1
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Moreno JA, Dudchenko O, Feigin CY, Mereby SA, Chen Z, Ramos R, Almet AA, Sen H, Brack BJ, Johnson MR, Li S, Wang W, Gaska JM, Ploss A, Weisz D, Omer AD, Yao W, Colaric Z, Kaur P, Leger JS, Nie Q, Mena A, Flanagan JP, Keller G, Sanger T, Ostrow B, Plikus MV, Kvon EZ, Aiden EL, Mallarino R. Emx2 underlies the development and evolution of marsupial gliding membranes. Nature 2024; 629:127-135. [PMID: 38658750 PMCID: PMC11062917 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07305-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Phenotypic variation among species is a product of evolutionary changes to developmental programs1,2. However, how these changes generate novel morphological traits remains largely unclear. Here we studied the genomic and developmental basis of the mammalian gliding membrane, or patagium-an adaptative trait that has repeatedly evolved in different lineages, including in closely related marsupial species. Through comparative genomic analysis of 15 marsupial genomes, both from gliding and non-gliding species, we find that the Emx2 locus experienced lineage-specific patterns of accelerated cis-regulatory evolution in gliding species. By combining epigenomics, transcriptomics and in-pouch marsupial transgenics, we show that Emx2 is a critical upstream regulator of patagium development. Moreover, we identify different cis-regulatory elements that may be responsible for driving increased Emx2 expression levels in gliding species. Lastly, using mouse functional experiments, we find evidence that Emx2 expression patterns in gliders may have been modified from a pre-existing program found in all mammals. Together, our results suggest that patagia repeatedly originated through a process of convergent genomic evolution, whereby regulation of Emx2 was altered by distinct cis-regulatory elements in independently evolved species. Thus, different regulatory elements targeting the same key developmental gene may constitute an effective strategy by which natural selection has harnessed regulatory evolution in marsupial genomes to generate phenotypic novelty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge A Moreno
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO, USA
| | - Olga Dudchenko
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- The Center for Theoretical Biological Physics, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Charles Y Feigin
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Department of Environment and Genetics, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia
| | - Sarah A Mereby
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Zhuoxin Chen
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Raul Ramos
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Axel A Almet
- Department of Mathematics, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Research, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Harsha Sen
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Benjamin J Brack
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Matthew R Johnson
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Sha Li
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Wei Wang
- Lewis Sigler Center for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Jenna M Gaska
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Alexander Ploss
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - David Weisz
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Arina D Omer
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Weijie Yao
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Zane Colaric
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Parwinder Kaur
- The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Judy St Leger
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Qing Nie
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- Department of Mathematics, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Research, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- Center for Complex Biological Systems, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Greta Keller
- Department of Biology, Loyola University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Thomas Sanger
- Department of Biology, Loyola University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Bruce Ostrow
- Department of Biology, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI, USA
| | - Maksim V Plikus
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Evgeny Z Kvon
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Erez Lieberman Aiden
- The Center for Genome Architecture, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
- The Center for Theoretical Biological Physics, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA.
| | - Ricardo Mallarino
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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2
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Liu GM, Pan Q, Du J, Zhu PF, Liu WQ, Li ZH, Wang L, Hu CY, Dai YC, Zhang XX, Zhang Z, Yu Y, Li M, Wang PC, Wang X, Li M, Zhou XM. Improved mammalian family phylogeny using gap-rare multiple sequence alignment: A timetree of extant placentals and marsupials. Zool Res 2023; 44:1064-1079. [PMID: 37914522 PMCID: PMC10802097 DOI: 10.24272/j.issn.2095-8137.2023.189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The timing of mammalian diversification in relation to the Cretaceous-Paleogene (KPg) mass extinction continues to be a subject of substantial debate. Previous studies have either focused on limited taxonomic samples with available whole-genome data or relied on short sequence alignments coupled with extensive species samples. In the present study, we improved an existing dataset from the landmark study of Meredith et al. (2011) by filling in missing fragments and further generated another dataset containing 120 taxa and 98 exonic markers. Using these two datasets, we then constructed phylogenies for extant mammalian families, providing improved resolution of many conflicting relationships. Moreover, the timetrees generated, which were calibrated using appropriate molecular clock models and multiple fossil records, indicated that the interordinal diversification of placental mammals initiated before the Late Cretaceous period. Additionally, intraordinal diversification of both extant placental and marsupial lineages accelerated after the KPg boundary, supporting the hypothesis that the availability of numerous vacant ecological niches subsequent to the mass extinction event facilitated rapid diversification. Thus, our results support a scenario of placental radiation characterized by both basal cladogenesis and active interordinal divergences spanning from the Late Cretaceous into the Paleogene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gao-Ming Liu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Qi Pan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Juan Du
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Ping-Fen Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Wei-Qiang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zi-Hao Li
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Ling Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chun-Yan Hu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yi-Chen Dai
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Xiao-Xiao Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yang Yu
- School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Meng Li
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Peng-Cheng Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210023, China
| | - Xiao Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Ming Li
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Xu-Ming Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. E-mail:
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3
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Doronina L, Ogoniak L, Schmitz J. Homoplasy of Retrotransposon Insertions in Toothed Whales. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:1830. [PMID: 37761970 PMCID: PMC10531181 DOI: 10.3390/genes14091830] [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: 09/01/2023] [Revised: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Retrotransposon insertion patterns facilitate a virtually homoplasy-free picture of phylogenetic history. Still, a few most likely random parallel insertions or deletions result in rare cases of homoplasy in primates. The following question arises: how frequent is retrotransposon homoplasy in other phylogenetic clades? Here, we derived genome insertion data of toothed whales to evaluate the extension of homoplasy in a representative laurasiatherian group. Among more than a thousand extracted and aligned retrotransposon loci, we detected 37 cases of precise parallel insertions in species that are separated by over more than 10 million years, a time frame which minimizes the effects of incomplete lineage sorting. We compared the phylogenetic signal of insertions with the flanking sequences of these loci to further exclude potential polymorphic loci derived by incomplete lineage sorting. We found that the phylogenetic signals of retrotransposon insertion patterns exhibiting true homoplasy differ from the signals of their flanking sequences. In toothed whales, precise parallel insertions account for around 0.18-0.29% of insertion cases, which is about 12.5 times the frequency of such insertions among Alus in primates. We also detected five specific deletions of retrotransposons on various lineages of toothed whale evolution, a frequency of 0.003%, which is slightly higher than such occurrences in primates. Overall, the level of retrotransposon homoplasy in toothed whales is still marginal compared to the phylogenetic diagnostic retrotransposon presence/absence signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liliya Doronina
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany;
- Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Lynn Ogoniak
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany;
| | - Jürgen Schmitz
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany;
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4
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Doronina L, Reising O, Clawson H, Churakov G, Schmitz J. Euarchontoglires Challenged by Incomplete Lineage Sorting. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:774. [PMID: 35627160 PMCID: PMC9141288 DOI: 10.3390/genes13050774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2022] [Revised: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Euarchontoglires, once described as Supraprimates, comprise primates, colugos, tree shrews, rodents, and lagomorphs in a clade that evolved about 90 million years ago (mya) from a shared ancestor with Laurasiatheria. The rapid speciation of groups within Euarchontoglires, and the subsequent inherent incomplete marker fixation in ancestral lineages, led to challenged attempts at phylogenetic reconstructions, particularly for the phylogenetic position of tree shrews. To resolve this conundrum, we sampled genome-wide presence/absence patterns of transposed elements (TEs) from all representatives of Euarchontoglires. This specific marker system has the advantage that phylogenetic diagnostic characters can be extracted in a nearly unbiased fashion genome-wide from reference genomes. Their insertions are virtually free of homoplasy. We simultaneously employed two computational tools, the genome presence/absence compiler (GPAC) and 2-n-way, to find a maximum of diagnostic insertions from more than 3 million TE positions. From 361 extracted diagnostic TEs, 132 provide significant support for the current resolution of Primatomorpha (Primates plus Dermoptera), 94 support the union of Euarchonta (Primates, Dermoptera, plus Scandentia), and 135 marker insertion patterns support a variety of alternative phylogenetic scenarios. Thus, whole genome-level analysis and a virtually homoplasy-free marker system offer an opportunity to finally resolve the notorious phylogenetic challenges that nature produces in rapidly diversifying groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liliya Doronina
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany; (O.R.); (G.C.); (J.S.)
| | - Olga Reising
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany; (O.R.); (G.C.); (J.S.)
| | - Hiram Clawson
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA;
| | - Gennady Churakov
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany; (O.R.); (G.C.); (J.S.)
| | - Jürgen Schmitz
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany; (O.R.); (G.C.); (J.S.)
- EvoPAD-RTG, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
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5
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Doronina L, Hughes GM, Moreno-Santillan D, Lawless C, Lonergan T, Ryan L, Jebb D, Kirilenko BM, Korstian JM, Dávalos LM, Vernes SC, Myers EW, Teeling EC, Hiller M, Jermiin LS, Schmitz J, Springer MS, Ray DA. Contradictory Phylogenetic Signals in the Laurasiatheria Anomaly Zone. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:766. [PMID: 35627151 PMCID: PMC9141728 DOI: 10.3390/genes13050766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2022] [Revised: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Relationships among laurasiatherian clades represent one of the most highly disputed topics in mammalian phylogeny. In this study, we attempt to disentangle laurasiatherian interordinal relationships using two independent genome-level approaches: (1) quantifying retrotransposon presence/absence patterns, and (2) comparisons of exon datasets at the levels of nucleotides and amino acids. The two approaches revealed contradictory phylogenetic signals, possibly due to a high level of ancestral incomplete lineage sorting. The positions of Eulipotyphla and Chiroptera as the first and second earliest divergences were consistent across the approaches. However, the phylogenetic relationships of Perissodactyla, Cetartiodactyla, and Ferae, were contradictory. While retrotransposon insertion analyses suggest a clade with Cetartiodactyla and Ferae, the exon dataset favoured Cetartiodactyla and Perissodactyla. Future analyses of hitherto unsampled laurasiatherian lineages and synergistic analyses of retrotransposon insertions, exon and conserved intron/intergenic sequences might unravel the conflicting patterns of relationships in this major mammalian clade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liliya Doronina
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany;
| | - Graham M. Hughes
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
| | - Diana Moreno-Santillan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (D.M.-S.); (J.M.K.)
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 92697, USA
| | - Colleen Lawless
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
| | - Tadhg Lonergan
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
| | - Louise Ryan
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
| | - David Jebb
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (D.J.); (E.W.M.)
- Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, 01187 Dresden, Germany
- Center for Systems Biology Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Bogdan M. Kirilenko
- LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany; (B.M.K.); (M.H.)
- Senckenberg Research Institute, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
- Faculty of Biosciences, Goethe-University, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Jennifer M. Korstian
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (D.M.-S.); (J.M.K.)
| | - Liliana M. Dávalos
- Department of Ecology and Evolution and Consortium for Inter—Disciplinary Environmental Research, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA;
| | - Sonja C. Vernes
- School of Biology, The University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9ST, UK;
- Neurogenetics of Vocal Communication Group, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, 6525 Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Eugene W. Myers
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (D.J.); (E.W.M.)
- Faculty of Computer Science, Technical University Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
- The Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Emma C. Teeling
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
| | - Michael Hiller
- LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany; (B.M.K.); (M.H.)
- Senckenberg Research Institute, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
- Faculty of Biosciences, Goethe-University, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Lars S. Jermiin
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland; (C.L.); (T.L.); (L.R.); (E.C.T.); (L.S.J.)
- Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
- Earth Institute, University College Dublin, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jürgen Schmitz
- Institute of Experimental Pathology, ZMBE, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany;
| | - Mark S. Springer
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, USA;
| | - David A. Ray
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (D.M.-S.); (J.M.K.)
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