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Islam S, Peart C, Kehlmaier C, Sun YH, Lei F, Dahl A, Klemroth S, Alexopoulou D, Del Mar Delgado M, Laiolo P, Carlos Illera J, Dirren S, Hille S, Lkhagvasuren D, Töpfer T, Kaiser M, Gebauer A, Martens J, Paetzold C, Päckert M. Museomics help resolving the phylogeny of snowfinches (Aves, Passeridae, Montifringilla and allies). Mol Phylogenet Evol 2024; 198:108135. [PMID: 38925425 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2024.108135] [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: 06/01/2023] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 06/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Historical specimens from museum collections provide a valuable source of material also from remote areas or regions of conflict that are not easily accessible to scientists today. With this study, we are providing a taxon-complete phylogeny of snowfinches using historical DNA from whole skins of an endemic species from Afghanistan, the Afghan snowfinch, Pyrgilauda theresae. To resolve the strong conflict between previous phylogenetic hypotheses, we generated novel mitogenome sequences for selected taxa and genome-wide SNP data using ddRAD sequencing for all extant snowfinch species endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) and for an extended intraspecific sampling of the sole Central and Western Palearctic snowfinch species (Montifringilla nivalis). Our phylogenetic reconstructions unanimously refuted the previously suggested paraphyly of genus Pyrgilauda. Misplacement of one species-level taxon (Onychostruthus tazcanowskii) in previous snowfinch phylogenies was undoubtedly inferred from chimeric mitogenomes that included heterospecific sequence information. Furthermore, comparison of novel and previously generated sequence data showed that the presumed sister-group relationship between M. nivalis and the QTP endemic M. henrici was suggested based on flawed taxonomy. Our phylogenetic reconstructions based on genome-wide SNP data and on mitogenomes were largely congruent and supported reciprocal monophyly of genera Montifringilla and Pyrgilauda with monotypic Onychostruthus being sister to the latter. The Afghan endemic P. theresae likely originated from a rather ancient Pliocene out-of-Tibet dispersal probably from a common ancestor with P. ruficollis. Our extended trans-Palearctic sampling for the white-winged snowfinch, M. nivalis, confirmed strong lineage divergence between an Asian and a European clade dated to 1.5 - 2.7 million years ago (mya). Genome-wide SNP data suggested subtle divergence among European samples from the Alps and from the Cantabrian mountains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Safiqul Islam
- Senckenberg Natural History Collections, Museum of Zoology, Königsbrücker Landstraße 159, 01109 Dresden, Germany; Max Planck-Genome-Centre Cologne, Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Carl-von-Linne-Weg 10, 50829 Köln, Germany; Division of Systematic Zoology, Faculty of Biology, LMU Munich, Biocenter, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Claire Peart
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Faculty of Biology, LMU Munich, Biocenter, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Christian Kehlmaier
- Senckenberg Natural History Collections, Museum of Zoology, Königsbrücker Landstraße 159, 01109 Dresden, Germany
| | - Yue-Hua Sun
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Fumin Lei
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Andreas Dahl
- Dresden-Concept Genome Center, c/o Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering (CMCB), Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 105, 1307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Sylvia Klemroth
- Dresden-Concept Genome Center, c/o Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering (CMCB), Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 105, 1307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Dimitra Alexopoulou
- Dresden-Concept Genome Center, c/o Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering (CMCB), Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 105, 1307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Maria Del Mar Delgado
- Biodiversity Research Institute (IMIB, Universidad de Oviedo, CSIC, Principality of Asturias) - Campus de Mieres, Edificio de Investigación - 5ª planta, C. Gonzalo Gutiérrez Quirós s/n, 33600 Mieres, Spain
| | - Paola Laiolo
- Biodiversity Research Institute (IMIB, Universidad de Oviedo, CSIC, Principality of Asturias) - Campus de Mieres, Edificio de Investigación - 5ª planta, C. Gonzalo Gutiérrez Quirós s/n, 33600 Mieres, Spain
| | - Juan Carlos Illera
- Biodiversity Research Institute (IMIB, Universidad de Oviedo, CSIC, Principality of Asturias) - Campus de Mieres, Edificio de Investigación - 5ª planta, C. Gonzalo Gutiérrez Quirós s/n, 33600 Mieres, Spain
| | | | - Sabine Hille
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Gregor Mendel-Strasse 33, 1180 Vienna, Austria
| | - Davaa Lkhagvasuren
- Department of Biology, School of Arts and Sciences, National University of Mongolia, P.O.Box 46A-546, Ulaanbaatar 210646, Mongolia
| | - Till Töpfer
- Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change, Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig, Adenauerallee, Bonn, Germany
| | | | | | - Jochen Martens
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution (iomE), Johannes Gutenberg University, 55099 Mainz, Germany
| | - Claudia Paetzold
- Senckenberg Natural History Collections, Museum of Zoology, Königsbrücker Landstraße 159, 01109 Dresden, Germany
| | - Martin Päckert
- Senckenberg Natural History Collections, Museum of Zoology, Königsbrücker Landstraße 159, 01109 Dresden, Germany.
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Wang D, Rastas P, Yi X, Löytynoja A, Kivikoski M, Feng X, Reid K, Merilä J. Improved assembly of the Pungitius pungitius reference genome. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2024; 14:jkae126. [PMID: 38861393 PMCID: PMC11304971 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkae126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Revised: 05/23/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024]
Abstract
The nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) has been increasingly used as a model system in studies of local adaptation and sex chromosome evolution but its current reference genome assembly is far from perfect, lacking distinct sex chromosomes. We generated an improved assembly of the nine-spined stickleback reference genome (98.3% BUSCO completeness) with the aid of linked-read mapping. While the new assembly (v8) was of similar size as the earlier version (v7), we were able to assign 4.4 times more contigs to the linkage groups and improve the contiguity of the genome. Moreover, the new assembly contains a ∼22.8 Mb Y-linked scaffold (LG22) consisting mainly of previously assigned X-contigs, putative Y-contigs, putative centromere contigs, and highly repetitive elements. The male individual showed an even mapping depth on LG12 (pseudo X chromosome) and LG22 (Y-linked scaffold) in the segregating sites, suggesting near-pure X and Y representation in the v8 assembly. A total of 26,803 genes were annotated, and about 33% of the assembly was found to consist of repetitive elements. The high proportion of repetitive elements in LG22 (53.10%) suggests it can be difficult to assemble the complete sequence of the species' Y chromosome. Nevertheless, the new assembly is a significant improvement over the previous version and should provide a valuable resource for genomic studies of stickleback fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dandan Wang
- Area of Ecology and Biodiversity, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, 999077, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Pasi Rastas
- Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Xueling Yi
- Area of Ecology and Biodiversity, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, 999077, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Ari Löytynoja
- Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Mikko Kivikoski
- Ecological Genetics Research Unit, Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
- Department of Computer Science, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Xueyun Feng
- Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
- Ecological Genetics Research Unit, Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Kerry Reid
- Area of Ecology and Biodiversity, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, 999077, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Juha Merilä
- Area of Ecology and Biodiversity, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, 999077, Hong Kong SAR
- Ecological Genetics Research Unit, Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
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Coombes B, Lux T, Akhunov E, Hall A. Introgressions lead to reference bias in wheat RNA-seq analysis. BMC Biol 2024; 22:56. [PMID: 38454464 PMCID: PMC10921782 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-024-01853-w] [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: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND RNA-seq is a fundamental technique in genomics, yet reference bias, where transcripts derived from non-reference alleles are quantified less accurately, can undermine the accuracy of RNA-seq quantification and thus the conclusions made downstream. Reference bias in RNA-seq analysis has yet to be explored in complex polyploid genomes despite evidence that they are often a complex mosaic of wild relative introgressions, which introduce blocks of highly divergent genes. RESULTS Here we use hexaploid wheat as a model complex polyploid, using both simulated and experimental data to show that RNA-seq alignment in wheat suffers from widespread reference bias which is largely driven by divergent introgressed genes. This leads to underestimation of gene expression and incorrect assessment of homoeologue expression balance. By incorporating gene models from ten wheat genome assemblies into a pantranscriptome reference, we present a novel method to reduce reference bias, which can be readily scaled to capture more variation as new genome and transcriptome data becomes available. CONCLUSIONS This study shows that the presence of introgressions can lead to reference bias in wheat RNA-seq analysis. Caution should be exercised by researchers using non-sample reference genomes for RNA-seq alignment and novel methods, such as the one presented here, should be considered.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Thomas Lux
- Plant Genome and Systems Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Eduard Akhunov
- Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA
| | - Anthony Hall
- Earlham Institute, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 7UZ, UK.
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