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Rice G, Gaitan-Escudero T, Charles-Obi K, Zeitlinger J, Rebeiz M. Gene regulatory network co-option is sufficient to induce a morphological novelty in Drosophila. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.22.584840. [PMID: 38585823 PMCID: PMC10996490 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.22.584840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
Identifying the molecular origins by which new morphological structures evolve is one of the long standing problems in evolutionary biology. To date, vanishingly few examples provide a compelling account of how new morphologies were initially formed, thereby limiting our understanding of how diverse forms of life derived their complex features. Here, we provide evidence that the large projections on the Drosophila eugracilis phallus that are implicated in sexual conflict have evolved through co-option of the trichome genetic network. These unicellular apical projections on the phallus postgonal sheath are reminiscent of trichomes that cover the Drosophila body but are up to 20-fold larger in size. During their development, they express the transcription factor Shavenbaby, the master regulator of the trichome network. Consistent with the co-option of the Shavenbaby network during the evolution of the D. eugracilis projections, somatic mosaic CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis shows that shavenbaby is necessary for their proper length. Moreover, mis-expression of Shavenbaby in the sheath of D. melanogaster , a naïve species that lacks these extensions, is sufficient to induce small trichomes. These induced extensions rely on a genetic network that is shared to a large extent with the D. eugracilis projections, indicating its co-option but also some genetic rewiring. Thus, by leveraging a genetically tractable evolutionarily novelty, our work shows that the trichome-forming network is flexible enough that it can be co-opted in a new context, and subsequently refined to produce unique apical projections that are barely recognizable compared to their simpler ancestral beginnings.
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2
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Bachem K, Li X, Ceolin S, Mühling B, Hörl D, Harz H, Leonhardt H, Arnoult L, Weber S, Matarlo B, Prud’homme B, Gompel N. Regulatory evolution tuning pigmentation intensity quantitatively in Drosophila. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadl2616. [PMID: 38266088 PMCID: PMC10807792 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl2616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Quantitative variation in attributes such as color, texture, or stiffness dominates morphological diversification. It results from combinations of alleles at many Mendelian loci. Here, we identify an additional source of quantitative variation among species, continuous evolution in a gene regulatory region. Specifically, we examined the modulation of wing pigmentation in a group of fly species and showed that inter-species variation correlated with the quantitative expression of the pigmentation gene yellow. This variation results from an enhancer of yellow determining darkness through species-specific activity. We mapped the divergent activities between two sister species and found the changes to be broadly distributed along the enhancer. Our results demonstrate that enhancers can act as dials fueling quantitative morphological diversification by modulating trait properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Bachem
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Xinyi Li
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Stefano Ceolin
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Bettina Mühling
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - David Hörl
- Human Biology and Bioimaging, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Hartmann Harz
- Human Biology and Bioimaging, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Heinrich Leonhardt
- Human Biology and Bioimaging, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Laurent Arnoult
- Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille 13288, France
| | - Sabrina Weber
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Blair Matarlo
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
| | - Benjamin Prud’homme
- Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille 13288, France
| | - Nicolas Gompel
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, München 82152, Germany
- Bonn Institute for Organismic Biology, University of Bonn, Bonn 53115, Germany
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3
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Bowsher J, Jockusch EL, Nagy L. Editorial. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2023; 145:1-2. [PMID: 36702721 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2022.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Julia Bowsher
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
| | - Elizabeth L Jockusch
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | - Lisa Nagy
- Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona USA.
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4
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Cutter AD. Speciation and development. Evol Dev 2023; 25:289-327. [PMID: 37545126 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
Understanding general principles about the origin of species remains one of the foundational challenges in evolutionary biology. The genomic divergence between groups of individuals can spawn hybrid inviability and hybrid sterility, which presents a tantalizing developmental problem. Divergent developmental programs may yield either conserved or divergent phenotypes relative to ancestral traits, both of which can be responsible for reproductive isolation during the speciation process. The genetic mechanisms of developmental evolution involve cis- and trans-acting gene regulatory change, protein-protein interactions, genetic network structures, dosage, and epigenetic regulation, all of which also have roots in population genetic and molecular evolutionary processes. Toward the goal of demystifying Darwin's "mystery of mysteries," this review integrates microevolutionary concepts of genetic change with principles of organismal development, establishing explicit links between population genetic process and developmental mechanisms in the production of macroevolutionary pattern. This integration aims to establish a more unified view of speciation that binds process and mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asher D Cutter
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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5
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Salazar-Ciudad I, Cano-Fernández H. Evo-devo beyond development: Generalizing evo-devo to all levels of the phenotypic evolution. Bioessays 2023; 45:e2200205. [PMID: 36739577 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202200205] [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: 10/24/2022] [Revised: 12/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
A foundational idea of evo-devo is that morphological variation is not isotropic, that is, it does not occur in all directions. Instead, some directions of morphological variation are more likely than others from DNA-level variation and these largely depend on development. We argue that this evo-devo perspective should apply not only to morphology but to evolution at all phenotypic levels. At other phenotypic levels there is no development, but there are processes that can be seen, in analogy to development, as constructing the phenotype (e.g., protein folding, learning for behavior, etc.). We argue that to explain the direction of evolution two types of arguments need to be combined: generative arguments about which phenotypic variation arises in each generation and selective arguments about which of it passes to the next generation. We explain how a full consideration of the two types of arguments improves the explanatory power of evolutionary theory. Also see the video abstract here: https://youtu.be/Egbvma_uaKc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaac Salazar-Ciudad
- Centre de Recerca Matemàtica, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain.,Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution, Departament de Genètica i Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Hugo Cano-Fernández
- Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution, Departament de Genètica i Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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6
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Ling L, Mühling B, Jaenichen R, Gompel N. Increased chromatin accessibility promotes the evolution of a transcriptional silencer in Drosophila. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eade6529. [PMID: 36800429 PMCID: PMC9937571 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade6529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The loss of discrete morphological traits, the most common evolutionary transition, is typically driven by changes in developmental gene expression. Mutations accumulating in regulatory elements of these genes can disrupt DNA binding sites for transcription factors patterning their spatial expression, or delete entire enhancers. Regulatory elements, however, may be silenced through changes in chromatin accessibility or the emergence of repressive elements. Here, we show that increased chromatin accessibility at the gene yellow, combined with the gain of a repressor site, underlies the loss of a wing spot pigmentation pattern in a Drosophila species. The gain of accessibility of this repressive element is regulated by E93, a transcription factor governing the progress of metamorphosis. This convoluted evolutionary scenario contrasts with the parsimonious mutational paths generally envisioned and often documented for morphological losses. It illustrates how evolutionary changes in chromatin accessibility may directly contribute to morphological diversification.
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7
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Buffry AD, Kittelmann S, McGregor AP. Characterisation of the role and regulation of Ultrabithorax in sculpting fine-scale leg morphology. Front Cell Dev Biol 2023; 11:1119221. [PMID: 36861038 PMCID: PMC9968978 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1119221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Hox genes are expressed during embryogenesis and determine the regional identity of animal bodies along the antero-posterior axis. However, they also function post-embryonically to sculpt fine-scale morphology. To better understand how Hox genes are integrated into post-embryonic gene regulatory networks, we further analysed the role and regulation of Ultrabithorax (Ubx) during leg development in Drosophila melanogaster. Ubx regulates several aspects of bristle and trichome patterning on the femurs of the second (T2) and third (T3) leg pairs. We found that repression of trichomes in the proximal posterior region of the T2 femur by Ubx is likely mediated by activation of the expression of microRNA-92a and microRNA-92b by this Hox protein. Furthermore, we identified a novel enhancer of Ubx that recapitulates the temporal and regional activity of this gene in T2 and T3 legs. We then used transcription factor (TF) binding motif analysis in regions of accessible chromatin in T2 leg cells to predict and functionally test TFs that may regulate the Ubx leg enhancer. We also tested the role of the Ubx co-factors Homothorax (Hth) and Extradenticle (Exd) in T2 and T3 femurs. We found several TFs that may act upstream or in concert with Ubx to modulate trichome patterning along the proximo-distal axis of developing femurs and that the repression of trichomes also requires Hth and Exd. Taken together our results provide insights into how Ubx is integrated into a post-embryonic gene regulatory network to determine fine-scale leg morphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra D. Buffry
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Sebastian Kittelmann
- Centre for Functional Genomics, Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Alistair P. McGregor
- Department of Biosciences, Durham University, Durham, United Kingdom,*Correspondence: Alistair P. McGregor,
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Hu Z, Yu X, Chen P, Jin K, Zhou J, Wang G, Yu J, Wu T, Wang Y, Lin F, Zhang T, Wang Y, Zhao X. BDNF-TrkB signaling pathway-mediated microglial activation induces neuronal KCC2 downregulation contributing to dynamic allodynia following spared nerve injury. Mol Pain 2023; 19:17448069231185439. [PMID: 37321969 PMCID: PMC10402286 DOI: 10.1177/17448069231185439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2022] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Mechanical allodynia can be evoked by punctate pressure contact with the skin (punctate mechanical allodynia) and dynamic contact stimulation induced by gentle touching of the skin (dynamic mechanical allodynia). Dynamic allodynia is insensitive to morphine treatment and is transmitted through the spinal dorsal horn by a specific neuronal pathway, which is different from that for punctate allodynia, leading to difficulties in clinical treatment. K+-Cl- cotransporter-2 (KCC2) is one of the major determinants of inhibitory efficiency, and the inhibitory system in the spinal cord is important in the regulation of neuropathic pain. The aim of the current study was to determine whether neuronal KCC2 is involved in the induction of dynamic allodynia and to identify underlying spinal mechanisms involved in this process. Dynamic and punctate allodynia were assessed using either von Frey filaments or a paint brush in a spared nerve injury (SNI) mouse model. Our study discovered that the downregulated neuronal membrane KCC2 (mKCC2) in the spinal dorsal horn of SNI mice is closely associated with SNI-induced dynamic allodynia, as the prevention of KCC2 downregulation significantly suppressed the induction of dynamic allodynia. The over activation of microglia in the spinal dorsal horn after SNI was at least one of the triggers in SNI-induced mKCC2 reduction and dynamic allodynia, as these effects were blocked by the inhibition of microglial activation. Finally, the BDNF-TrkB pathway mediated by activated microglial affected SNI-induced dynamic allodynia through neuronal KCC2 downregulation. Overall, our findings revealed that activation of microglia through the BDNF-TrkB pathway affected neuronal KCC2 downregulation, contributing to dynamic allodynia induction in an SNI mouse model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zihan Hu
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Xinren Yu
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Pei Chen
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Keyu Jin
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Jing Zhou
- Department of Neurology, Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Rehabilitation Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, Shenzhen, China
| | - Guoxiang Wang
- Department of Neurology, Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jiangning Yu
- Department of Neurology, Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Tong Wu
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Yulong Wang
- Rehabilitation Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, Shenzhen, China
| | - Fuqing Lin
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Tingting Zhang
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Yun Wang
- Department of Neurology, Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xuan Zhao
- Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai tenth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
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9
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McDonald JMC, Reed RD. Patterns of selection across gene regulatory networks. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2022; 145:60-67. [PMID: 35474149 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2022.03.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) are the core engine of organismal development. If we would like to understand the origin and diversification of phenotypes, it is necessary to consider the structure of GRNs in order to reconstruct the links between genetic mutations and phenotypic change. Much of the progress in evolutionary developmental biology, however, has occurred without a nuanced consideration of the evolution of functional relationships between genes, especially in the context of their broader network interactions. Characterizing and comparing GRNs across traits and species in a more detailed way will allow us to determine how network position influences what genes drive adaptive evolution. In this perspective paper, we consider the architecture of developmental GRNs and how positive selection strength may vary across a GRN. We then propose several testable models for these patterns of selection and experimental approaches to test these models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanne M C McDonald
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States.
| | - Robert D Reed
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States.
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10
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Auer TO, Shahandeh MP, Benton R. Drosophila sechellia: A Genetic Model for Behavioral Evolution and Neuroecology. Annu Rev Genet 2021; 55:527-554. [PMID: 34530638 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-genet-071719-020719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Defining the mechanisms by which animals adapt to their ecological niche is an important problem bridging evolution, genetics, and neurobiology. We review the establishment of a powerful genetic model for comparative behavioral analysis and neuroecology, Drosophila sechellia. This island-endemic fly species is closely related to several cosmopolitan generalists, including Drosophila melanogaster, but has evolved extreme specialism, feeding and reproducing exclusively on the noni fruit of the tropical shrub Morinda citrifolia. We first describe the development and use of genetic approaches to facilitate genotype/phenotype associations in these drosophilids. Next, we survey the behavioral, physiological, and morphological adaptations of D. sechellia throughout its life cycle and outline our current understanding of the genetic and cellular basis of these traits. Finally, we discuss the principles this knowledge begins to establish in the context of host specialization, speciation, and the neurobiology of behavioral evolution and consider open questions and challenges in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas O Auer
- Center for Integrative Genomics, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; , ,
| | - Michael P Shahandeh
- Center for Integrative Genomics, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; , ,
| | - Richard Benton
- Center for Integrative Genomics, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; , ,
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11
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Finet C, Kassner VA, Carvalho AB, Chung H, Day JP, Day S, Delaney EK, De Ré FC, Dufour HD, Dupim E, Izumitani HF, Gautério TB, Justen J, Katoh T, Kopp A, Koshikawa S, Longdon B, Loreto EL, Nunes MDS, Raja KKB, Rebeiz M, Ritchie MG, Saakyan G, Sneddon T, Teramoto M, Tyukmaeva V, Vanderlinde T, Wey EE, Werner T, Williams TM, Robe LJ, Toda MJ, Marlétaz F. DrosoPhyla: Resources for Drosophilid Phylogeny and Systematics. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab179. [PMID: 34343293 PMCID: PMC8382681 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/01/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster is a pivotal model for invertebrate development, genetics, physiology, neuroscience, and disease. The whole family Drosophilidae, which contains over 4,400 species, offers a plethora of cases for comparative and evolutionary studies. Despite a long history of phylogenetic inference, many relationships remain unresolved among the genera, subgenera, and species groups in the Drosophilidae. To clarify these relationships, we first developed a set of new genomic markers and assembled a multilocus data set of 17 genes from 704 species of Drosophilidae. We then inferred a species tree with highly supported groups for this family. Additionally, we were able to determine the phylogenetic position of some previously unplaced species. These results establish a new framework for investigating the evolution of traits in fruit flies, as well as valuable resources for systematics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cédric Finet
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Laboratory of Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
| | - Victoria A Kassner
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Laboratory of Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
| | - Antonio B Carvalho
- Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Henry Chung
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, USA
| | - Jonathan P Day
- Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Stephanie Day
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, USA
| | - Emily K Delaney
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, USA
| | - Francine C De Ré
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade Animal, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Héloïse D Dufour
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Laboratory of Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
| | - Eduardo Dupim
- Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Hiroyuki F Izumitani
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Thaísa B Gautério
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Jessa Justen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Laboratory of Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
| | - Toru Katoh
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Artyom Kopp
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, USA
| | - Shigeyuki Koshikawa
- The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research and Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Japan
| | - Ben Longdon
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
| | - Elgion L Loreto
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade Animal, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Maria D S Nunes
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom
- Centre for Functional Genomics, Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom
| | - Komal K B Raja
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, USA
| | - Mark Rebeiz
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, USA
| | | | - Gayane Saakyan
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, USA
| | - Tanya Sneddon
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, United Kingdom
| | - Machiko Teramoto
- The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research and Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Japan
| | | | - Thyago Vanderlinde
- Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Emily E Wey
- Department of Biology, University of Dayton, USA
| | - Thomas Werner
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, USA
| | | | - Lizandra J Robe
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade Animal, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Masanori J Toda
- Hokkaido University Museum, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Ferdinand Marlétaz
- Centre for Life’s Origins and Evolution, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, United Kingdom
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12
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Buchberger E, Bilen A, Ayaz S, Salamanca D, Matas de las Heras C, Niksic A, Almudi I, Torres-Oliva M, Casares F, Posnien N. Variation in Pleiotropic Hub Gene Expression Is Associated with Interspecific Differences in Head Shape and Eye Size in Drosophila. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:1924-1942. [PMID: 33386848 PMCID: PMC8097299 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msaa335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Revealing the mechanisms underlying the breathtaking morphological diversity observed in nature is a major challenge in Biology. It has been established that recurrent mutations in hotspot genes cause the repeated evolution of morphological traits, such as body pigmentation or the gain and loss of structures. To date, however, it remains elusive whether hotspot genes contribute to natural variation in the size and shape of organs. As natural variation in head morphology is pervasive in Drosophila, we studied the molecular and developmental basis of differences in compound eye size and head shape in two closely related Drosophila species. We show differences in the progression of retinal differentiation between species and we applied comparative transcriptomics and chromatin accessibility data to identify the GATA transcription factor Pannier (Pnr) as central factor associated with these differences. Although the genetic manipulation of Pnr affected multiple aspects of dorsal head development, the effect of natural variation is restricted to a subset of the phenotypic space. We present data suggesting that this developmental constraint is caused by the coevolution of expression of pnr and its cofactor u-shaped (ush). We propose that natural variation in expression or function of highly connected developmental regulators with pleiotropic functions is a major driver for morphological evolution and we discuss implications on gene regulatory network evolution. In comparison to previous findings, our data strongly suggest that evolutionary hotspots are not the only contributors to the repeated evolution of eye size and head shape in Drosophila.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Buchberger
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Anıl Bilen
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sanem Ayaz
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - David Salamanca
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Present address: Department of Integrative Zoology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Armin Niksic
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Isabel Almudi
- CABD (CSIC/UPO/JA), DMC2 Unit, Pablo de Olavide University Campus, Seville, Spain
| | - Montserrat Torres-Oliva
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Present address: Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany
| | - Fernando Casares
- CABD (CSIC/UPO/JA), DMC2 Unit, Pablo de Olavide University Campus, Seville, Spain
| | - Nico Posnien
- Department of Developmental Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Corresponding author: E-mail:
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13
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Al Hayek S, Alsawadi A, Kambris Z, Boquete JP, Bohère J, Immarigeon C, Ronsin B, Plaza S, Lemaitre B, Payre F, Osman D. Steroid-dependent switch of OvoL/Shavenbaby controls self-renewal versus differentiation of intestinal stem cells. EMBO J 2021; 40:e104347. [PMID: 33372708 PMCID: PMC7883054 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2019104347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2019] [Revised: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Adult stem cells must continuously fine-tune their behavior to regenerate damaged organs and avoid tumors. While several signaling pathways are well known to regulate somatic stem cells, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unexplored. Here, we demonstrate a cell-intrinsic role for the OvoL family transcription factor, Shavenbaby (Svb), in balancing self-renewal and differentiation of Drosophila intestinal stem cells. We find that svb is a downstream target of Wnt and EGFR pathways, mediating their activity for stem cell survival and proliferation. This requires post-translational processing of Svb into a transcriptional activator, whose upregulation induces tumor-like stem cell hyperproliferation. In contrast, the unprocessed form of Svb acts as a repressor that imposes differentiation into enterocytes, and suppresses tumors induced by altered signaling. We show that the switch between Svb repressor and activator is triggered in response to systemic steroid hormone, which is produced by ovaries. Therefore, the Svb axis allows intrinsic integration of local signaling cues and inter-organ communication to adjust stem cell proliferation versus differentiation, suggesting a broad role of OvoL/Svb in adult and cancer stem cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandy Al Hayek
- Faculty of Sciences III, Lebanese University, Tripoli, Lebanon.,Azm Center for Research in Biotechnology and its Applications, LBA3B, EDST, Lebanese University, Tripoli, Lebanon.,Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Ahmad Alsawadi
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Zakaria Kambris
- Biology Department, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
| | | | - Jérôme Bohère
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Clément Immarigeon
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Brice Ronsin
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Serge Plaza
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Bruno Lemaitre
- Global Health Institute, School of Life Sciences, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - François Payre
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, France
| | - Dani Osman
- Faculty of Sciences III, Lebanese University, Tripoli, Lebanon.,Azm Center for Research in Biotechnology and its Applications, LBA3B, EDST, Lebanese University, Tripoli, Lebanon
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14
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Kittelmann S, Preger-Ben Noon E, McGregor AP, Frankel N. A complex gene regulatory architecture underlies the development and evolution of cuticle morphology in Drosophila. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2021; 69:21-27. [PMID: 33529925 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2021.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Revised: 12/18/2020] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
The cuticle of insects is decorated with non-sensory hairs called trichomes. A few Drosophila species independently lost most of the dorso-lateral trichomes on first instar larvae. Genetic experiments revealed that this naked cuticle phenotype was caused by the evolution of enhancer function at the ovo/shavenbaby (ovo/svb) locus. Here we explore how this discovery catalyzed major new insights into morphological evolution in different developmental contexts, enhancer pleiotropy in gene regulation and the functionality and evolution of the Svb gene regulatory network (GRN). Taken together this highlights the importance of understanding the architecture and evolution of gene regulatory networks in detail and the great potential for further study of the Svb GRN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Kittelmann
- Centre for Functional Genomics, Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, United Kingdom
| | - Ella Preger-Ben Noon
- Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, The Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and Research Institute, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3109601, Israel
| | - Alistair P McGregor
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, United Kingdom
| | - Nicolás Frankel
- Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE, CONICET-UBA), Buenos Aires 1428, Argentina; Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución (FCEyN, UBA), Buenos Aires 1428, Argentina.
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15
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Soverna AF, Rodriguez NC, Korgaonkar A, Hasson E, Stern DL, Frankel N. Cis-regulatory variation in the shavenbaby gene underlies intraspecific phenotypic variation, mirroring interspecific divergence in the same trait. Evolution 2020; 75:427-436. [PMID: 33314059 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Despite considerable progress in recent decades in dissecting the genetic causes of natural morphological variation, there is limited understanding of how variation within species ultimately contributes to species differences. We have studied patterning of the non-sensory hairs, commonly known as "trichomes," on the dorsal cuticle of first-instar larvae of Drosophila. Most Drosophila species produce a dense lawn of dorsal trichomes, but a subset of these trichomes were lost in D. sechellia and D. ezoana due entirely to regulatory evolution of the shavenbaby (svb) gene. Here, we describe intraspecific variation in dorsal trichome patterns of first-instar larvae of D. virilis that is similar to the trichome pattern variation identified previously between species. We found that a single large effect QTL, which includes svb, explains most of the trichome number difference between two D. virilis strains and that svb expression correlates with the trichome difference between strains. This QTL does not explain the entire difference between strains, implying that additional loci contribute to variation in trichome numbers. Thus, the genetic architecture of intraspecific variation exhibits similarities and differences with interspecific variation that may reflect differences in long-term and short-term evolutionary processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Faigon Soverna
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA, CONICET-UBA), Buenos Aires, 1417, Argentina
| | - Nahuel Cabrera Rodriguez
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución (FCEyN, UBA) and Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA, CONICET-UBA), Buenos Aires, 1428, Argentina
| | - Aishwarya Korgaonkar
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA
| | - Esteban Hasson
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución (FCEyN, UBA) and Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA, CONICET-UBA), Buenos Aires, 1428, Argentina
| | - David L Stern
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA
| | - Nicolás Frankel
- Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE, CONICET-UBA) and Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución (FCEyN, UBA), Buenos Aires, 1428, Argentina
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16
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Hughes JT, Williams ME, Johnson R, Grover S, Rebeiz M, Williams TM. Gene Regulatory Network Homoplasy Underlies Recurrent Sexually Dimorphic Fruit Fly Pigmentation. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.00080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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17
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Pischedda A, Shahandeh MP, Turner TL. The Loci of Behavioral Evolution: Evidence That Fas2 and tilB Underlie Differences in Pupation Site Choice Behavior between Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans. Mol Biol Evol 2020; 37:864-880. [PMID: 31774527 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msz274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The behaviors of closely related species can be remarkably different, and these differences have important ecological and evolutionary consequences. Although the recent boom in genotype-phenotype studies has led to a greater understanding of the genetic architecture and evolution of a variety of traits, studies identifying the genetic basis of behaviors are, comparatively, still lacking. This is likely because they are complex and environmentally sensitive phenotypes, making them difficult to measure reliably for association studies. The Drosophila species complex holds promise for addressing these challenges, as the behaviors of closely related species can be readily assayed in a common environment. Here, we investigate the genetic basis of an evolved behavioral difference, pupation site choice, between Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans. In this study, we demonstrate a significant contribution of the X chromosome to the difference in pupation site choice behavior between these species. Using a panel of X-chromosome deficiencies, we screened the majority of the X chromosome for causal loci and identified two regions associated with this X-effect. We then collect gene disruption and RNAi data supporting a single gene that affects pupation behavior within each region: Fas2 and tilB. Finally, we show that differences in tilB expression correlate with the differences in pupation site choice behavior between species. This evidence associating two genes with differences in a complex, environmentally sensitive behavior represents the first step toward a functional and evolutionary understanding of this behavioral divergence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison Pischedda
- Department of Biology, Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY
| | - Michael P Shahandeh
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA
| | - Thomas L Turner
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA
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18
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Kowalko J. Utilizing the blind cavefish Astyanax mexicanus to understand the genetic basis of behavioral evolution. J Exp Biol 2020; 223:223/Suppl_1/jeb208835. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.208835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Colonization of novel habitats often results in the evolution of diverse behaviors. Comparisons between individuals from closely related populations that have evolved divergent behaviors in different environments can be used to investigate behavioral evolution. However, until recently, functionally connecting genotypes to behavioral phenotypes in these evolutionarily relevant organisms has been difficult. The development of gene editing tools will facilitate functional genetic analysis of genotype–phenotype connections in virtually any organism, and has the potential to significantly transform the field of behavioral genetics when applied to ecologically and evolutionarily relevant organisms. The blind cavefish Astyanax mexicanus provides a remarkable example of evolution associated with colonization of a novel habitat. These fish consist of a single species that includes sighted surface fish that inhabit the rivers of Mexico and southern Texas and at least 29 populations of blind cavefish from the Sierra Del Abra and Sierra de Guatemala regions of Northeast Mexico. Although eye loss and albinism have been studied extensively in A. mexicanus, derived behavioral traits including sleep loss, alterations in foraging and reduction in social behaviors are now also being investigated in this species to understand the genetic and neural basis of behavioral evolution. Astyanax mexicanus has emerged as a powerful model system for genotype–phenotype mapping because surface and cavefish are interfertile. Further, the molecular basis of repeated trait evolution can be examined in this species, as multiple cave populations have independently evolved the same traits. A sequenced genome and the implementation of gene editing in A. mexicanus provides a platform for gene discovery and identification of the contributions of naturally occurring variation to behaviors. This review describes the current knowledge of behavioral evolution in A. mexicanus with an emphasis on the molecular and genetic underpinnings of evolved behaviors. Multiple avenues of new research that can be pursued using gene editing tools are identified, and how these will enhance our understanding of behavioral evolution is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Kowalko
- Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
- Program of Neurogenetics, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
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19
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Xu W, Long L, Zhao Y, Stevens L, Felipe I, Munoz J, Ellis RE, McGrath PT. Evolution of Yin and Yang isoforms of a chromatin remodeling subunit precedes the creation of two genes. eLife 2019; 8:e48119. [PMID: 31498079 PMCID: PMC6752949 DOI: 10.7554/elife.48119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2019] [Accepted: 09/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Genes can encode multiple isoforms, broadening their functions and providing a molecular substrate to evolve phenotypic diversity. Evolution of isoform function is a potential route to adapt to new environments. Here we show that de novo, beneficial alleles in the nurf-1 gene became fixed in two laboratory lineages of C. elegans after isolation from the wild in 1951, before methods of cryopreservation were developed. nurf-1 encodes an ortholog of BPTF, a large (>300 kD) multidomain subunit of the NURF chromatin remodeling complex. Using CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing and transgenic rescue, we demonstrate that in C. elegans, nurf-1 has split into two, largely non-overlapping isoforms (NURF-1.D and NURF-1.B, which we call Yin and Yang, respectively) that share only two of 26 exons. Both isoforms are essential for normal gametogenesis but have opposite effects on male/female gamete differentiation. Reproduction in hermaphrodites, which involves production of both sperm and oocytes, requires a balance of these opposing Yin and Yang isoforms. Transgenic rescue and genetic position of the fixed mutations suggest that different isoforms are modified in each laboratory strain. In a related clade of Caenorhabditis nematodes, the shared exons have duplicated, resulting in the split of the Yin and Yang isoforms into separate genes, each containing approximately 200 amino acids of duplicated sequence that has undergone accelerated protein evolution following the duplication. Associated with this duplication event is the loss of two additional nurf-1 transcripts, including the long-form transcript and a newly identified, highly expressed transcript encoded by the duplicated exons. We propose these lost transcripts are non-functional side products necessary to transcribe the Yin and Yang transcripts in the same cells. Our work demonstrates how gene sharing, through the production of multiple isoforms, can precede the creation of new, independent genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Xu
- School of Biological SciencesGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
| | - Lijiang Long
- School of Biological SciencesGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Quantitative BiosciencesGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
| | - Yuehui Zhao
- School of Biological SciencesGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
| | - Lewis Stevens
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, Ashworth Laboratories, School of Biological SciencesUniversity of EdinburghEdinburghUnited Kingdom
| | - Irene Felipe
- Epithelial Carcinogenesis GroupSpanish National Cancer Research Center-CNIOMadridSpain
| | - Javier Munoz
- Proteomics Unit-ProteoRed-ISCIIISpanish National Cancer Research Center-CNIOMadridSpain
| | - Ronald E Ellis
- Department of Molecular BiologyRowan University School of Osteopathic MedicineStratfordUnited States
| | - Patrick T McGrath
- School of Biological SciencesGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
- Parker H. Petit Institute of Bioengineering and BioscienceGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
- School of PhysicsGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUnited States
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20
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Kuang MC, Kominek J, Alexander WG, Cheng JF, Wrobel RL, Hittinger CT. Repeated Cis-Regulatory Tuning of a Metabolic Bottleneck Gene during Evolution. Mol Biol Evol 2019; 35:1968-1981. [PMID: 29788479 PMCID: PMC6063270 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msy102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Repeated evolutionary events imply underlying genetic constraints that can make evolutionary mechanisms predictable. Morphological traits are thought to evolve frequently through cis-regulatory changes because these mechanisms bypass constraints in pleiotropic genes that are reused during development. In contrast, the constraints acting on metabolic traits during evolution are less well studied. Here we show how a metabolic bottleneck gene has repeatedly adopted similar cis-regulatory solutions during evolution, likely due to its pleiotropic role integrating flux from multiple metabolic pathways. Specifically, the genes encoding phosphoglucomutase activity (PGM1/PGM2), which connect GALactose catabolism to glycolysis, have gained and lost direct regulation by the transcription factor Gal4 several times during yeast evolution. Through targeted mutations of predicted Gal4-binding sites in yeast genomes, we show this galactose-mediated regulation of PGM1/2 supports vigorous growth on galactose in multiple yeast species, including Saccharomyces uvarum and Lachancea kluyveri. Furthermore, the addition of galactose-inducible PGM1 alone is sufficient to improve the growth on galactose of multiple species that lack this regulation, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The strong association between regulation of PGM1/2 by Gal4 even enables remarkably accurate predictions of galactose growth phenotypes between closely related species. This repeated mode of evolution suggests that this specific cis-regulatory connection is a common way that diverse yeasts can govern flux through the pathway, likely due to the constraints imposed by this pleiotropic bottleneck gene. Since metabolic pathways are highly interconnected, we argue that cis-regulatory evolution might be widespread at pleiotropic genes that control metabolic bottlenecks and intersections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meihua Christina Kuang
- Laboratory of Genetics, Genome Center of Wisconsin, J. F. Crow Institute for the Study of Evolution, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,Graduate Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
| | - Jacek Kominek
- Laboratory of Genetics, Genome Center of Wisconsin, J. F. Crow Institute for the Study of Evolution, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
| | - William G Alexander
- Laboratory of Genetics, Genome Center of Wisconsin, J. F. Crow Institute for the Study of Evolution, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
| | | | - Russell L Wrobel
- Laboratory of Genetics, Genome Center of Wisconsin, J. F. Crow Institute for the Study of Evolution, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
| | - Chris Todd Hittinger
- Laboratory of Genetics, Genome Center of Wisconsin, J. F. Crow Institute for the Study of Evolution, Wisconsin Energy Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,Graduate Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.,DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
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21
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Ray S, Rosenberg MI, Chanut-Delalande H, Decaras A, Schwertner B, Toubiana W, Auman T, Schnellhammer I, Teuscher M, Valenti P, Khila A, Klingler M, Payre F. The mlpt/Ubr3/Svb module comprises an ancient developmental switch for embryonic patterning. eLife 2019; 8:e39748. [PMID: 30896406 PMCID: PMC6428570 DOI: 10.7554/elife.39748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Small open reading frames (smORFs) encoding 'micropeptides' exhibit remarkable evolutionary complexity. Conserved peptides encoded by mille-pattes (mlpt)/polished rice (pri)/tarsal less (tal) are essential for embryo segmentation in Tribolium but, in Drosophila, function in terminal epidermal differentiation and patterning of adult legs. Here, we show that a molecular complex identified in Drosophila epidermal differentiation, comprising Mlpt peptides, ubiquitin-ligase Ubr3 and transcription factor Shavenbaby (Svb), represents an ancient developmental module required for early insect embryo patterning. We find that loss of segmentation function for this module in flies evolved concomitantly with restriction of Svb expression in early Drosophila embryos. Consistent with this observation, artificially restoring early Svb expression in flies causes segmentation defects that depend on mlpt function, demonstrating enduring potency of an ancestral developmental switch despite evolving embryonic patterning modes. These results highlight the evolutionary plasticity of conserved molecular complexes under the constraints of essential genetic networks. Editorial note This article has been through an editorial process in which the authors decide how to respond to the issues raised during peer review. The Reviewing Editor's assessment is that all the issues have been addressed (see decision letter).
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Affiliation(s)
- Suparna Ray
- Department of Biology, Developmental BiologyUniversity of Erlangen-NurembergErlangenGermany
| | - Miriam I Rosenberg
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and BehaviorHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
| | | | | | - Barbara Schwertner
- Department of Biology, Developmental BiologyUniversity of Erlangen-NurembergErlangenGermany
| | | | - Tzach Auman
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and BehaviorHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
| | - Irene Schnellhammer
- Department of Biology, Developmental BiologyUniversity of Erlangen-NurembergErlangenGermany
| | - Matthias Teuscher
- Department of Biology, Developmental BiologyUniversity of Erlangen-NurembergErlangenGermany
| | - Philippe Valenti
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université Paul Sabatier de ToulouseToulouseFrance
| | | | - Martin Klingler
- Department of Biology, Developmental BiologyUniversity of Erlangen-NurembergErlangenGermany
| | - François Payre
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université Paul Sabatier de ToulouseToulouseFrance
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22
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Bohère J, Mancheno-Ferris A, Al Hayek S, Zanet J, Valenti P, Akino K, Yamabe Y, Inagaki S, Chanut-Delalande H, Plaza S, Kageyama Y, Osman D, Polesello C, Payre F. Shavenbaby and Yorkie mediate Hippo signaling to protect adult stem cells from apoptosis. Nat Commun 2018; 9:5123. [PMID: 30504772 PMCID: PMC6269459 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-07569-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 11/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
To compensate for accumulating damages and cell death, adult homeostasis (e.g., body fluids and secretion) requires organ regeneration, operated by long-lived stem cells. How stem cells can survive throughout the animal life remains poorly understood. Here we show that the transcription factor Shavenbaby (Svb, OvoL in vertebrates) is expressed in renal/nephric stem cells (RNSCs) of Drosophila and required for their maintenance during adulthood. As recently shown in embryos, Svb function in adult RNSCs further needs a post-translational processing mediated by the Polished rice (Pri) smORF peptides and impairing Svb function leads to RNSC apoptosis. We show that Svb interacts both genetically and physically with Yorkie (YAP/TAZ in vertebrates), a nuclear effector of the Hippo pathway, to activate the expression of the inhibitor of apoptosis DIAP1. These data therefore identify Svb as a nuclear effector in the Hippo pathway, critical for the survival of adult somatic stem cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jérôme Bohère
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
| | - Alexandra Mancheno-Ferris
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
| | - Sandy Al Hayek
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
- Faculty of Sciences III, Lebanese University, Tripoli, 1300, Lebanon
- Azm Center for Research in Biotechnology and its Applications, LBA3B, EDST, Lebanese University, Tripoli, 1300, Lebanon
| | - Jennifer Zanet
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
| | - Philippe Valenti
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
| | - Kohsuke Akino
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan
| | - Yuya Yamabe
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan
| | - Sachi Inagaki
- Biosignal Research Center, Kobe University, 1-1 Rokko-dai, Nada, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan
| | - Hélène Chanut-Delalande
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
| | - Serge Plaza
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France
- Laboratoire de Recherche en Sciences Végétales (LSRV), CNRS, UPS, 24 chemin de Borde Rouge, Auzeville, 31326, Castanet-Tolosan, France
| | - Yuji Kageyama
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan
- Biosignal Research Center, Kobe University, 1-1 Rokko-dai, Nada, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan
| | - Dani Osman
- Faculty of Sciences III, Lebanese University, Tripoli, 1300, Lebanon
- Azm Center for Research in Biotechnology and its Applications, LBA3B, EDST, Lebanese University, Tripoli, 1300, Lebanon
| | - Cédric Polesello
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France.
| | - François Payre
- Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Bat 4R3, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062, Toulouse, France.
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23
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Faria VG, Martins NE, Schlötterer C, Sucena É. Readapting to DCV Infection without Wolbachia: Frequency Changes of Drosophila Antiviral Alleles Can Replace Endosymbiont Protection. Genome Biol Evol 2018; 10:1783-1791. [PMID: 29947761 PMCID: PMC6054199 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evy137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
There is now ample evidence that endosymbionts can contribute to host adaptation to environmental challenges. However, how endosymbiont presence affects the adaptive trajectory and outcome of the host is yet largely unexplored. In Drosophila, Wolbachia confers protection to RNA virus infection, an effect that differs between Wolbachia strains and can be targeted by selection. Adaptation to RNA virus infections is mediated by both Wolbachia and the host, raising the question of whether adaptive genetic changes in the host vary with the presence/absence of the endosymbiont. Here, we address this question using a polymorphic D. melanogaster population previously adapted to DCV infection for 35 generations in the presence of Wolbachia, from which we removed the endosymbiont and followed survival over the subsequent 20 generations of infection. After an initial severe drop, survival frequencies upon DCV selection increased significantly, as seen before in the presence of Wolbachia. Whole-genome sequencing, revealed that the major genes involved in the first selection experiment, pastrel and Ubc-E2H, continued to be selected in Wolbachia-free D. melanogaster, with the frequencies of protective alleles being closer to fixation in the absence of Wolbachia. Our results suggest that heterogeneity in Wolbachia infection status may be sufficient to maintain polymorphisms even in the absence of costs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vitor G Faria
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da quinta grande 6, 2780-156 Oeiras, Portugal.,Zoological Institute, Basel University, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Nelson E Martins
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da quinta grande 6, 2780-156 Oeiras, Portugal.,CNRS UPR9022, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Christian Schlötterer
- Institut für Populationsgenetik, Vetmeduni Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Wien, Austria
| | - Élio Sucena
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da quinta grande 6, 2780-156 Oeiras, Portugal.,Departamento de Biologia Animal, edifício C2, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
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Gene regulatory network architecture in different developmental contexts influences the genetic basis of morphological evolution. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007375. [PMID: 29723190 PMCID: PMC5953500 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2017] [Revised: 05/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/23/2018] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Convergent phenotypic evolution is often caused by recurrent changes at particular nodes in the underlying gene regulatory networks (GRNs). The genes at such evolutionary ‘hotspots’ are thought to maximally affect the phenotype with minimal pleiotropic consequences. This has led to the suggestion that if a GRN is understood in sufficient detail, the path of evolution may be predictable. The repeated evolutionary loss of larval trichomes among Drosophila species is caused by the loss of shavenbaby (svb) expression. svb is also required for development of leg trichomes, but the evolutionary gain of trichomes in the ‘naked valley’ on T2 femurs in Drosophila melanogaster is caused by reduced microRNA-92a (miR-92a) expression rather than changes in svb. We compared the expression and function of components between the larval and leg trichome GRNs to investigate why the genetic basis of trichome pattern evolution differs in these developmental contexts. We found key differences between the two networks in both the genes employed, and in the regulation and function of common genes. These differences in the GRNs reveal why mutations in svb are unlikely to contribute to leg trichome evolution and how instead miR-92a represents the key evolutionary switch in this context. Our work shows that variability in GRNs across different developmental contexts, as well as whether a morphological feature is lost versus gained, influence the nodes at which a GRN evolves to cause morphological change. Therefore, our findings have important implications for understanding the pathways and predictability of evolution. A major goal of biology is to identify the genetic causes of organismal diversity. Convergent evolution of traits is often caused by changes in the same genes–evolutionary ‘hotspots’. shavenbaby is a ‘hotspot’ for larval trichome loss in Drosophila, but microRNA-92a underlies the gain of leg trichomes. To understand this difference in the genetics of phenotypic evolution, we compared the expression and function of genes in the underlying regulatory networks. We found that the pathway of evolution is influenced by differences in gene regulatory network architecture in different developmental contexts, as well as by whether a trait is lost or gained. Therefore, hotspots in one context may not readily evolve in a different context. This has important implications for understanding the genetic basis of phenotypic change and the predictability of evolution.
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Uy JAC, Cooper EA, Cutie S, Concannon MR, Poelstra JW, Moyle RG, Filardi CE. Mutations in different pigmentation genes are associated with parallel melanism in island flycatchers. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 283:rspb.2016.0731. [PMID: 27412275 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The independent evolution of similar traits across multiple taxa provides some of the most compelling evidence of natural selection. Little is known, however, about the genetic basis of these convergent or parallel traits: are they mediated by identical or different mutations in the same genes, or unique mutations in different genes? Using a combination of candidate gene and reduced representation genomic sequencing approaches, we explore the genetic basis of and the evolutionary processes that mediate similar plumage colour shared by isolated populations of the Monarcha castaneiventris flycatcher of the Solomon Islands. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) that explicitly controlled for population structure revealed that mutations in known pigmentation genes are the best predictors of parallel plumage colour. That is, entirely black or melanic birds from one small island share an amino acid substitution in the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R), whereas similarly melanic birds from another small island over 100 km away share an amino acid substitution in a predicted binding site of agouti signalling protein (ASIP). A third larger island, which separates the two melanic populations, is inhabited by birds with chestnut bellies that lack the melanic MC1R and ASIP allelic variants. Formal FST outlier tests corroborated the results of the GWAS and suggested that strong, directional selection drives the near fixation of the MC1R and ASIP variants across islands. Our results, therefore, suggest that selection acting on different mutations with large phenotypic effects can drive the evolution of parallel melanism, despite the relatively small population size on islands.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Albert C Uy
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Cooper
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Stephen Cutie
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA
| | - Moira R Concannon
- Department of Biology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY 13244, USA Graduate Program in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Jelmer W Poelstra
- Department of Biology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY 13244, USA Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Robert G Moyle
- Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Christopher E Filardi
- Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
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26
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Single master regulatory gene coordinates the evolution and development of butterfly color and iridescence. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:10707-10712. [PMID: 28923944 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1709058114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The optix gene has been implicated in butterfly wing pattern adaptation by genetic association, mapping, and expression studies. The actual developmental function of this gene has remained unclear, however. Here we used CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing to show that optix plays a fundamental role in nymphalid butterfly wing pattern development, where it is required for determination of all chromatic coloration. optix knockouts in four species show complete replacement of color pigments with melanins, with corresponding changes in pigment-related gene expression, resulting in black and gray butterflies. We also show that optix simultaneously acts as a switch gene for blue structural iridescence in some butterflies, demonstrating simple regulatory coordination of structural and pigmentary coloration. Remarkably, these optix knockouts phenocopy the recurring "black and blue" wing pattern archetype that has arisen on many independent occasions in butterflies. Here we demonstrate a simple genetic basis for structural coloration, and show that optix plays a deeply conserved role in butterfly wing pattern development.
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27
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Pan JW, Li Q, Barish S, Okuwa S, Zhao S, Soeder C, Kanke M, Jones CD, Volkan PC. Patterns of transcriptional parallelism and variation in the developing olfactory system of Drosophila species. Sci Rep 2017; 7:8804. [PMID: 28821769 PMCID: PMC5562767 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-08563-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Accepted: 07/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Organisms have evolved strikingly parallel phenotypes in response to similar selection pressures suggesting that there may be shared constraints limiting the possible evolutionary trajectories. For example, the behavioral adaptation of specialist Drosophila species to specific host plants can exhibit parallel changes in their adult olfactory neuroanatomy. We investigated the genetic basis of these parallel changes by comparing gene expression during the development of the olfactory system of two specialist Drosophila species to that of four other generalist species. Our results suggest that the parallelism observed in the adult olfactory neuroanatomy of ecological specialists extends more broadly to their developmental antennal expression profiles, and to the transcription factor combinations specifying olfactory receptor neuron (ORN) fates. Additionally, comparing general patterns of variation for the antennal transcriptional profiles in the adult and developing olfactory system of the six species suggest the possibility that specific, non-random components of the developmental programs underlying the Drosophila olfactory system harbor a disproportionate amount of interspecies variation. Further examination of these developmental components may be able to inform a deeper understanding of how traits evolve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia Wern Pan
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Qingyun Li
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Scott Barish
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Sumie Okuwa
- Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Songhui Zhao
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Charles Soeder
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Matthew Kanke
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Corbin D Jones
- Department of Biology and Integrative Program for Biological & Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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28
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Abstract
A large body of evidence indicates that genome annotation pipelines have biased our view of coding sequences because they generally undersample small proteins and peptides. The recent development of genome-wide translation profiling reveals the prevalence of small/short open reading frames (smORFs or sORFs), which are scattered over all classes of transcripts, including both mRNAs and presumptive long noncoding RNAs. Proteomic approaches further confirm an unexpected variety of smORF-encoded peptides (SEPs), representing an overlooked reservoir of bioactive molecules. Indeed, functional studies in a broad range of species from yeast to humans demonstrate that SEPs can harbor key activities for the control of development, differentiation, and physiology. Here we summarize recent advances in the discovery and functional characterization of smORF/SEPs and discuss why these small players can no longer be ignored with regard to genome function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serge Plaza
- Laboratoire de Recherches en Sciences Végétales, Université de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, 31326 Castanet Tolosan, France; .,CNRS, UMR5546, Laboratoire de Recherches en Sciences Végétales, 31326 Castanet Tolosan, France
| | - Gerben Menschaert
- Department of Mathematical Modeling, Statistics and Bioinformatics, University of Ghent, 9000 Gent, Belgium
| | - François Payre
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Centre de Biologie Intégrative, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Université Paul Sabatier, 31062 Toulouse, France;
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29
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Rebeiz M, Tsiantis M. Enhancer evolution and the origins of morphological novelty. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2017; 45:115-123. [PMID: 28527813 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2017.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2016] [Revised: 03/25/2017] [Accepted: 04/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
A central goal of evolutionary biology is to understand the genetic origin of morphological novelties-i.e. anatomical structures unique to a taxonomic group. Elaboration of morphology during development depends on networks of regulatory genes that activate patterned gene expression through transcriptional enhancer regions. We summarize recent case studies and genome-wide investigations that have uncovered diverse mechanisms though which new enhancers arise. We also discuss how these enhancer-originating mechanisms have clarified the history of genetic networks underlying diversification of genital structures in flies, limbs and neural crest in chordates, and plant leaves. These studies have identified enhancers that were pivotal for morphological divergence and highlighted how novel genetic networks shaping form emerged from pre-existing ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Rebeiz
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, 4249 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15215, USA.
| | - Miltos Tsiantis
- Department of Comparative Development and Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Carl-von-Linne-Weg 10, 50829 Köln, Germany.
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30
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Greene JS, Dobosiewicz M, Butcher RA, McGrath PT, Bargmann CI. Regulatory changes in two chemoreceptor genes contribute to a Caenorhabditis elegans QTL for foraging behavior. eLife 2016; 5. [PMID: 27893361 PMCID: PMC5125752 DOI: 10.7554/elife.21454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2016] [Accepted: 11/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural isolates of C. elegans differ in their sensitivity to pheromones that inhibit exploratory behavior. Previous studies identified a QTL for pheromone sensitivity that includes alternative alleles of srx-43, a chemoreceptor that inhibits exploration through its activity in ASI sensory neurons. Here we show that the QTL is multigenic and includes alternative alleles of srx-44, a second chemoreceptor gene that modifies pheromone sensitivity. srx-44 either promotes or inhibits exploration depending on its expression in the ASJ or ADL sensory neurons, respectively. Naturally occurring pheromone insensitivity results in part from previously described changes in srx-43 expression levels, and in part from increased srx-44 expression in ASJ, which antagonizes ASI and ADL. Antagonism between the sensory neurons results in cellular epistasis that is reflected in their transcription of insulin genes that regulate exploration. These results and genome-wide evidence suggest that chemoreceptor genes may be preferred sites of adaptive variation in C. elegans. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.21454.001
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua S Greene
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Lulu and Anthony Wang Laboratory of Neural Circuits and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, United States
| | - May Dobosiewicz
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Lulu and Anthony Wang Laboratory of Neural Circuits and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, United States
| | - Rebecca A Butcher
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Patrick T McGrath
- Department of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, United States
| | - Cornelia I Bargmann
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Lulu and Anthony Wang Laboratory of Neural Circuits and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, United States
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31
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Preger-Ben Noon E, Davis FP, Stern DL. Evolved Repression Overcomes Enhancer Robustness. Dev Cell 2016; 39:572-584. [PMID: 27840106 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2016.10.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2016] [Revised: 07/26/2016] [Accepted: 10/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Biological systems display extraordinary robustness. Robustness of transcriptional enhancers results mainly from clusters of binding sites for the same transcription factor, and it is not clear how robust enhancers can evolve loss of expression through point mutations. Here, we report the high-resolution functional dissection of a robust enhancer of the shavenbaby gene that has contributed to morphological evolution. We found that robustness is encoded by many binding sites for the transcriptional activator Arrowhead and that, during evolution, some of these activator sites were lost, weakening enhancer activity. Complete silencing of enhancer function, however, required evolution of a binding site for the spatially restricted potent repressor Abrupt. These findings illustrate that recruitment of repressor binding sites can overcome enhancer robustness and may minimize pleiotropic consequences of enhancer evolution. Recruitment of repression may be a general mode of evolution to break robust regulatory linkages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ella Preger-Ben Noon
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA 20147, USA.
| | - Fred P Davis
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA 20147, USA
| | - David L Stern
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA 20147, USA.
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32
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Buffry AD, Mendes CC, McGregor AP. The Functionality and Evolution of Eukaryotic Transcriptional Enhancers. ADVANCES IN GENETICS 2016; 96:143-206. [PMID: 27968730 DOI: 10.1016/bs.adgen.2016.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Enhancers regulate precise spatial and temporal patterns of gene expression in eukaryotes and, moreover, evolutionary changes in these modular cis-regulatory elements may represent the predominant genetic basis for phenotypic evolution. Here, we review approaches to identify and functionally analyze enhancers and their transcription factor binding sites, including assay for transposable-accessible chromatin-sequencing (ATAC-Seq) and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9, respectively. We also explore enhancer functionality, including how transcription factor binding sites combine to regulate transcription, as well as research on shadow and super enhancers, and how enhancers can act over great distances and even in trans. Finally, we discuss recent theoretical and empirical data on how transcription factor binding sites and enhancers evolve. This includes how the function of enhancers is maintained despite the turnover of transcription factor binding sites as well as reviewing studies where mutations in enhancers have been shown to underlie morphological change.
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Affiliation(s)
- A D Buffry
- Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - C C Mendes
- Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - A P McGregor
- Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom
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Abstract
Fruit flies of the genus Drosophila have been an attractive and effective genetic model organism since Thomas Hunt Morgan and colleagues made seminal discoveries with them a century ago. Work with Drosophila has enabled dramatic advances in cell and developmental biology, neurobiology and behavior, molecular biology, evolutionary and population genetics, and other fields. With more tissue types and observable behaviors than in other short-generation model organisms, and with vast genome data available for many species within the genus, the fly's tractable complexity will continue to enable exciting opportunities to explore mechanisms of complex developmental programs, behaviors, and broader evolutionary questions. This primer describes the organism's natural history, the features of sequenced genomes within the genus, the wide range of available genetic tools and online resources, the types of biological questions Drosophila can help address, and historical milestones.
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Chaves JA, Cooper EA, Hendry AP, Podos J, De León LF, Raeymaekers JAM, MacMillan W, Uy JAC. Genomic variation at the tips of the adaptive radiation of Darwin's finches. Mol Ecol 2016; 25:5282-5295. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.13743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2015] [Revised: 06/27/2016] [Accepted: 06/28/2016] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jaime A. Chaves
- Department of Biology; University of Miami; Coral Gables FL 33146 USA
- Universidad San Francisco de Quito, USFQ; Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales; y Extensión Galápagos Campus Cumbayá Quito Ecuador
| | - Elizabeth A. Cooper
- Department of Biology; University of Miami; Coral Gables FL 33146 USA
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry; Clemson University; Clemson SC 29634 USA
| | - Andrew P. Hendry
- Redpath Museum; Department of Biology; McGill University; Montréal QC Canada
| | - Jeffrey Podos
- Department of Biology; University of Massachusetts Amherst; Amherst MA 01003 USA
| | - Luis F. De León
- Centro de Biodiversidad y Descubrimiento de Drogas; Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Servicios de Alta Tecnología (INDICASAT-AIP); Ciudad del Saber Panama Panama
- Department of Biology; University of Massachusetts Boston; 100 Morrissey Blvd Boston MA 02125 USA
| | - Joost A. M. Raeymaekers
- Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics; University of Leuven; B-3000 Leuven Belgium
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics; Department of Biology; Norwegian University of Science and Technology; N-7491 Trondheim Norway
| | | | - J. Albert C. Uy
- Department of Biology; University of Miami; Coral Gables FL 33146 USA
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35
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Schmidt-Ott U, Lynch JA. Emerging developmental genetic model systems in holometabolous insects. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2016; 39:116-128. [PMID: 27399647 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2016.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2016] [Revised: 05/25/2016] [Accepted: 06/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The number of insect species that are amenable to functional genetic studies is growing rapidly and provides many new research opportunities in developmental and evolutionary biology. The holometabolous insects represent a disproportionate percentage of animal diversity and are thus well positioned to provide model species for a wide variety of developmental processes. Here we discuss emerging holometabolous models, and review some recent breakthroughs. For example, flies and midges were found to use structurally unrelated long-range pattern organizers, butterflies and moths revealed extensive pattern formation during oogenesis, new imaging possibilities in the flour beetle Tribolium castaneum showed how embryos break free of their extraembryonic membranes, and the complex genetics governing interspecies difference in head shape were revealed in Nasonia wasps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Urs Schmidt-Ott
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, United States.
| | - Jeremy A Lynch
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States.
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36
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Ho WW, Smith SD. Molecular evolution of anthocyanin pigmentation genes following losses of flower color. BMC Evol Biol 2016; 16:98. [PMID: 27161359 PMCID: PMC4862180 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-016-0675-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2016] [Accepted: 04/29/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Phenotypic transitions, such as trait gain or loss, are predicted to carry evolutionary consequences for the genes that control their development. For example, trait losses can result in molecular decay of the pathways underlying the trait. Focusing on the Iochrominae clade (Solanaceae), we examine how repeated losses of floral anthocyanin pigmentation associated with flower color transitions have affected the molecular evolution of three anthocyanin pathway genes (Chi, F3h, and Dfr). Results We recovered intact coding regions for the three genes in all of the lineages that have lost floral pigmentation, suggesting that molecular decay is not associated with these flower color transitions. However, two of the three genes (Chi, F3h) show significantly elevated dN/dS ratios in lineages without floral pigmentation. Maximum likelihood analyses suggest that this increase is due to relaxed constraint on anthocyanin genes in the unpigmented lineages as opposed to positive selection. Despite the increase, the values for dN/dS in both pigmented and unpigmented lineages were consistent overall with purifying selection acting on these loci. Conclusions The broad conservation of anthocyanin pathway genes across lineages with and without floral anthocyanins is consistent with the growing consensus that losses of pigmentation are largely achieved by changes in gene expression as opposed to structural mutations. Moreover, this conservation maintains the potential for regain of flower color, and indicates that evolutionary losses of floral pigmentation may be readily reversible. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-016-0675-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Winnie W Ho
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA
| | - Stacey D Smith
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA.
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37
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Cridge AG, Dearden PK, Brownfield LR. Convergent occurrence of the developmental hourglass in plant and animal embryogenesis? ANNALS OF BOTANY 2016; 117:833-843. [PMID: 27013176 PMCID: PMC4845807 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcw024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2015] [Accepted: 01/08/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The remarkable similarity of animal embryos at particular stages of development led to the proposal of a developmental hourglass. In this model, early events in development are less conserved across species but lead to a highly conserved 'phylotypic period'. Beyond this stage, the model suggests that development once again becomes less conserved, leading to the diversity of forms. Recent comparative studies of gene expression in animal groups have provided strong support for the hourglass model. How and why might such an hourglass pattern be generated? More importantly, how might early acting events in development evolve while still maintaining a later conserved stage? SCOPE The discovery that an hourglass pattern may also exist in the embryogenesis of plants provides comparative data that may help us explain this phenomenon. Whether the developmental hourglass occurs in plants, and what this means for our understanding of embryogenesis in plants and animals is discussed. Models by which conserved early-acting genes might change their functional role in the evolution of gene networks, how networks buffer these changes, and how that might constrain, or confer diversity, of the body plan are also discused. CONCLUSIONS Evidence of a morphological and molecular hourglass in plant and animal embryogenesis suggests convergent evolution. This convergence is likely due to developmental constraints imposed upon embryogenesis by the need to produce a viable embryo with an established body plan, controlled by the architecture of the underlying gene regulatory networks. As the body plan is largely laid down during the middle phases of embryo development in plants and animals, then it is perhaps not surprising this stage represents the narrow waist of the hourglass where the gene regulatory networks are the oldest and most robust and integrated, limiting species diversity and constraining morphological space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew G Cridge
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago and Department of Biochemistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand and
| | - Peter K Dearden
- Laboratory for Evolution and Development, Genetics Otago and Department of Biochemistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand and
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38
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Zanet J, Chanut-Delalande H, Plaza S, Payre F. Small Peptides as Newcomers in the Control of Drosophila Development. Curr Top Dev Biol 2016; 117:199-219. [PMID: 26969979 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2015.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Throughout the last century, studies using the fruit fly have contributed to the discovery of many key genetic elements that control animal development. Recent work has shed light on an unexpectedly large number of RNAs that lack the classical hallmarks of protein-coding genes and are thus referred to as noncoding RNAs. However, there is mounting evidence that both mRNA and noncoding RNAs often contain small open reading frames (sORFs/smORFs), which can be translated into peptides. While genome-wide profiling supports a pervasive translation of these noncanonical sORF/smORF/SEP peptides, their functions remain poorly understood. Here, we review recent data obtained in Drosophila demonstrating the overlooked role of smORF peptides in the control of development and adult life. Focusing on a few smORF peptides whose functions have been elucidated recently, we discuss the importance of these newly identified regulatory molecules and how they act to regulate the building and function of the whole organism.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Zanet
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université de Toulouse, UPS, Toulouse, France; Centre de Biologie du Développement, CNRS, UMR5547, Toulouse, France
| | - H Chanut-Delalande
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université de Toulouse, UPS, Toulouse, France; Centre de Biologie du Développement, CNRS, UMR5547, Toulouse, France
| | - Serge Plaza
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université de Toulouse, UPS, Toulouse, France; Centre de Biologie du Développement, CNRS, UMR5547, Toulouse, France.
| | - Francios Payre
- Centre de Biologie du Développement, Université de Toulouse, UPS, Toulouse, France; Centre de Biologie du Développement, CNRS, UMR5547, Toulouse, France.
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Storz JF, Cheviron ZA. Functional Genomic Insights into Regulatory Mechanisms of High-Altitude Adaptation. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2016; 903:113-28. [PMID: 27343092 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4899-7678-9_8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Recent studies of indigenous human populations at high altitude have provided proof-of-principle that genome scans of DNA polymorphism can be used to identify candidate loci for hypoxia adaptation. When integrated with experimental analyses of physiological phenotypes, genome-wide surveys of DNA polymorphism and tissue-specific transcriptional profiles can provide insights into actual mechanisms of adaptation. It has been suggested that adaptive phenotypic evolution is largely mediated by cis-regulatory changes in genes that are located at integrative control points in regulatory networks. This hypothesis can be tested by conducting transcriptomic analyses of hypoxic signaling pathways in conjunction with experimental measures of vascular oxygen supply and metabolic pathway flux. Such studies may reveal whether the architecture of gene regulatory networks can be used to predict which loci (and which types of loci) are likely to be "hot spots" for adaptive physiological evolution. Functional genomic studies of deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) demonstrate how the integrated analysis of variation in tissue-specific transcriptomes, whole-animal physiological performance, and various subordinate traits can yield insights into the mechanistic underpinnings of high-altitude adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay F Storz
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, USA.
| | - Zachary A Cheviron
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
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Favé MJ, Johnson RA, Cover S, Handschuh S, Metscher BD, Müller GB, Gopalan S, Abouheif E. Past climate change on Sky Islands drives novelty in a core developmental gene network and its phenotype. BMC Evol Biol 2015; 15:183. [PMID: 26338531 PMCID: PMC4560157 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0448-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2015] [Accepted: 08/06/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A fundamental and enduring problem in evolutionary biology is to understand how populations differentiate in the wild, yet little is known about what role organismal development plays in this process. Organismal development integrates environmental inputs with the action of gene regulatory networks to generate the phenotype. Core developmental gene networks have been highly conserved for millions of years across all animals, and therefore, organismal development may bias variation available for selection to work on. Biased variation may facilitate repeatable phenotypic responses when exposed to similar environmental inputs and ecological changes. To gain a more complete understanding of population differentiation in the wild, we integrated evolutionary developmental biology with population genetics, morphology, paleoecology and ecology. This integration was made possible by studying how populations of the ant species Monomorium emersoni respond to climatic and ecological changes across five 'Sky Islands' in Arizona, which are mountain ranges separated by vast 'seas' of desert. Sky Islands represent a replicated natural experiment allowing us to determine how repeatable is the response of M. emersoni populations to climate and ecological changes at the phenotypic, developmental, and gene network levels. RESULTS We show that a core developmental gene network and its phenotype has kept pace with ecological and climate change on each Sky Island over the last ~90,000 years before present (BP). This response has produced two types of evolutionary change within an ant species: one type is unpredictable and contingent on the pattern of isolation of Sky lsland populations by climate warming, resulting in slight changes in gene expression, organ growth, and morphology. The other type is predictable and deterministic, resulting in the repeated evolution of a novel wingless queen phenotype and its underlying gene network in response to habitat changes induced by climate warming. CONCLUSION Our findings reveal dynamics of developmental gene network evolution in wild populations. This holds important implications: (1) for understanding how phenotypic novelty is generated in the wild; (2) for providing a possible bridge between micro- and macroevolution; and (3) for understanding how development mediates the response of organisms to past, and potentially, future climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Julie Favé
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield avenue, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
| | - Robert A Johnson
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-4501, USA.
| | - Stefan Cover
- Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
| | - Stephan Handschuh
- Department of Theoretical Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, Vienna, 1090, Austria.
| | - Brian D Metscher
- Department of Theoretical Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, Vienna, 1090, Austria.
| | - Gerd B Müller
- Department of Theoretical Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, Vienna, 1090, Austria.
| | - Shyamalika Gopalan
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield avenue, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
| | - Ehab Abouheif
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield avenue, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
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41
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Albuquerque JP, Tobias-Santos V, Rodrigues AC, Mury FB, da Fonseca RN. small ORFs: A new class of essential genes for development. Genet Mol Biol 2015; 38:278-83. [PMID: 26500431 PMCID: PMC4612599 DOI: 10.1590/s1415-475738320150009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2015] [Accepted: 03/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Genes that contain small open reading frames (smORFs) constitute a new group of eukaryotic genes and are expected to represent 5% of the Drosophila melanogaster transcribed genes. In this review we provide a historical perspective of their recent discovery, describe their general mechanism and discuss the importance of smORFs for future genomic and transcriptomic studies. Finally, we discuss the biological role of the most studied smORF so far, the Mlpt/Pri/Tal gene in arthropods. The pleiotropic action of Mlpt/Pri/Tal in D. melanogaster suggests a complex evolutionary scenario that can be used to understand the origins, evolution and integration of smORFs into complex gene regulatory networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Paulo Albuquerque
- Laboratório Integrado de Bioquímica Hatisaburo Masuda, Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Sócio-Ambiental, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Macaé, RJ, Brazil
| | - Vitória Tobias-Santos
- Laboratório Integrado de Bioquímica Hatisaburo Masuda, Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Sócio-Ambiental, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Macaé, RJ, Brazil
| | - Aline Cáceres Rodrigues
- Laboratório Integrado de Bioquímica Hatisaburo Masuda, Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Sócio-Ambiental, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Macaé, RJ, Brazil
| | - Flávia Borges Mury
- Laboratório Integrado de Bioquímica Hatisaburo Masuda, Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Sócio-Ambiental, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Macaé, RJ, Brazil. ; Entomologia Molecular, Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo Nunes da Fonseca
- Laboratório Integrado de Bioquímica Hatisaburo Masuda, Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Sócio-Ambiental, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Macaé, RJ, Brazil. ; Entomologia Molecular, Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia, Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
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42
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Moczek AP, Sears KE, Stollewerk A, Wittkopp PJ, Diggle P, Dworkin I, Ledon-Rettig C, Matus DQ, Roth S, Abouheif E, Brown FD, Chiu CH, Cohen CS, Tomaso AWD, Gilbert SF, Hall B, Love AC, Lyons DC, Sanger TJ, Smith J, Specht C, Vallejo-Marin M, Extavour CG. The significance and scope of evolutionary developmental biology: a vision for the 21st century. Evol Dev 2015; 17:198-219. [PMID: 25963198 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo) has undergone dramatic transformations since its emergence as a distinct discipline. This paper aims to highlight the scope, power, and future promise of evo-devo to transform and unify diverse aspects of biology. We articulate key questions at the core of eleven biological disciplines-from Evolution, Development, Paleontology, and Neurobiology to Cellular and Molecular Biology, Quantitative Genetics, Human Diseases, Ecology, Agriculture and Science Education, and lastly, Evolutionary Developmental Biology itself-and discuss why evo-devo is uniquely situated to substantially improve our ability to find meaningful answers to these fundamental questions. We posit that the tools, concepts, and ways of thinking developed by evo-devo have profound potential to advance, integrate, and unify biological sciences as well as inform policy decisions and illuminate science education. We look to the next generation of evolutionary developmental biologists to help shape this process as we confront the scientific challenges of the 21st century.
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Affiliation(s)
- Armin P Moczek
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, 915 East 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Karen E Sears
- School of Integrative Biology and Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, 505 South Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
| | - Angelika Stollewerk
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary, University of London, Mile End Road, London, E1 4NS, UK
| | - Patricia J Wittkopp
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Pamela Diggle
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269, USA
| | - Ian Dworkin
- Department of Biology, McMaster University, 1280 Main St. West Hamilton, Ontario, L8S 4K1, Canada
| | - Cristina Ledon-Rettig
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, 915 East 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - David Q Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, 412 Life Sciences Building, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-5215, USA
| | - Siegfried Roth
- University of Cologne, Institute of Developmental Biology, Biocenter, Zülpicher Straße 47b, D-50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - Ehab Abouheif
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205 Avenue Docteur Penfield, Montréal Québec, H3A 1B1, Canada
| | - Federico D Brown
- Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, Travessa 14, no. 101, 05508-090, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Chi-Hua Chiu
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kent State University, OH, USA
| | - C Sarah Cohen
- Biology Department, Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies, San Francisco State University, 3150 Paradise Drive, Tiburon, CA, 94920, USA
| | | | - Scott F Gilbert
- Department of Biology, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania 19081, USA and Biotechnology Institute, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Brian Hall
- Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, CA, B3H 4R2, USA
| | - Alan C Love
- Department of Philosophy, Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Minnesota, USA
| | - Deirdre C Lyons
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
| | - Thomas J Sanger
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, University of Florida, P.O. Box 103610, Gainesville, FL, 32610, USA
| | - Joel Smith
- Marine Biological Laboratory, 7 MBL Street, Woods Hole, MA, 02543, USA
| | - Chelsea Specht
- Plant and Microbial Biology, Department of Integrative Biology, University and Jepson Herbaria, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Mario Vallejo-Marin
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, FK9 4LA, Scotland, UK
| | - Cassandra G Extavour
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, 16 Divinity Avenue, BioLabs 4103, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
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43
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Vickrey AI, Domyan ET, Horvath MP, Shapiro MD. Convergent Evolution of Head Crests in Two Domesticated Columbids Is Associated with Different Missense Mutations in EphB2. Mol Biol Evol 2015; 32:2657-64. [PMID: 26104009 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msv140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Head crests are important display structures in wild bird species and are also common in domesticated lineages. Many breeds of domestic rock pigeon (Columba livia) have crests of reversed occipital feathers, and this recessive trait is associated with a nonsynonymous coding mutation in the intracellular kinase domain of EphB2 (Ephrin receptor B2). The domestic ringneck dove (Streptopelia risoria) also has a recessive crested morph with reversed occipital feathers, and interspecific crosses between crested doves and pigeons produce crested offspring, suggesting a similar genetic basis for this trait in both species. We therefore investigated EphB2 as a candidate for the head crest phenotype of ringneck doves and identified a nonsynonymous coding mutation in the intracellular kinase domain that is significantly associated with the crested morph. This mutation is over 100 amino acid positions away from the crest mutation found in rock pigeons, yet both mutations are predicted to negatively affect the function of ATP-binding pocket. Furthermore, bacterial toxicity assays suggest that "crest" mutations in both species severely impact kinase activity. We conclude that head crests are associated with different mutations in the same functional domain of the same gene in two different columbid species, thereby representing striking evolutionary convergence in morphology and molecules.
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44
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Rebeiz M, Patel NH, Hinman VF. Unraveling the Tangled Skein: The Evolution of Transcriptional Regulatory Networks in Development. Annu Rev Genomics Hum Genet 2015; 16:103-31. [PMID: 26079281 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-genom-091212-153423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The molecular and genetic basis for the evolution of anatomical diversity is a major question that has inspired evolutionary and developmental biologists for decades. Because morphology takes form during development, a true comprehension of how anatomical structures evolve requires an understanding of the evolutionary events that alter developmental genetic programs. Vast gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that connect transcription factors to their target regulatory sequences control gene expression in time and space and therefore determine the tissue-specific genetic programs that shape morphological structures. In recent years, many new examples have greatly advanced our understanding of the genetic alterations that modify GRNs to generate newly evolved morphologies. Here, we review several aspects of GRN evolution, including their deep preservation, their mechanisms of alteration, and how they originate to generate novel developmental programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Rebeiz
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15260;
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45
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Arif S, Kittelmann S, McGregor AP. From shavenbaby to the naked valley: trichome formation as a model for evolutionary developmental biology. Evol Dev 2015; 17:120-6. [PMID: 25627718 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Microtrichia or trichomes are non-sensory actin protrusions produced by the epidermal cells of many insects. Studies of trichome formation in Drosophila have over the last 30 years provided key insights towards our understanding of gene regulation, gene regulatory networks (GRNs), development, the genotype to phenotype map, and the evolution of these processes. Here we review classic studies that have used trichome formation as a model to shed light on Drosophila development as well as recent research on the architecture of the GRN underlying trichome formation. This includes the findings that both small peptides and microRNAs play important roles in the regulation and evolution of this network. In addition, we review research on the evolution of trichome patterns that has provided novel insights into the function and architecture of cis-regulatory modules, and into the genetic basis of morphological change. We conclude that further research on these apparently simple and often functionally enigmatic structures will continue to provide new and important knowledge about development and evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saad Arif
- Friedrich Meischer Laboratory of the Max Planck Society, Spemannstrasse 39, Tuebingen, 72076, Germany
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46
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Zhao L, Wit J, Svetec N, Begun DJ. Parallel Gene Expression Differences between Low and High Latitude Populations of Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans. PLoS Genet 2015; 11:e1005184. [PMID: 25950438 PMCID: PMC4423912 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2014] [Accepted: 03/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Gene expression variation within species is relatively common, however, the role of natural selection in the maintenance of this variation is poorly understood. Here we investigate low and high latitude populations of Drosophila melanogaster and its sister species, D. simulans, to determine whether the two species show similar patterns of population differentiation, consistent with a role for spatially varying selection in maintaining gene expression variation. We compared at two temperatures the whole male transcriptome of D. melanogaster and D. simulans sampled from Panama City (Panama) and Maine (USA). We observed a significant excess of genes exhibiting differential expression in both species, consistent with parallel adaptation to heterogeneous environments. Moreover, the majority of genes showing parallel expression differentiation showed the same direction of differential expression in the two species and the magnitudes of expression differences between high and low latitude populations were correlated across species, further bolstering the conclusion that parallelism for expression phenotypes results from spatially varying selection. However, the species also exhibited important differences in expression phenotypes. For example, the genomic extent of genotype × environment interaction was much more common in D. melanogaster. Highly differentiated SNPs between low and high latitudes were enriched in the 3’ UTRs and CDS of the geographically differently expressed genes in both species, consistent with an important role for cis-acting variants in driving local adaptation for expression-related phenotypes. While gene expression variation in natural populations is common, the population genetic processes responsible for the maintenance of this variation remain obscure. Here we study geographic differences in gene expression in recently established low and high latitude populations of two closely related species of Drosophila. We observe substantial parallelism in expression differences and expression plasticity between populations, which supports the idea that spatially varying selection correlated with latitude contributes to the maintenance of gene expression variation in these species. Comparison of inter-population sequence differentiation and expression differentiation suggests that cis-acting variants play a role in geographic expression differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Zhao
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Janneke Wit
- Department of Bioscience, Section of Integrative Ecology and Evolution, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Nicolas Svetec
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - David J. Begun
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
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Matamoro-Vidal A, Salazar-Ciudad I, Houle D. Making quantitative morphological variation from basic developmental processes: Where are we? The case of the Drosophila wing. Dev Dyn 2015; 244:1058-1073. [PMID: 25619644 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.24255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2014] [Revised: 12/19/2014] [Accepted: 12/22/2014] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
One of the aims of evolutionary developmental biology is to discover the developmental origins of morphological variation. The discipline has mainly focused on qualitative morphological differences (e.g., presence or absence of a structure) between species. Studies addressing subtle, quantitative variation are less common. The Drosophila wing is a model for the study of development and evolution, making it suitable to investigate the developmental mechanisms underlying the subtle quantitative morphological variation observed in nature. Previous reviews have focused on the processes involved in wing differentiation, patterning and growth. Here, we investigate what is known about how the wing achieves its final shape, and what variation in development is capable of generating the variation in wing shape observed in nature. Three major developmental stages need to be considered: larval development, pupariation, and pupal development. The major cellular processes involved in the determination of tissue size and shape are cell proliferation, cell death, oriented cell division and oriented cell intercalation. We review how variation in temporal and spatial distribution of growth and transcription factors affects these cellular mechanisms, which in turn affects wing shape. We then discuss which aspects of the wing morphological variation are predictable on the basis of these mechanisms. Developmental Dynamics 244:1058-1073, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis Matamoro-Vidal
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.,Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution Group, Department de Genètica i Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isaac Salazar-Ciudad
- Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution Group, Department de Genètica i Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain.,Center of Excellence in Experimental and Computational Developmental Biology, Developmental Biology Program, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - David Houle
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
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48
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Santos ME, Berger CS, Refki PN, Khila A. Integrating evo-devo with ecology for a better understanding of phenotypic evolution. Brief Funct Genomics 2015; 14:384-95. [PMID: 25750411 PMCID: PMC4652033 DOI: 10.1093/bfgp/elv003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo) has provided invaluable contributions to our understanding of the mechanistic relationship between genotypic and phenotypic change. Similarly, evolutionary ecology has greatly advanced our understanding of the relationship between the phenotype and the environment. To fully understand the evolution of organismal diversity, a thorough integration of these two fields is required. This integration remains highly challenging because model systems offering a rich ecological and evolutionary background, together with the availability of developmental genetic tools and genomic resources, are scarce. In this review, we introduce the semi-aquatic bugs (Gerromorpha, Heteroptera) as original models well suited to study why and how organisms diversify. The Gerromorpha invaded water surfaces over 200 mya and diversified into a range of remarkable new forms within this new ecological habitat. We summarize the biology and evolutionary history of this group of insects and highlight a set of characters associated with the habitat change and the diversification that followed. We further discuss the morphological, behavioral, molecular and genomic tools available that together make semi-aquatic bugs a prime model for integration across disciplines. We present case studies showing how the implementation and combination of these approaches can advance our understanding of how the interaction between genotypes, phenotypes and the environment drives the evolution of distinct morphologies. Finally, we explain how the same set of experimental designs can be applied in other systems to address similar biological questions.
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Schachat SR, Oliver JC, Monteiro A. Nymphalid eyespots are co-opted to novel wing locations following a similar pattern in independent lineages. BMC Evol Biol 2015; 15:20. [PMID: 25886182 PMCID: PMC4335541 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0300-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2014] [Accepted: 01/29/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Variation in the number of repeated traits, or serial homologs, has contributed greatly to animal body plan diversity. Eyespot color patterns of nymphalid butterflies, like arthropod and vertebrate limbs, are an example of serial homologs. These eyespot color patterns originated in a small number of wing sectors on the ventral hindwing surface and later appeared in novel wing sectors, novel wings, and novel wing surfaces. However, the details of how eyespots were co-opted to these novel wing locations are currently unknown. RESULTS We used a large data matrix of eyespot/presence absence data, previously assembled from photographs of contemporary species, to perform a phylogenetic investigation of eyespot origins in nine independent nymphalid lineages. To determine how the eyespot gene regulatory network acquired novel positional information, we used phylogenetic correlation analyses to test for non-independence in the origination of eyespots. We found consistent patterns of eyespot gene network redeployment in the nine lineages, where eyespots first redeployed from the ventral hindwing to the ventral forewing, then to new sectors within the ventral wing surface, and finally to the dorsal wing surface. Eyespots that appeared in novel wing sectors modified the positional information of their serial homolog ancestors in one of two ways: by changing the wing or surface identity while retaining sector identity, or by changing the sector identity while retaining wing and surface identity. CONCLUSIONS Eyespot redeployment to novel sectors, wings, and surfaces happened multiple times in different nymphalid subfamilies following a similar pattern. This indicates that parallel mutations altering expression of the eyespot gene regulatory network led to its co-option to novel wing locations over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra R Schachat
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, 39762, USA. .,Department of Paleobiology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20013, USA.
| | - Jeffrey C Oliver
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA.
| | - Antónia Monteiro
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA. .,Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore, Singapore. .,Yale-NUS College, 138614, Singapore, Singapore.
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50
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Abstract
Genetic mutations are the main fuel of evolution. In each generation, they produce new variations, which may be sorted out by natural or sexual selection. Mutations are generated by chance; yet which are the mutations actually sorted out by evolution, and why? This review presents some recent advances regarding this question. First, we gather results obtained at molecular and cellular levels, through synthetic experiments and under artificial selection paradigms. Next, we highlight studies at the multi-cellular level, especially studies of repeated evolution, whereby independent lineages acquire similar traits. Recent meta-analysis and quantifications are being presented; together they suggest that evolutionary relevant mutations accumulate around hotspots, spanning different levels of genetic organization. Pioneering work suggests that many causes, corresponding to many biological contexts, may explain the existence of these genetic hotspots. We finally discuss methodological limits, empirical challenges and a few future potential directions for this domain of research dedicated to the genetic path of evolution.
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