
pp. 1512-1522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brooks E. Miner ◽  
Roland A. Knapp ◽  
John K. Colbourne ◽  
Michael E. Pfrender

1993 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 549-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce S. Lieberman

Phylogenetic parsimony analysis was used to classify the Siegenian–Eifelian “Metacryphaeus group” of the family Calmoniidae. Thirty-eight exoskeletal characters for 16 taxa produced a shortest-length cladogram with a consistency index of 0.49. A classification based on retrieving the structure of this cladogram recognizes nine genera: Typhloniscus Salter, Plesioconvexa n. gen., Punillaspis Baldis and Longobucco, Eldredgeia n. gen., Clarkeaspis n. gen., Malvinocooperella n. gen., Wolfartaspis Cooper, Plesiomalvinella Lieberman, Edgecombe, and Eldredge (used to represent the malvinellid clade), and Metacryphaeus Reed. The malvinellid clade is most closely related to a revised monophyletic Metacryphaeus. Typhloniscus is the basal member of the “Metacryphaeus group,” and the monotypic Wolfartaspis is sister to the clade containing the malvinellids and Metacryphaeus. Six new species are diagnosed: Punillaspis n. sp. A, “Clarkeaspis” gouldi, Clarkeaspis padillaensis, Malvinocooperella pregiganteus, Metacryphaeus curvigena, and Metacryphaeus branisai. Primitively, this group has South African and Andean affinities, and its evolutionary history suggests rapid diversification. In addition, evolutionary patterns in this group, and the distribution of character reversals, call into question certain notions about the nature of adaptive radiations. The distributions of taxa may answer questions about the number of marine transgressive/regressive cycles in the Emsian–Eifelian of the Malvinokaffric Realm.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Zhang ◽  
Huwei Yuan ◽  
Yujuan Li ◽  
Yanhong Chen ◽  
Guoyuan Liu ◽  
...  

AbstractPolyploidy is a common phenomenon among willow species. In this study, genome sequencing was conducted for Salix matsudana Koidz (also named Chinese willow), an important greening and arbor tree species, and the genome of this species was compared with those of four other tree species in Salicaceae. The total genome sequence of S. matsudana was 655.72 Mb in size, with repeated sequences accounting for 45.97% of the total length. In total, 531.43 Mb of the genome sequence could be mapped onto 38 chromosomes using the published genetic map as a reference. The genome of S. matsudana could be divided into two groups, the A and B genomes, through homology analysis with the genome of Populus trichocarpa, and the A and B genomes contained 23,985 and 25,107 genes, respectively. 4DTv combined transposon analysis predicted that allotetraploidy in S. matsudana appeared ~4 million years ago. The results from this study will help reveal the evolutionary history of S. matsudana and lay a genetic basis for its breeding.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne R Chapman ◽  
Maureen A Dowell ◽  
Rosanna Chan ◽  
Robert L Unckless

Dissecting the genetic basis of natural variation in disease response in hosts provides insights into the coevolutionary dynamics of host-pathogen interactions. Here, a genome-wide association study of Drosophila melanogaster survival after infection with the Gram-positive entomopathogenic bacterium Enterococcus faecalis is reported. There was considerable variation in defense against E. faecalis infection among inbred lines of the Drosophila Genetics Reference Panel. We identified single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with six genes with a significant (p < 10−08, corresponding to a false discovery rate of 2.4%) association with survival, none of which were canonical immune genes. To validate the role of these genes in immune defense, their expression was knocked-down using RNAi and survival of infected hosts was followed, which confirmed a role for the genes krishah and S6k in immune defense. We further identified a putative role for the Bomanin gene BomBc1 (also known as IM23), in E. faecalis infection response. This study adds to the growing set of association studies for infection in Drosophila melanogaster and suggests that the genetic causes of variation in immune defense differ for different pathogens.


Genetics ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 114 (3) ◽  
pp. 841-857
Author(s):  
Horacio Naveira ◽  
Antonio Fontdevila

ABSTRACT The genetic basis of hybrid sterility has been investigated in backcross segmental hybrids between two sibling species, Drosophila buzzatii and D. serido. Asynapsis of homologous bands in hybrid polytene chromosomes has been used to identify the D. serido chromosome segments introgressed into the D. buzzatti genome. All the investigated chromosomes contain male sterility factors. For autosomes, sterility is produced when an introgressed D. serido chromosome segment, or combination of segments, reaches a minimum size. On the other hand, any introgressed X chromosome segment from D. serido, irrespective of its size, produces either male hybrid sterility or inviability.


Biologia ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 70 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Maňka ◽  
Andrej Kormuťák ◽  
Martin Galgóci ◽  
Dušan Gömöry

AbstractGenetic structure of the mountain dwarf pine (Pinus mugo) and Scots pine (P. sylvestris) natural populations along with their 4 putative hybrid swarms in Slovakia were analyzed using 12 enzyme loci. The study aimed in evaluation of postulated hybrid status of the swarms on molecular level. Based on semidiagnostic allele frequencies of the MDH B, MDH C, 6PGDH B, ADH 1 and F-EST loci in their megagametophytes and vegetative buds, the conspicuous genetic differences were detected between P. mugo and P. sylvestris populations. The putative hybrid swarms seem to incline by their genetic structure to P. mugo rather than to P. sylvestris. Obtained results indicate independent developmental history of each of the scored hybrid swarms. The putative hybrid swarm in Sucha Hora was found to be a mixed stand consisting prevailingly of pure-species individuals of P. mugo and P. sylvestris. On the contrary, the putative hybrid swarms in Habovka, Tisovnica and Terchova are supposed to be of hybrid origin.


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