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Lawrence JP, Rojas B, Blanchette A, Saporito RA, Mappes J, Fouquet A, Noonan BP. Linking Predator Responses to Alkaloid Variability in Poison Frogs. J Chem Ecol 2023; 49:195-204. [PMID: 36854928 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-023-01412-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Revised: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
Abstract
Many chemically-defended/aposematic species rely on diet for sequestering the toxins with which they defend themselves. This dietary acquisition can lead to variable chemical defenses across space, as the community composition of chemical sources is likely to vary across the range of (an aposematic) species. We characterized the alkaloid content of two populations of the Dyeing Poison Frog (Dendrobates tinctorius) in northeastern French Guiana. Additionally, we conducted unpalatability experiments with naive predators, Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), using whole-skin secretion cocktails to assess how a model predator would respond to the defense of individuals from each population. While there was some overlap between the two D. tinctorius populations in terms of alkaloid content, our analysis revealed that these two populations are markedly distinct in terms of overall alkaloid profiles. Predator responses to skin secretions differed between the populations. We identified 15 candidate alkaloids (including three previously undescribed) in seven classes that are correlated with predator response in one frog population. We describe alkaloid profile differences between populations for D. tinctorius and provide a novel method for assessing unpalatability of skin secretions and identifying which toxins may contribute to the predator response. In one population, our results suggest 15 alkaloids that are implicated in predator aversive response. This method is the first step in identifying the causal link between alkaloids and behavioral responses of predators, and thus makes sense of how varying alkaloid combinations are capable of eliciting consistent behavioral responses, and eventually driving evolutionary change in aposematic characters (or characteristics).
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Affiliation(s)
- J P Lawrence
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, University, MS, 38677, USA. .,Lyman Briggs College, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48825, USA.
| | - Bibiana Rojas
- Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, P.O. Box 35, 40014, Jyväskylä, Finland.,Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Savoyenstraße 1, 1160, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annelise Blanchette
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA
| | - Ralph A Saporito
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA
| | - Johanna Mappes
- Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, P.O. Box 35, 40014, Jyväskylä, Finland.,Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Helsinki University, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Antoine Fouquet
- Laboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174, Université Paul Sabatier, 31062, Toulouse Cedex 9, France
| | - Brice P Noonan
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, University, MS, 38677, USA
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Piperidine alkaloids from fire ants are not sequestered by the green and black poison frog (Dendrobates auratus). CHEMOECOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00049-021-00357-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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3
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Basham EW, Saporito RA, González‐Pinzón M, Romero‐Marcucci A, Scheffers BR. Chemical defenses shift with the seasonal vertical migration of a Panamanian poison frog. Biotropica 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Edmund W. Basham
- School of Natural Resources and Environment University of Florida Gainesville FL USA
| | - Ralph A. Saporito
- Department of Biology John Carroll University University Heights OH USA
| | - Macario González‐Pinzón
- Escuela de Biología Facultad de Ciencias naturales y Exactas Universidad Autónoma de Chiriquí David República de Panamá
| | - Angel Romero‐Marcucci
- Escuela de Biología Facultad de Ciencias naturales y Exactas Universidad Autónoma de Chiriquí David República de Panamá
| | - Brett R. Scheffers
- School of Natural Resources and Environment University of Florida Gainesville FL USA
- Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation University of Florida Gainesville FL USA
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4
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Cao Y, Cui K, Pan H, Wu J, Wang L. The impact of multiple climatic and geographic factors on the chemical defences of Asian toads (Bufo gargarizans Cantor). Sci Rep 2019; 9:17236. [PMID: 31754241 PMCID: PMC6872595 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-52641-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 09/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Chemical defences are widespread in nature, yet we know little about whether and how climatic and geographic factors affect their evolution. In this study, we investigated the natural variation in the concentration and composition of the main bufogenin toxin in adult Asian toads (Bufo gargarizans Cantor) captured in twenty-two regions. Moreover, we explored the relative importance of eight climatic factors (average temperature, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, average relative humidity, 20-20 time precipitation, maximum continuous precipitation, maximum ground temperature, and minimum ground temperature) in regulating toxin production. We found that compared to toads captured from central and southwestern China, toads from eastern China secreted higher concentrations of cinobufagin (CBG) and resibufogenin (RBG) but lower concentrations of telocinobufagin (TBG) and cinobufotalin (CFL). All 8 climatic variables had significant effects on bufogenin production (ri>0.5), while the plastic response of bufogenin toxin to various climate factors was highly variable. The most important climatic driver of total bufogenin production was precipitation: the bufogenin concentration increased with increasing precipitation. This study indicated that the evolution of phenotypic plasticity in chemical defences may depend at least partly on the geographic variation of defensive toxins and their climatic context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yueting Cao
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Keke Cui
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Hongye Pan
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Jiheng Wu
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Longhu Wang
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
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Crottini A, Orozco-terWengel P, Rabemananjara FCE, Hauswaldt JS, Vences M. Mitochondrial Introgression, Color Pattern Variation, and Severe Demographic Bottlenecks in Three Species of Malagasy Poison Frogs, Genus Mantella. Genes (Basel) 2019; 10:E317. [PMID: 31018611 PMCID: PMC6523892 DOI: 10.3390/genes10040317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2019] [Revised: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot particularly rich in amphibian diversity and only a few charismatic Malagasy amphibians have been investigated for their population-level differentiation. The Mantellamadagascariensis group is composed of two rainforest and three swamp forest species of poison frogs. We first confirm the monophyly of this clade using DNA sequences of three nuclear and four mitochondrial genes, and subsequently investigate the population genetic differentiation and demography of the swamp forest species using one mitochondrial, two nuclear and a set of nine microsatellite markers. Our results confirm the occurrence of two main mitochondrial lineages, one dominated by Mantellaaurantiaca (a grouping supported also by our microsatellite-based tree) and the other by Mantellacrocea + Mantellamilotympanum. These two main lineages probably reflect an older divergence in swamp Mantella. Widespread mitochondrial introgression suggests a fairly common occurrence of inter-lineage gene flow. However, nuclear admixture seems to play only a limited role in this group, and the analyses of the RAG-1 marker points to a predominant incomplete lineage sorting scenario between all five species of the group, which probably diverged relatively recently. Our demographic analyses show a common, severe and recent demographic contraction, inferred to be in temporal coincidence with the massive deforestation events that took place in the past 1000 years. Current data do not allow to conclusively delimit independent evolutionary units in these frogs, and we therefore refrain to suggest any taxonomic changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angelica Crottini
- CIBIO Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, InBIO, Universidade do Porto, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, N° 7, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal.
| | - Pablo Orozco-terWengel
- School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Sir Martin Evans Building, Museum Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3AX, UK.
| | - Falitiana C E Rabemananjara
- Mention Zoologie et Biodiversité Animale, Faculté des Sciences, Université d'Antananarivo, BP 906, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar.
| | - J Susanne Hauswaldt
- Zoological Institute, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Mendelssohnstr. 4, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany.
| | - Miguel Vences
- Zoological Institute, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Mendelssohnstr. 4, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany.
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Klonoski K, Bi K, Rosenblum EB. Phenotypic and genetic diversity in aposematic Malagasy poison frogs (genus Mantella). Ecol Evol 2019; 9:2725-2742. [PMID: 30891212 PMCID: PMC6406014 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2018] [Revised: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 01/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Intraspecific color variation has long fascinated evolutionary biologists. In species with bright warning coloration, phenotypic diversity is particularly compelling because many factors, including natural and sexual selection, contribute to intraspecific variation. To better understand the causes of dramatic phenotypic variation in Malagasy poison frogs, we quantified genetic structure and color and pattern variation across three closely related species, Mantella aurantiaca, Mantella crocea, and Mantella milotympanum. Although our restriction site-associated DNA (RAD) sequencing approach identified clear genetic clusters, they do not align with current species designations, which has important conservation implications for these imperiled frogs. Moreover, our results suggest that levels of intraspecific color variation within this group have been overestimated, while species diversity has been underestimated. Within major genetic clusters, we observed distinct patterns of variation including: populations that are phenotypically similar yet genetically distinct, populations where phenotypic and genetic breaks coincide, and populations that are genetically similar but have high levels of within-population phenotypic variation. We also detected admixture between two of the major genetic clusters. Our study suggests that several mechanisms-including hybridization, selection, and drift-are contributing to phenotypic diversity. Ultimately, our work underscores the need for a reevaluation of how polymorphic and polytypic populations and species are classified, especially in aposematic organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karina Klonoski
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and ManagementUniversity of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
| | - Ke Bi
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
- Computational Genomics Resource Laboratory (CGRL), California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3)University of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
| | - Erica Bree Rosenblum
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and ManagementUniversity of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
- Museum of Vertebrate ZoologyUniversity of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyCalifornia
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Moskowitz NA, Roland AB, Fischer EK, Ranaivorazo N, Vidoudez C, Aguilar MT, Caldera SM, Chea J, Cristus MG, Crowdis JP, DeMessie B, desJardins-Park CR, Effenberger AH, Flores F, Giles M, He EY, Izmaylov NS, Lee CC, Pagel NA, Phu KK, Rosen LU, Seda DA, Shen Y, Vargas S, Murray AW, Abebe E, Trauger SA, Donoso DA, Vences M, O’Connell LA. Seasonal changes in diet and chemical defense in the Climbing Mantella frog (Mantella laevigata). PLoS One 2018; 13:e0207940. [PMID: 30586404 PMCID: PMC6306172 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0207940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2018] [Accepted: 11/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Poison frogs acquire chemical defenses from the environment for protection against potential predators. These defensive chemicals are lipophilic alkaloids that are sequestered by poison frogs from dietary arthropods and stored in skin glands. Despite decades of research focusing on identifying poison frog alkaloids, we know relatively little about how environmental variation and subsequent arthropod availability impacts alkaloid loads in poison frogs. We investigated how seasonal environmental variation influences poison frog chemical profiles through changes in the diet of the Climbing Mantella (Mantella laevigata). We collected M. laevigata females on the Nosy Mangabe island reserve in Madagascar during the wet and dry seasons and tested the hypothesis that seasonal differences in rainfall is associated with changes in diet composition and skin alkaloid profiles of M. laevigata. The arthropod diet of each frog was characterized into five groups (i.e. ants, termites, mites, insect larvae, or 'other') using visual identification and cytochrome oxidase 1 DNA barcoding. We found that frog diet differed between the wet and dry seasons, where frogs had a more diverse diet in the wet season and consumed a higher percentage of ants in the dry season. To determine if seasonality was associated with variation in frog defensive chemical composition, we used gas chromatography / mass spectrometry to quantify alkaloids from individual skin samples. Although the assortment of identified alkaloids was similar across seasons, we detected significant differences in the abundance of certain alkaloids, which we hypothesize reflects seasonal variation in the diet of M. laevigata. We suggest that these variations could originate from seasonal changes in either arthropod leaf litter composition or changes in frog behavioral patterns. Although additional studies are needed to understand the consequences of long-term environmental shifts, this work suggests that alkaloid profiles are relatively robust against short-term environmental perturbations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora A. Moskowitz
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Alexandre B. Roland
- Center for Systems Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Eva K. Fischer
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Ndimbintsoa Ranaivorazo
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Antananarivo, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - Charles Vidoudez
- FAS Small Molecule Mass Spectrometry Facility, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Marianne T. Aguilar
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Sophia M. Caldera
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Jacqueline Chea
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Miruna G. Cristus
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Jett P. Crowdis
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Bluyé DeMessie
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Caroline R. desJardins-Park
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Audrey H. Effenberger
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Felipe Flores
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Michael Giles
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Emma Y. He
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Nike S. Izmaylov
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - ChangWon C. Lee
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Nicholas A. Pagel
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Krystal K. Phu
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Leah U. Rosen
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Danielle A. Seda
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Yong Shen
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Santiago Vargas
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Andrew W. Murray
- Center for Systems Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Eden Abebe
- Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Sunia A. Trauger
- FAS Small Molecule Mass Spectrometry Facility, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - David A. Donoso
- Departamento de Biología, Escuela Politécnica Nacional, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Miguel Vences
- Braunschweig University of Technology, Zoological Institute, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Lauren A. O’Connell
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America
- LS50: Integrated Science Freshman Class, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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8
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Hovey KJ, Seiter EM, Johnson EE, Saporito RA. Sequestered Alkaloid Defenses in the Dendrobatid Poison Frog Oophaga pumilio Provide Variable Protection from Microbial Pathogens. J Chem Ecol 2018; 44:312-325. [PMID: 29427191 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-018-0930-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2017] [Revised: 01/26/2018] [Accepted: 01/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Most amphibians produce their own defensive chemicals; however, poison frogs sequester their alkaloid-based defenses from dietary arthropods. Alkaloids function as a defense against predators, and certain types appear to inhibit microbial growth. Alkaloid defenses vary considerably among populations of poison frogs, reflecting geographic differences in availability of dietary arthropods. Consequently, environmentally driven differences in frog defenses may have significant implications regarding their protection against pathogens. While natural alkaloid mixtures in dendrobatid poison frogs have recently been shown to inhibit growth of non-pathogenic microbes, no studies have examined the effectiveness of alkaloids against microbes that infect these frogs. Herein, we examined how alkaloid defenses in the dendrobatid poison frog, Oophaga pumilio, affect growth of the known anuran pathogens Aeromonas hydrophila and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Frogs were collected from five locations throughout Costa Rica that are known to vary in their alkaloid profiles. Alkaloids were isolated from individual skins, and extracts were assayed against both pathogens. Microbe subcultures were inoculated with extracted alkaloids to create dose-response curves. Subsequent spectrophotometry and cell counting assays were used to assess growth inhibition. GC-MS was used to characterize and quantify alkaloids in frog extracts, and our results suggest that variation in alkaloid defenses lead to differences in inhibition of these pathogens. The present study provides the first evidence that alkaloid variation in a dendrobatid poison frog is associated with differences in inhibition of anuran pathogens, and offers further support that alkaloid defenses in poison frogs confer protection against both pathogens and predators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle J Hovey
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA
| | - Emily M Seiter
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA
| | - Erin E Johnson
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA
| | - Ralph A Saporito
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA.
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