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Brown FD, Ishengoma E, Mayer G, Pabón-Mora N, Santos ME, Sears KE, de Sena Oliveira I. Uncovering developmental diversity in the field. Development 2024; 151:dev203084. [PMID: 39158021 DOI: 10.1242/dev.203084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/20/2024]
Abstract
Many developmental biologists seldom leave the lab for research, relying instead on establishing colonies of traditional and emerging model systems. However, to fully understand the mechanisms and principles of development and evolution, including the role of ecology and the environment, it is important to study a diverse range of organisms in context. In this Perspective, we hear from five research teams from around the world about the importance and challenges of going into the field to study their organisms of interest. We also invite you to share your own fieldwork stories on the Node.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico D Brown
- Departamento de Zoologia - Instituto Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, 05508-090 São Paulo, Brazil
- Prometeo-Senescyt Program, Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral, ESPOL, P.O. Box 09-01-5863, Guayaquil 090902, Ecuador
- Centro de Biologia Marinha (CEBIMar), Universidade de São Paulo, 11612-109, São Sebastião, Brazil
| | - Edson Ishengoma
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mkwawa University College of Education, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Georg Mayer
- Department of Zoology, University of Kassel, Heinrich-Plett-Str. 40, 34132 Kassel, Germany
| | - Natalia Pabón-Mora
- Universidad de Antioquia, Instituto de Biología, Grupo Evo-Devo en Plantas, Medellín 050010, Colombia
| | - M Emília Santos
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Karen E Sears
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles 90095, USA
| | - Ivo de Sena Oliveira
- Department of Zoology, University of Kassel, Heinrich-Plett-Str. 40, 34132 Kassel, Germany
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2
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Bucklow CV, Genner MJ, Turner GF, Maclaine J, Benson R, Verd B. A whole-body micro-CT scan library that captures the skeletal diversity of Lake Malawi cichlid fishes. Sci Data 2024; 11:984. [PMID: 39256465 PMCID: PMC11387623 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-024-03687-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 09/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Here we describe a dataset of freely available, readily processed, whole-body μCT-scans of 56 species (116 specimens) of Lake Malawi cichlid fishes that captures a considerable majority of the morphological variation present in this remarkable adaptive radiation. We contextualise the scanned specimens within a discussion of their respective ecomorphological groupings and suggest possible macroevolutionary studies that could be conducted with these data. In addition, we describe a methodology to efficiently μCT-scan (on average) 23 specimens per hour, limiting scanning time and alleviating the financial cost whilst maintaining high resolution. We demonstrate the utility of this method by reconstructing 3D models of multiple bones from multiple specimens within the dataset. We hope this dataset will enable further morphological study of this fascinating system and permit wider-scale comparisons with other cichlid adaptive radiations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Callum V Bucklow
- University of Oxford, Department of Biology, OX1 3SZ, Oxford, United Kingdom
- University of Oxford, Department of Earth Sciences, OX1 3AN, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Martin J Genner
- University of Bristol, School of Biological Sciences, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - George F Turner
- Bangor University, School of Natural Sciences, Bangor, LL57 2UR, United Kingdom
| | | | - Roger Benson
- University of Oxford, Department of Earth Sciences, OX1 3AN, Oxford, United Kingdom.
- American Museum of Natural History, New York City, NY 10024, USA.
| | - Berta Verd
- University of Oxford, Department of Biology, OX1 3SZ, Oxford, United Kingdom.
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3
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Flaum B, Blumer MJ, Dean MN, Ekstrom LJ. Functional morphology of the pharyngeal teeth of the ocean sunfish, Mola mola. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2024. [PMID: 39155777 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2024] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/17/2024] [Indexed: 08/20/2024]
Abstract
Many fish use a set of pharyngeal jaws in their throat to aid in prey capture and processing, particularly of large or complex prey. In this study-combining dissection, CT scanning, histology, and performance testing-we demonstrate a novel use of pharyngeal teeth in the ocean sunfish (Mola mola), a species for which pharyngeal jaw anatomy had not been described. We show that sunfish possesses only dorsal pharyngeal jaws where, in contrast to their beaklike oral teeth, teeth are recurved spikes, arranged in three loosely connected rows. Fang-like pharyngeal teeth were tightly socketed in the skeletal tissue, with shorter, incompletely-formed teeth erupting between, suggesting tooth replacement. Trichrome staining revealed teeth anchored into their sockets via a combination of collagen bundles originating from the jaw connective tissue and mineralized trabeculae extending from the teeth bases. In resting position, teeth are nearly covered by soft tissue; however, manipulation of a straplike muscle, running transversely on the dorsal jaw face, everted teeth like a cat's claws. Adult sunfish suction feed almost exclusively on gelatinous prey (e.g., jellyfish) and have been observed to jet water during feeding and other activities; flume experiments simulating jetting behavior demonstrated adult teeth caught simulated gelatinous prey with 70%-100% success, with the teeth immobile in their sockets, even at 50x the jetting force, demonstrating high safety factor. We propose that sunfish pharyngeal teeth function as an efficient retention cage for mechanically challenging prey, a curious evolutionary convergence with the throat spikes of divergent taxa that employ spitting and jetting.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michael J Blumer
- Institute of Clinical and Functional Anatomy, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Mason N Dean
- City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
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Holtz N, Albertson RC. Variable Craniofacial Shape and Development among Multiple Cave-Adapted Populations of Astyanax mexicanus. Integr Org Biol 2024; 6:obae030. [PMID: 39234027 PMCID: PMC11372417 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obae030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2024] [Revised: 06/25/2024] [Accepted: 08/13/2024] [Indexed: 09/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Astyanax mexicanus is a freshwater fish species with blind cave morphs and sighted surface morphs. Like other troglodytic species, independently evolved cave-dwelling A. mexicanus populations share several stereotypic phenotypes, including the expansion of certain sensory systems, as well as the loss of eyes and pigmentation. Here, we assess the extent to which there is also parallelism in craniofacial development across cave populations. Since multiple forces may be acting upon variation in the A. mexicanus system, including phylogenetic history, selection, and developmental constraint, several outcomes are possible. For example, eye regression may have triggered a conserved series of compensatory developmental events, in which case we would expect to observe highly similar craniofacial phenotypes across cave populations. Selection for cave-specific foraging may also lead to the evolution of a conserved craniofacial phenotype, especially in regions of the head directly associated with feeding. Alternatively, in the absence of a common axis of selection or strong developmental constraints, craniofacial shape may evolve under neutral processes such as gene flow, drift, and bottlenecking, in which case patterns of variation should reflect the evolutionary history of A. mexicanus. Our results found that cave-adapted populations do share certain anatomical features; however, they generally did not support the hypothesis of a conserved craniofacial phenotype across caves, as nearly every pairwise comparison was statistically significant, with greater effect sizes noted between more distantly related cave populations with little gene flow. A similar pattern was observed for developmental trajectories. We also found that morphological disparity was lower among all three cave populations versus surface fish, suggesting eye loss is not associated with increased variation, which would be consistent with a release of developmental constraint. Instead, this pattern reflects the relatively low genetic diversity within cave populations. Finally, magnitudes of craniofacial integration were found to be similar among all groups, meaning that coordinated development among anatomical units is robust to eye loss in A. mexicanus. We conclude that, in contrast to many conserved phenotypes across cave populations, global craniofacial shape is more variable, and patterns of shape variation are more in line with population structure than developmental architecture or selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Holtz
- Graduate Program in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - R C Albertson
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
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5
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Camarillo H, Burress ED, Muñoz MM. Four-bar Geometry is Shared among Ecologically DivergentFish Species. Integr Org Biol 2024; 6:obae019. [PMID: 38949169 PMCID: PMC11211069 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obae019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding the factors that influence morphological evolution is a major goal in biology. One such factor is the ability to acquire and process prey. Prey hardness and evasiveness are important properties that can impact evolution of the jaws. Similar diets and biomechanical systems have repeatedly evolved among fish lineages, providing an opportunity to test for shared patterns of evolution across distantly related organisms. Four-bar linkages are structures often used by animals to transmit force and motion during feeding and that provide an excellent system to understand the impact of diet on morphological and biomechanical evolution. Here, we tested how diet influences the evolutionary dynamics of the oral four-bar linkage system in wrasses (Family: Labridae) and cichlids (Family: Cichlidae). We found that shifts in prey hardness/evasiveness are associated with limited modifications in four-bar geometry across these two distantly related fish lineages. Wrasse and cichlid four-bar systems largely exhibit many-to-one mapping in response to dietary shifts. Across two iconic adaptive radiations of fish, an optimal four-bar geometry has largely been co-opted for different dietary functions during their extensive ecological diversification. Given the exceptional jaw diversity of both lineages, many-to-one mapping of morphology to mechanical properties may be a core feature of fish adaptive radiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Camarillo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - E D Burress
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - M M Muñoz
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
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Brownstein CD, Zapfe KL, Lott S, Harrington R, Ghezelayagh A, Dornburg A, Near TJ. Synergistic innovations enabled the radiation of anglerfishes in the deep open ocean. Curr Biol 2024; 34:2541-2550.e4. [PMID: 38788708 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.04.066] [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: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 03/10/2024] [Accepted: 04/29/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
Major ecological transitions are thought to fuel diversification, but whether they are contingent on the evolution of certain traits called key innovations1 is unclear. Key innovations are routinely invoked to explain how lineages rapidly exploit new ecological opportunities.1,2,3 However, investigations of key innovations often focus on single traits rather than considering trait combinations that collectively produce effects of interest.4 Here, we investigate the evolution of synergistic trait interactions in anglerfishes, which include one of the most species-rich vertebrate clades in the bathypelagic, or "midnight," zone of the deep sea: Ceratioidea.5 Ceratioids are the only vertebrates that possess sexual parasitism, wherein males temporarily attach or permanently fuse to females to mate.6,7 We show that the rapid transition of ancestrally benthic anglerfishes into pelagic habitats occurred during a period of major global warming 50-35 million years ago.8,9 This transition coincided with the origins of sexual parasitism, which is thought to increase the probability of successful reproduction once a mate is found in the midnight zone, Earth's largest habitat.5,6,7 Our reconstruction of the evolutionary history of anglerfishes and the loss of immune genes support that permanently fusing clades have convergently degenerated their adaptive immunity. We find that degenerate adaptive immune genes and sexual body size dimorphism, both variably present in anglerfishes outside the ceratioid radiation, likely promoted their transition into the bathypelagic zone. These results show how traits from separate physiological, morphological, and reproductive systems can interact synergistically to drive major transitions and subsequent diversification in novel environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chase D Brownstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 21 Sachem Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
| | - Katerina L Zapfe
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genomics, University of North Carolina Charlotte, 9331 Robert D. Snyder Rd., Charlotte, NC 28223, USA
| | - Spencer Lott
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 21 Sachem Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Richard Harrington
- Department of Natural Resources, Marine Resources Division, 217 Ft. Johnson Road, Charleston, SC 29412-9110, USA
| | - Ava Ghezelayagh
- Department of Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago, 5734 S. Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Alex Dornburg
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genomics, University of North Carolina Charlotte, 9331 Robert D. Snyder Rd., Charlotte, NC 28223, USA
| | - Thomas J Near
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, 21 Sachem Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Peabody Museum, Yale University, 21 Sachem Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
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Cooper WJ, Conith MR, Conith AJ. Surfperches versus Damselfishes: Trophic Evolution in Closely Related Pharyngognath Fishes with Highly Divergent Reproductive Strategies. Integr Org Biol 2024; 6:obae018. [PMID: 38939103 PMCID: PMC11210498 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obae018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/26/2024] [Indexed: 06/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Surfperches and damselfishes are very closely related ovalentarians with large reproductive differences. Damselfishes are typical of most Ovalentaria in that they lay demersal eggs that hatch into small, free-feeding larvae. Surfperches are unusual among ovalentarians and most acanthomorphs in having prolonged internal development. They are born at an advanced stage, some as adults, and bypass the need to actively feed throughout an extended period of ontogeny. Damselfishes and surfperches possess the same modifications of the fifth branchial arch that allow them to perform advanced food processing within the pharynx. This condition (pharyngognathy) has large effects on the evolution of feeding mechanics and trophic ecology. Although the evolution of pharyngognaths has received considerable attention, the effects of different reproductive strategies on their diversification have not been examined. We compared head shape evolution in surfperches and damselfishes using geometric morphometrics, principal component analyses, and multiple phylogenetic-comparative techniques. We found that they have similar mean head shapes, that their primary axes of shape variation are comparable and distinguish benthic-feeding and pelagic-feeding forms in each case, and that, despite large differences in crown divergence times, their head shape disparities are not significantly different. Several lines of evidence suggest that evolution has been more constrained in damselfishes: Head shape is evolving faster in surfperches, more anatomical traits have undergone correlated evolution in damselfishes, there is significant phylogenetic signal in damselfish evolution (but not surfperches), and damselfishes exhibit significant allometry in head shape that is not present in surfperches.
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Affiliation(s)
- W J Cooper
- Biology Department, College of Science and Engineering, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225, USA
- Marine and Coastal Science, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225, USA
| | - M R Conith
- Biology Department, College of Science and Engineering, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225, USA
| | - A J Conith
- Department of Biology, DePaul University, Chicago, IL 60604, USA
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Tetrault E, Aaronson B, Gilbert MC, Albertson RC. Foraging-induced craniofacial plasticity is associated with an early, robust and dynamic transcriptional response. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240215. [PMID: 38654651 PMCID: PMC11040245 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity is the ability of a single genotype to vary its phenotype in response to the environment. Plasticity of the skeletal system in response to mechanical input is widely studied, but the timing of its transcriptional regulation is not well understood. Here, we used the cichlid feeding apparatus to examine the transcriptional dynamics of skeletal plasticity over time. Using three closely related species that vary in their ability to remodel bone and a panel of 11 genes, including well-studied skeletal differentiation markers and newly characterized environmentally sensitive genes, we examined plasticity at one, two, four and eight weeks following the onset of alternate foraging challenges. We found that the plastic species exhibited environment-specific bursts in gene expression beginning at one week, followed by a sharp decline in levels, while the species with more limited plasticity exhibited consistently low levels of gene expression. This trend held across nearly all genes, suggesting that it is a hallmark of the larger plasticity regulatory network. We conclude that plasticity of the cichlid feeding apparatus is not the result of slowly accumulating gene expression difference over time, but rather is stimulated by early bursts of environment-specific gene expression followed by a return to homeostatic levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Tetrault
- Molecular and Cell Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Ben Aaronson
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Michelle C. Gilbert
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA 16802, USA
| | - R. Craig Albertson
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
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Burress ED, Muñoz MM. Phenotypic rate and state are decoupled in response to river-to-lake transitions in cichlid fishes. Evolution 2023; 77:2365-2377. [PMID: 37624672 DOI: 10.1093/evolut/qpad143] [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: 01/21/2023] [Revised: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023]
Abstract
Geographic access to isolated ecosystems is an important catalyst of adaptive radiation. Cichlid fishes repeatedly colonized rift, crater, and volcanic lakes from surrounding rivers. We test the "lake effect" on the phenotypic rate and state across 253 cichlid species. The rate of evolution was consistently higher (~10-fold) in lakes, and consistent across different dimensions of the phenotype. Rate shifts tended to occur coincident with or immediately following river-to-lake transitions, generally resulting in 2- to 5-fold faster rates than in the founding riverine lineage. By contrast, river- and lake-dwelling cichlids exhibit considerable overlap in phenotypes, generally with less disparity in lakes, but often different evolutionary optima. Taken together, these results suggest that lake radiations rapidly expand into niches largely already represented by ancestral riverine lineages, albeit in different frequencies. Lakes may provide ecological opportunity via ecological release (e.g., from predators/competitors) but need not be coupled with access to novel ecological niches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward D Burress
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Martha M Muñoz
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
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Clark B, Kuwalekar M, Fischer B, Woltering J, Biran J, Juntti S, Kratochwil CF, Santos ME, Almeida MV. Genome editing in East African cichlids and tilapias: state-of-the-art and future directions. Open Biol 2023; 13:230257. [PMID: 38018094 PMCID: PMC10685126 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.230257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
African cichlid fishes of the Cichlidae family are a group of teleosts important for aquaculture and research. A thriving research community is particularly interested in the cichlid radiations of the East African Great Lakes. One key goal is to pinpoint genetic variation underlying phenotypic diversification, but the lack of genetic tools has precluded thorough dissection of the genetic basis of relevant traits in cichlids. Genome editing technologies are well established in teleost models like zebrafish and medaka. However, this is not the case for emerging model organisms, such as East African cichlids, where these technologies remain inaccessible to most laboratories, due in part to limited exchange of knowledge and expertise. The Cichlid Science 2022 meeting (Cambridge, UK) hosted for the first time a Genome Editing Workshop, where the community discussed recent advances in genome editing, with an emphasis on CRISPR/Cas9 technologies. Based on the workshop findings and discussions, in this review we define the state-of-the-art of cichlid genome editing, share resources and protocols, and propose new possible avenues to further expand the cichlid genome editing toolkit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bethan Clark
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Muktai Kuwalekar
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Uusimaa 00014, Finland
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Uusimaa 00014, Finland
| | - Bettina Fischer
- Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Joost Woltering
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Baden-Württemberg 78457, Germany
| | - Jakob Biran
- Department of Poultry and Aquaculture, Institute of Animal Sciences, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Rishon Lezion, Israel
| | - Scott Juntti
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Claudius F. Kratochwil
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Uusimaa 00014, Finland
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Uusimaa 00014, Finland
| | | | - Miguel Vasconcelos Almeida
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Wellcome/CRUK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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Beriotto AC, Vissio PG, Gisbert E, Fernández I, Álvarez González CA, Di Yorio MP, Sallemi JE, Pérez Sirkin DI. From zero to ossified: Larval skeletal ontogeny of the Neotropical Cichlid fish Cichlasoma dimerus. J Morphol 2023; 284:e21641. [PMID: 37708507 DOI: 10.1002/jmor.21641] [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: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023]
Abstract
The identification of skeletal elements, the analysis of their developmental sequence, and the time of their appearance during larval development are essential to broaden the knowledge of each fish species and to recognize skeletal abnormalities that may affect further fish performance. Therefore, this study aimed to provide a general description of the development of the entire skeleton highlighting its variability in Cichlasoma dimerus. Larvae of C. dimersus were stained with alcian blue and alizarin red from hatching to 25 days posthatching. Skeletogenesis began with the endoskeletal disk and some cartilage structures from the caudal fin and the splachnocranium, while the first bony structure observed was the cleithrum. When larvae reached the free-swimming and exogenous feeding stage, mostly bones from the jaws, the branchial arches, and the opercle series evidenced some degree of ossification, suggesting that the ossification sequence of C. dimerus adjusts to physiological demands such as feeding and ventilation. The caudal region was the most variable regarding meristic counts and evidenced higher incidence of bone deformities. In conclusion, this work provides an overview of C. dimerus skeletogenesis and lays the groundwork for further studies on diverse topics, like developmental plasticity, rearing conditions, or phylogenetic relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agustina C Beriotto
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Paula G Vissio
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Enric Gisbert
- IRTA, Centre de la Ràpita, Aquaculture Program, Sant Carles de la Ràpita, España
| | - Ignacio Fernández
- Centro Oceanográfico de Vigo, Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO), CSIC, Vigo, España
| | - Carlos A Álvarez González
- Laboratorio de Acuicultura Tropical, División Académica de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco, Villahermosa, México
| | - María P Di Yorio
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Julieta E Sallemi
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Daniela I Pérez Sirkin
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CONICET - Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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12
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Roberts-Hugghis AS, Burress ED, Lam B, Wainwright PC. The cichlid pharyngeal jaw novelty enhances evolutionary integration in the feeding apparatus. Evolution 2023; 77:1917-1929. [PMID: 37326103 DOI: 10.1093/evolut/qpad109] [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: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The modified pharyngeal jaw system of cichlid fishes is widely viewed as a key innovation that substantially facilitated the evolutionary exuberance of this iconic evolutionary radiation. We conduct comparative phylogenetic analyses of integration, disparity, and rate of evolution among feeding-related, skeletal structures in Neotropical cichlids and North American centrarchids, which lack the specialized pharyngeal jaw. Contrasting evolutionary patterns in these two continental radiations, we test a classic decoupling hypothesis. Specifically, we ask whether the modified pharyngeal jaw in cichlids resulted in enhanced evolutionary independence of the oral and pharyngeal jaws, leading to increased diversity of trophic structures. Contrary to this prediction, we find significantly stronger evolutionary integration between the oral and pharyngeal jaws in cichlids compared to centrarchids, although the two groups do not differ in patterns of integration within each jaw system. Further, though we find no significant differences in disparity, centrarchids show faster rates of morphological evolution. Our results suggest that the modified pharyngeal jaw resulted in less evolutionary independence and slower rates of evolution within the feeding system. Thus, we raise the possibility that the cichlid novelty enhances feeding performance, but does not prompt increased morphological diversification within the feeding apparatus, as has long been thought.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Edward D Burress
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, United States
| | - Brian Lam
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Peter C Wainwright
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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13
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Kozol RA, Conith AJ, Yuiska A, Cree-Newman A, Tolentino B, Benesh K, Paz A, Lloyd E, Kowalko JE, Keene AC, Albertson C, Duboue ER. A brain-wide analysis maps structural evolution to distinct anatomical module. eLife 2023; 12:e80777. [PMID: 37498318 PMCID: PMC10435234 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The vertebrate brain is highly conserved topologically, but less is known about neuroanatomical variation between individual brain regions. Neuroanatomical variation at the regional level is hypothesized to provide functional expansion, building upon ancestral anatomy needed for basic functions. Classically, animal models used to study evolution have lacked tools for detailed anatomical analysis that are widely used in zebrafish and mice, presenting a barrier to studying brain evolution at fine scales. In this study, we sought to investigate the evolution of brain anatomy using a single species of fish consisting of divergent surface and cave morphs, that permits functional genetic testing of regional volume and shape across the entire brain. We generated a high-resolution brain atlas for the blind Mexican cavefish Astyanax mexicanus and coupled the atlas with automated computational tools to directly assess variability in brain region shape and volume across all populations. We measured the volume and shape of every grossly defined neuroanatomical region of the brain and assessed correlations between anatomical regions in surface fish, cavefish, and surface × cave F2 hybrids, whose phenotypes span the range of surface to cave. We find that dorsal regions of the brain are contracted, while ventral regions have expanded, with F2 hybrid data providing support for developmental constraint along the dorsal-ventral axis. Furthermore, these dorsal-ventral relationships in anatomical variation show similar patterns for both volume and shape, suggesting that the anatomical evolution captured by these two parameters could be driven by similar developmental mechanisms. Together, these data demonstrate that A. mexicanus is a powerful system for functionally determining basic principles of brain evolution and will permit testing how genes influence early patterning events to drive brain-wide anatomical evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Kozol
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Andrew J Conith
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts AmherstAmherstUnited States
| | - Anders Yuiska
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Alexia Cree-Newman
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Bernadeth Tolentino
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Kasey Benesh
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Alexandra Paz
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
| | - Evan Lloyd
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M UniversityCollege StationUnited States
| | - Johanna E Kowalko
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh UniversityBethlehemUnited States
| | - Alex C Keene
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M UniversityCollege StationUnited States
| | - Craig Albertson
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts AmherstAmherstUnited States
| | - Erik R Duboue
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic UniversityJupiterUnited States
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14
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Martínez Sosa F, Pilot M. Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Vertebrate Adaptive Evolution: A Systematic Review. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:416. [PMID: 36833343 PMCID: PMC9957108 DOI: 10.3390/genes14020416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2022] [Revised: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Adaptive evolution is a process in which variation that confers an evolutionary advantage in a specific environmental context arises and is propagated through a population. When investigating this process, researchers have mainly focused on describing advantageous phenotypes or putative advantageous genotypes. A recent increase in molecular data accessibility and technological advances has allowed researchers to go beyond description and to make inferences about the mechanisms underlying adaptive evolution. In this systematic review, we discuss articles from 2016 to 2022 that investigated or reviewed the molecular mechanisms underlying adaptive evolution in vertebrates in response to environmental variation. Regulatory elements within the genome and regulatory proteins involved in either gene expression or cellular pathways have been shown to play key roles in adaptive evolution in response to most of the discussed environmental factors. Gene losses were suggested to be associated with an adaptive response in some contexts. Future adaptive evolution research could benefit from more investigations focused on noncoding regions of the genome, gene regulation mechanisms, and gene losses potentially yielding advantageous phenotypes. Investigating how novel advantageous genotypes are conserved could also contribute to our knowledge of adaptive evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Małgorzata Pilot
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, 80-680 Gdańsk, Poland
- Faculty of Biology, University of Gdańsk, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
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15
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Santos ME, Lopes JF, Kratochwil CF. East African cichlid fishes. EvoDevo 2023; 14:1. [PMID: 36604760 PMCID: PMC9814215 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-022-00205-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Cichlid fishes are a very diverse and species-rich family of teleost fishes that inhabit lakes and rivers of India, Africa, and South and Central America. Research has largely focused on East African cichlids of the Rift Lakes Tanganyika, Malawi, and Victoria that constitute the biodiversity hotspots of cichlid fishes. Here, we give an overview of the study system, research questions, and methodologies. Research on cichlid fishes spans many disciplines including ecology, evolution, physiology, genetics, development, and behavioral biology. In this review, we focus on a range of organismal traits, including coloration phenotypes, trophic adaptations, appendages like fins and scales, sensory systems, sex, brains, and behaviors. Moreover, we discuss studies on cichlid phylogenies, plasticity, and general evolutionary patterns, ranging from convergence to speciation rates and the proximate and ultimate mechanisms underlying these processes. From a methodological viewpoint, the last decade has brought great advances in cichlid fish research, particularly through the advent of affordable deep sequencing and advances in genetic manipulations. The ability to integrate across traits and research disciplines, ranging from developmental biology to ecology and evolution, makes cichlid fishes a fascinating research system.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Emília Santos
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| | - João F Lopes
- Institute of Biotechnology, HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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16
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Conith AJ, Hope SA, Albertson RC. Covariation of brain and skull shapes as a model to understand the role of crosstalk in development and evolution. Evol Dev 2023; 25:85-102. [PMID: 36377237 PMCID: PMC9839637 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Covariation among discrete phenotypes can arise due to selection for shared functions, and/or shared genetic and developmental underpinnings. The consequences of such phenotypic integration are far-reaching and can act to either facilitate or limit morphological variation. The vertebrate brain is known to act as an "organizer" of craniofacial development, secreting morphogens that can affect the shape of the growing neurocranium, consistent with roles for pleiotropy in brain-neurocranium covariation. Here, we test this hypothesis in cichlid fishes by first examining the degree of shape integration between the brain and the neurocranium using three-dimensional geometric morphometrics in an F5 hybrid population, and then genetically mapping trait covariation using quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis. We observe shape associations between the brain and the neurocranium, a pattern that holds even when we assess associations between the brain and constituent parts of the neurocranium: the rostrum and braincase. We also recover robust genetic signals for both hard- and soft-tissue traits and identify a genomic region where QTL for the brain and braincase overlap, implicating a role for pleiotropy in patterning trait covariation. Fine mapping of the overlapping genomic region identifies a candidate gene, notch1a, which is known to be involved in patterning skeletal and neural tissues during development. Taken together, these data offer a genetic hypothesis for brain-neurocranium covariation, as well as a potential mechanism by which behavioral shifts may simultaneously drive rapid change in neuroanatomy and craniofacial morphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J. Conith
- Biology Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01002,Corresponding authors: AJC: , RCA:
| | - Sylvie A. Hope
- Biology Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01002
| | - R. Craig Albertson
- Biology Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01002,Corresponding authors: AJC: , RCA:
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17
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Black CR, Armbruster JW. Chew on this: Oral jaw shape is not correlated with diet type in loricariid catfishes. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277102. [PMID: 36322589 PMCID: PMC9629652 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The correlation between form and function is influenced by biomechanical constraints, natural selection, and ecological interactions. In many species of suction-feeding fishes, jaw shape has shown to be closely associated with diet. However, these correlations have not been tested in fishes that have more complex jaw functions. For example, the neotropical loricariid catfishes possess a ventrally facing oral disk, which allows for the oral jaws to adhere to surfaces to conduct feeding. To determine if jaw shape is correlated to diet type, we assessed oral jaw shape across 36 species using CT scans. Shape was quantified with traditional and automated landmarking in 3DSlicer, and diet type correlation was calculated using the phylogenetic generalized least squares (PGLS) method. We found that traditional and automated processes captured shape effectively when all jaw components were combined. PGLS found that diet type did not correlate to jaw shape; however, there was a correlation between clades with diverse diets and fast evolutionary rates of shape. These results suggest that shape is not constrained to diet type, and that similarly shaped jaws coupled with different types of teeth could allow the fishes to feed on a wide range of materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corinthia R. Black
- Department Entomology National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution, Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America
- Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Jonathan W. Armbruster
- Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, United States of America
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18
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Black CR, Armbruster JW. Evolutionary integration and modularity in the diversity of the suckermouth armoured catfishes. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220713. [PMID: 36425524 PMCID: PMC9682303 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The evolution of morphological diversity has held a long-standing fascination among scientists. In particular, do bodies evolve as single, integrated units or do different body parts evolve semi-independently (modules)? Suckermouth armoured catfishes (Loricariidae) have a morphology that lends nicely to evolutionary modularity and integration studies. In addition to a ventrally facing oral jaw that directly contacts surfaces, the neurocranium and pectoral girdle are fused, which limits movement of the anterior part of the body. Functional constraints suggest it is likely the head and post-cranial body act as separate modules that can evolve independently. If true, one would expect to see a two- or three-module system where the head and post-cranial body are morphologically distinct. To test this hypothesis, we quantified shape using geometric morphometric analysis and assessed the degree of modularity across functionally important regions. We found the armoured catfish body is highly modularized, with varying degrees of integration between each module. Within subfamilies, there are different patterns of evolutionary modularity and integration, suggesting that the various patterns may have driven diversification along a single trajectory in each subfamily. This study suggests the evolution of armoured catfish diversification is complex, with morphological evolution influenced by interactions within and between modules.
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19
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Burress ED, Muñoz MM. Functional Trade-offs Asymmetrically Promote Phenotypic Evolution. Syst Biol 2022; 72:150-160. [PMID: 35961046 DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syac058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2021] [Revised: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Trade-offs are thought to bias evolution and are core features of many anatomical systems. Therefore, trade-offs may have far-reaching macroevolutionary consequences, including patterns of morphological, functional, and ecological diversity. Jaws, like many complex anatomical systems, are comprised of elements involved in biomechanical trade-offs. We test the impact of a core mechanical trade-off, transmission of velocity versus force (i.e., mechanical advantage), on rates of jaw evolution in Neotropical cichlids. Across 130 species representing a wide array of feeding ecologies, we find that the velocity-force trade-off impacts evolution of the surrounding jaw system. Specifically, rates of jaw evolution are faster at functional extremes than in more functionally intermediate or unspecialized jaws. Yet, surprisingly, the effect on jaw evolution is uneven across the extremes of the velocity-force continuum. Rates of jaw evolution are 4 to 10-fold faster in velocity-modified jaws, whereas force-modified jaws are 7 to 18-fold faster, compared to unspecialized jaws, depending on the extent of specialization. Further, we find that a more extreme mechanical trade-off resulted in faster rates of jaw evolution. The velocity-force trade-off reflects a gradient from specialization on capture-intensive (e.g., evasive or buried) to processing-intensive prey (e.g., attached or shelled), respectively. The velocity extreme of the trade-off is characterized by large magnitudes of trait change leading to functionally divergent specialists and ecological stasis. By contrast, the force extreme of the trade-off is characterized by enhanced ecological lability made possible by phenotypes more readily co-opted for different feeding ecologies. This asymmetry of macroevolutionary outcomes along each extreme is likely the result of an enhanced utility of the pharyngeal jaw system as force-modified oral jaws are adapted for prey that require intensive processing (e.g., algae, detritus, and molluscs). The velocity-force trade-off, a fundamental feature of many anatomical systems, promotes rapid phenotypic evolution of the surrounding jaw system in a canonical continental adaptive radiation. Considering that the velocity-force trade-off is an inherent feature of all jaw systems that involve a lower element that rotates at a joint, spanning the vast majority of vertebrates, our results may be widely applicable across the tree of life. [adaptive radiation; constraint; decoupling; jaws; macroevolution; specialization].
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward D Burress
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Martha M Muñoz
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
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20
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Ducos B, Bensimon D, Scerbo P. Vertebrate Cell Differentiation, Evolution, and Diseases: The Vertebrate-Specific Developmental Potential Guardians VENTX/ NANOG and POU5/ OCT4 Enter the Stage. Cells 2022; 11:cells11152299. [PMID: 35892595 PMCID: PMC9331430 DOI: 10.3390/cells11152299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
During vertebrate development, embryonic cells pass through a continuum of transitory pluripotent states that precede multi-lineage commitment and morphogenesis. Such states are referred to as “refractory/naïve” and “competent/formative” pluripotency. The molecular mechanisms maintaining refractory pluripotency or driving the transition to competent pluripotency, as well as the cues regulating multi-lineage commitment, are evolutionarily conserved. Vertebrate-specific “Developmental Potential Guardians” (vsDPGs; i.e., VENTX/NANOG, POU5/OCT4), together with MEK1 (MAP2K1), coordinate the pluripotency continuum, competence for multi-lineage commitment and morphogenesis in vivo. During neurulation, vsDPGs empower ectodermal cells of the neuro-epithelial border (NEB) with multipotency and ectomesenchyme potential through an “endogenous reprogramming” process, giving rise to the neural crest cells (NCCs). Furthermore, vsDPGs are expressed in undifferentiated-bipotent neuro-mesodermal progenitor cells (NMPs), which participate in posterior axis elongation and growth. Finally, vsDPGs are involved in carcinogenesis, whereby they confer selective advantage to cancer stem cells (CSCs) and therapeutic resistance. Intriguingly, the heterogenous distribution of vsDPGs in these cell types impact on cellular potential and features. Here, we summarize the findings about the role of vsDPGs during vertebrate development and their selective advantage in evolution. Our aim to present a holistic view regarding vsDPGs as facilitators of both cell plasticity/adaptability and morphological innovation/variation. Moreover, vsDPGs may also be at the heart of carcinogenesis by allowing malignant cells to escape from physiological constraints and surveillance mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bertrand Ducos
- LPENS, PSL, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
- IBENS, PSL, CNRS, 46 rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
- High Throughput qPCR Core Facility, ENS, PSL, 46 rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
- Correspondence: (B.D.); (D.B.); (P.S.)
| | - David Bensimon
- LPENS, PSL, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
- IBENS, PSL, CNRS, 46 rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90094, USA
- Correspondence: (B.D.); (D.B.); (P.S.)
| | - Pierluigi Scerbo
- LPENS, PSL, CNRS, 24 rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France
- IBENS, PSL, CNRS, 46 rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
- Correspondence: (B.D.); (D.B.); (P.S.)
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21
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Feller AF, Seehausen O. Genetic architecture of adaptive radiation across two trophic levels. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220377. [PMID: 35506225 PMCID: PMC9065965 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Evolution of trophic diversity is a hallmark of adaptive radiation. Yet, transitions between carnivory and herbivory are rare in young adaptive radiations. Haplochromine cichlid fish of the African Great Lakes are exceptional in this regard. Lake Victoria was colonized by an insectivorous generalist and in less than 20 000 years, several clades of specialized herbivores evolved. Carnivorous versus herbivorous lifestyles in cichlids require many different adaptations in functional morphology, physiology and behaviour. Ecological transitions in either direction thus require many traits to change in a concerted fashion, which could be facilitated if genomic regions underlying these traits were physically linked or pleiotropic. However, linkage/pleiotropy could also constrain evolvability. To investigate components of the genetic architecture of a suite of traits that distinguish invertivores from algae scrapers, we performed quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping using a second-generation hybrid cross. While we found indications of linkage/pleiotropy within trait complexes, QTLs for distinct traits were distributed across several unlinked genomic regions. Thus, a mixture of independently segregating variation and some pleiotropy may underpin the rapid trophic transitions. We argue that the emergence and maintenance of associations between the different genomic regions underpinning co-adapted traits that evolved and persist against some gene flow required reproductive isolation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna F. Feller
- Division of Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, 3012 Bern, Switzerland,Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry (CEEB), Eawag Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Seestrasse 79, 6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Ole Seehausen
- Division of Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, 3012 Bern, Switzerland,Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry (CEEB), Eawag Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Seestrasse 79, 6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
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22
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Burress ED, Piálek L, Casciotta J, Almirón A, Říčan O. Rapid Parallel Morphological and Mechanical Diversification of South American Pike Cichlids (Crenicichla). Syst Biol 2022; 72:120-133. [PMID: 35244182 DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syac018] [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: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Explosive bouts of diversification are one of the most conspicuous features of the tree of life. When such bursts are repeated in similar environments it suggests some degree of predictability in the evolutionary process. We assess parallel adaptive radiation of South American pike cichlids (Crenicichla) using phylogenomics and phylogenetic comparative methods. We find that species flocks in the Uruguay and Iguazú River basins rapidly diversified into the same set of ecomorphs that reflect feeding ecology. Both adaptive radiations involve expansion of functional morphology, resulting in unique jaw phenotypes. Yet, form and function were decoupled such that most ecomorphs share similar mechanical properties of the jaws (i.e., jaw motion during a feeding strike). Prey mobility explained six to nine-fold differences in the rate of morphological evolution, but had no effect on the rate of mechanical evolution. We find no evidence of gene flow between species flocks or with surrounding coastal lineages that may explain their rapid diversification. When compared to cichlids of the East African Great Lakes and other prominent adaptive radiations, pike cichlids share many themes, including rapid expansion of phenotypic diversity, specialization along the benthic-to-pelagic habitat and soft-to-hard prey axes, and the evolution of conspicuous functional innovations. Yet, decoupled evolution of form and function and the absence of hybridization as a catalyzing force are departures from patterns observed in other adaptive radiations. Many-to-one mapping of morphology to mechanical properties is a mechanism by which pike cichlids exhibit a diversity of feeding ecologies while avoiding exacerbating underlying mechanical trade-offs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward D Burress
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Lubomír Piálek
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 370 05 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Jorge Casciotta
- División Zoología Vertebrados, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo,UNLP, Paseo del Bosque, 1900 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,CIC,Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Adriana Almirón
- División Zoología Vertebrados, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo,UNLP, Paseo del Bosque, 1900 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Oldřich Říčan
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 370 05 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
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23
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Conith AJ, Meagher MA, Dumont ER. The influence of divergent reproductive strategies in shaping modularity and morphological evolution in mammalian jaws. J Evol Biol 2021; 35:164-179. [PMID: 34624153 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Marsupial neonates are born at an earlier developmental stage than placental mammals, but the rapid development of their forelimbs and cranial skeleton allows them to climb to the pouch, begin suckling and complete their development ex utero. The mechanical environment in which marsupial neonates develop is vastly different from that of placental neonates, which exhibit a more protracted development of oral muscles and bones. This difference in reproductive strategy has been theorized to constrain morphological evolution in the oral region of marsupials. Here, we use 3D morphometrics to characterize one of these oral bones, the lower jaw (dentary), and assess modularity (pattern of covariation among traits), morphological disparity and rates of morphological evolution in two clades of carnivorous mammals: the marsupial Dasyuromorphia and placental fissiped Carnivora. We find that dasyuromorph dentaries have fewer modules than carnivorans and exhibit tight covariation between the angular and coronoid processes, the primary attachment sites for jaw-closing muscles. This pattern of modularity may result from the uniform action of muscles on the developing mandible during suckling. Carnivorans are free from this constraint and exhibit a pattern of modularity that more strongly reflects genetic and developmental signals of trait covariation. Alongside differences in modularity, carnivorans exhibit greater disparity and faster rates of morphological evolution compared with dasyuromorphs. Taken together, this suggests dasyuromorphs have retained a signal of trait covariation that reflects the outsized influence of muscular force during early development, a feature that may have impacted the ability of marsupial carnivores to explore specialized regions of morphospace.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J Conith
- Biology Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Molly A Meagher
- Natural Resources Conservation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Elizabeth R Dumont
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of California, Merced, California, USA
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