1
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Smith BH. Mammalian Life History: Weaning and Tooth Emergence in a Seasonal World. BIOLOGY 2024; 13:612. [PMID: 39194550 DOI: 10.3390/biology13080612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2024] [Revised: 08/06/2024] [Accepted: 08/08/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
The young of toothed mammals must have teeth to reach feeding independence. How tooth eruption integrates with gestation, birth and weaning is examined in a life-history perspective for 71 species of placental mammals. Questions developed from high-quality primate data are then addressed in the total sample. Rather than correlation, comparisons focus on equivalence, sequence, the relation to absolutes (six months, one year), the distribution of error and adaptive extremes. These mammals differ widely at birth, from no teeth to all deciduous teeth emerging, but commonalities appear when infants transit to independent feeding. Weaning follows completion of the deciduous dentition, closest in time to emergence of the first permanent molars and well before second molars emerge. Another layer of meaning appears when developmental age is counted from conception because the total time to produce young feeding independently comes up against seasonal boundaries that are costly to cross for reproductive fitness. Mammals of a vast range of sizes and taxa, from squirrel monkey to moose, hold conception-to-first molars in just under one year. Integrating tooth emergence into life history gives insight into living mammals and builds a framework for interpreting the fossil record.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Holly Smith
- Museum of Anthropological Archaeology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
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2
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Danis T, Rokas A. The evolution of gestation length in eutherian mammals. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.22.563491. [PMID: 37961105 PMCID: PMC10634735 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.22.563491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Gestation length, or the duration of pregnancy, is a critical component of mammalian reproductive biology1. Eutherian mammals exhibit striking variation in their gestation lengths2-5, which has traditionally been linked to and allometrically scales with variation in other life history traits, including body mass and lifespan5-8. How the phenotypic landscape of gestation length variation, including its associations with body mass and lifespan variation, changed over mammalian evolution remains unknown. Phylogeny-informed analyses of 845 representative extant eutherian mammals showed that gestation length variation substantially differed in both whether and how strongly it was associated with body mass and lifespan across mammalian clades. For example, gestation length variation in Chiroptera and Cetacea was not associated with lifespan or body mass but was strongly associated only with body mass in Carnivora. We also identified 52 adaptive shifts in gestation length variation across the mammal phylogeny and 14 adaptive shifts when considering all three life history traits; the placements of six adaptive shifts are common in the two analyses. Notably, two of these shifts occurred at the roots of Cetacea and Pinnipedia, respectively, coinciding with the transition of these clades to the marine environment. The varying dynamics of the phenotypic landscape of gestation length, coupled with the varying patterns of associations between gestation length and two other major life history traits, raise the hypothesis that evolutionary constraints on gestation length have varied substantially across mammalian phylogeny. This variation in constraints implies that the genetic architecture of gestation length differs between mammal clades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thodoris Danis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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3
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White HE, Tucker AS, Fernandez V, Portela Miguez R, Hautier L, Herrel A, Urban DJ, Sears KE, Goswami A. Pedomorphosis in the ancestry of marsupial mammals. Curr Biol 2023:S0960-9822(23)00457-8. [PMID: 37119816 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.009] [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: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 02/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/01/2023]
Abstract
Within mammals, different reproductive strategies (e.g., egg laying, live birth of extremely underdeveloped young, and live birth of well-developed young) have been linked to divergent evolutionary histories. How and when developmental variation across mammals arose is unclear. While egg laying is unquestionably considered the ancestral state for all mammals, many long-standing biases treat the extreme underdeveloped state of marsupial young as the ancestral state for therian mammals (clade including both marsupials and placentals), with the well-developed young of placentals often considered the derived mode of development. Here, we quantify mammalian cranial morphological development and estimate ancestral patterns of cranial shape development using geometric morphometric analysis of the largest comparative ontogenetic dataset of mammals to date (165 specimens, 22 species). We identify a conserved region of cranial morphospace for fetal specimens, after which cranial morphology diversified through ontogeny in a cone-shaped pattern. This cone-shaped pattern of development distinctively reflected the upper half of the developmental hourglass model. Moreover, cranial morphological variation was found to be significantly associated with the level of development (position on the altricial-precocial spectrum) exhibited at birth. Estimation of ancestral state allometry (size-related shape change) reconstructs marsupials as pedomorphic relative to the ancestral therian mammal. In contrast, the estimated allometries for the ancestral placental and ancestral therian were indistinguishable. Thus, from our results, we hypothesize that placental mammal cranial development most closely reflects that of the ancestral therian mammal, while marsupial cranial development represents a more derived mode of mammalian development, in stark contrast to many interpretations of mammalian evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather E White
- Science Department, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK; Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology, King's College London, Great Maze Pond, London SE1 9RT, UK; Division of Biosciences, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6DE, UK.
| | - Abigail S Tucker
- Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology, King's College London, Great Maze Pond, London SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Vincent Fernandez
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, 71 rue des Martyrs, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | | | - Lionel Hautier
- Science Department, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK; Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Montpellier 34095, France
| | - Anthony Herrel
- UMR 7179, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Département Adaptations du Vivant, 55 rue Buffon, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Daniel J Urban
- Institute of Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Karen E Sears
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Anjali Goswami
- Science Department, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK; Division of Biosciences, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6DE, UK
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4
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Funston GF, dePolo PE, Sliwinski JT, Dumont M, Shelley SL, Pichevin LE, Cayzer NJ, Wible JR, Williamson TE, Rae JWB, Brusatte SL. The origin of placental mammal life histories. Nature 2022; 610:107-111. [PMID: 36045293 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05150-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
After the end-Cretaceous extinction, placental mammals quickly diversified1, occupied key ecological niches2,3 and increased in size4,5, but this last was not true of other therians6. The uniquely extended gestation of placental young7 may have factored into their success and size increase8, but reproduction style in early placentals remains unknown. Here we present the earliest record of a placental life history using palaeohistology and geochemistry, in a 62 million-year-old pantodont, the clade including the first mammals to achieve truly large body sizes. We extend the application of dental trace element mapping9,10 by 60 million years, identifying chemical markers of birth and weaning, and calibrate these to a daily record of growth in the dentition. A long gestation (approximately 7 months), rapid dental development and short suckling interval (approximately 30-75 days) show that Pantolambda bathmodon was highly precocial, unlike non-placental mammals and known Mesozoic precursors. These results demonstrate that P. bathmodon reproduced like a placental and lived at a fast pace for its body size. Assuming that P. bathmodon reflects close placental relatives, our findings suggest that the ability to produce well-developed, precocial young was established early in placental evolution, and that larger neonate sizes were a possible mechanism for rapid size increase in early placentals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory F Funston
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. .,Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
| | - Paige E dePolo
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Jakub T Sliwinski
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Matthew Dumont
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Sarah L Shelley
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Nicola J Cayzer
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - John R Wible
- Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | | | - James W B Rae
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
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5
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Weaver LN, Fulghum HZ, Grossnickle DM, Brightly WH, Kulik ZT, Wilson Mantilla GP, Whitney MR. Multituberculate Mammals Show Evidence of a Life History Strategy Similar to That of Placentals, Not Marsupials. Am Nat 2022; 200:383-400. [DOI: 10.1086/720410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lucas N. Weaver
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Henry Z. Fulghum
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - David M. Grossnickle
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - William H. Brightly
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Zoe T. Kulik
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Gregory P. Wilson Mantilla
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Megan R. Whitney
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, Washington 98195
- Museum of Comparative Zoology and Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
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6
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Stadtmauer DJ, Wagner GP. The Primacy of Maternal Innovations to the Evolution of Embryo Implantation. Integr Comp Biol 2021; 60:742-752. [PMID: 32525521 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icaa030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Embryo implantation is a hallmark of the female reproductive biology of eutherian (placental) mammals and does not exist in a sustainable form in any other vertebrate group. Implantation is the initial process that leads to a sustained fetal-maternal unit engendering a complex functional relationship between the mother and the embryo/fetus. The nature of this relationship is often portrayed as one of conflict between an aggressive embryo and a passive or defensive maternal organism. Recent progress in elucidating the evolutionary origin of eutherian pregnancy leads to a different picture. The emerging scenario suggests that the very initial stages in the evolution of embryo implantation required evolutionary changes to the maternal physiology which modified an ancestral generic mucosal inflammation in response to the presence of the embryo into an active embedding process. This "female-first" evolutionary scenario also explains the role of endometrial receptivity in human pregnancy. On the marsupial side, where in most animals the fetal-maternal interaction is short and does not lead to a long term sustainable placentation, the relationship is mutual. In these mammals, uterine inflammation is followed by parturition in short order. The inflammatory signaling pathways, however, are cooperative, i.e., they are performed by both the fetus and the mother and therefore we call this relationship "cooperative inflammation." Based on these discoveries we reconceive the narrative of the maternal-fetal relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J Stadtmauer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.,Yale Systems Biology Institute, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Günter P Wagner
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.,Yale Systems Biology Institute, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.,Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.,Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA
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7
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White HE, Goswami A, Tucker AS. The Intertwined Evolution and Development of Sutures and Cranial Morphology. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:653579. [PMID: 33842480 PMCID: PMC8033035 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.653579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic variation across mammals is extensive and reflects their ecological diversification into a remarkable range of habitats on every continent and in every ocean. The skull performs many functions to enable each species to thrive within its unique ecological niche, from prey acquisition, feeding, sensory capture (supporting vision and hearing) to brain protection. Diversity of skull function is reflected by its complex and highly variable morphology. Cranial morphology can be quantified using geometric morphometric techniques to offer invaluable insights into evolutionary patterns, ecomorphology, development, taxonomy, and phylogenetics. Therefore, the skull is one of the best suited skeletal elements for developmental and evolutionary analyses. In contrast, less attention is dedicated to the fibrous sutural joints separating the cranial bones. Throughout postnatal craniofacial development, sutures function as sites of bone growth, accommodating expansion of a growing brain. As growth frontiers, cranial sutures are actively responsible for the size and shape of the cranial bones, with overall skull shape being altered by changes to both the level and time period of activity of a given cranial suture. In keeping with this, pathological premature closure of sutures postnatally causes profound misshaping of the skull (craniosynostosis). Beyond this crucial role, sutures also function postnatally to provide locomotive shock absorption, allow joint mobility during feeding, and, in later postnatal stages, suture fusion acts to protect the developed brain. All these sutural functions have a clear impact on overall cranial function, development and morphology, and highlight the importance that patterns of suture development have in shaping the diversity of cranial morphology across taxa. Here we focus on the mammalian cranial system and review the intrinsic relationship between suture development and morphology and cranial shape from an evolutionary developmental biology perspective, with a view to understanding the influence of sutures on evolutionary diversity. Future work integrating suture development into a comparative evolutionary framework will be instrumental to understanding how developmental mechanisms shaping sutures ultimately influence evolutionary diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather E White
- Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom.,Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Division of Biosciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Anjali Goswami
- Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom.,Division of Biosciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Abigail S Tucker
- Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
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8
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Eldridge MDB, Beck RMD, Croft DA, Travouillon KJ, Fox BJ. An emerging consensus in the evolution, phylogeny, and systematics of marsupials and their fossil relatives (Metatheria). J Mammal 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyz018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mark D B Eldridge
- Australian Museum Research Institute, Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Robin M D Beck
- School of Environment and Life Sciences, University of Salford, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Darin A Croft
- School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | | | - Barry J Fox
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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9
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Smith KK, Keyte AL. Adaptations of the Marsupial Newborn: Birth as an Extreme Environment. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2019; 303:235-249. [DOI: 10.1002/ar.24049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2018] [Revised: 05/07/2018] [Accepted: 05/28/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Anna L. Keyte
- Laboratory of Neurogenetics of LanguageRockefeller University New York New York
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10
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Maga AM, Beck RMD. Skeleton of an unusual, cat-sized marsupial relative (Metatheria: Marsupialiformes) from the middle Eocene (Lutetian: 44-43 million years ago) of Turkey. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0181712. [PMID: 28813431 PMCID: PMC5559079 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0181712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2016] [Accepted: 06/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
We describe a near-complete, three-dimensionally preserved skeleton of a metatherian (relative of modern marsupials) from the middle Eocene (Lutetian: 44–43 million years ago) Lülük member of the Uzunçarşıdere Formation, central Turkey. With an estimated body mass of 3–4 kg, about the size of a domestic cat (Felis catus) or spotted quoll (Dasyurus maculatus), it is an order of magnitude larger than the largest fossil metatherians previously known from the Cenozoic of the northern hemisphere. This new taxon is characterised by large, broad third premolars that probably represent adaptations for hard object feeding (durophagy), and its craniodental morphology suggests the capacity to generate high bite forces. Qualitative and quantitative functional analyses of its postcranial skeleton indicate that it was probably scansorial and relatively agile, perhaps broadly similar in locomotor mode to the spotted quoll, but with a greater capacity for climbing and grasping. Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of a total evidence dataset comprising 259 morphological characters and 9kb of DNA sequence data from five nuclear protein-coding genes, using both undated and “tip-and-node dating” approaches, place the new taxon outside the marsupial crown-clade, but within the clade Marsupialiformes. It demonstrates that at least one metatherian lineage evolved to occupy the small-medium, meso- or hypo-carnivore niche in the northern hemisphere during the early Cenozoic, at a time when there were numerous eutherians (placentals and their fossil relatives) filling similar niches. However, the known mammal fauna from Uzunçarşıdere Formation appears highly endemic, and geological evidence suggests that this region of Turkey was an island for at least part of the early Cenozoic, and so the new taxon may have evolved in isolation from potential eutherian competitors. Nevertheless, the new taxon reveals previously unsuspected ecomorphological disparity among northern hemisphere metatherians during the first half of the Cenozoic.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Murat Maga
- Division of Craniofacial Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.,Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.,Center for Developmental Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Robin M D Beck
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Salford, Manchester, Salford, United Kingdom.,School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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11
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Smith KK. COMPARATIVE PATTERNS OF CRANIOFACIAL DEVELOPMENT IN EUTHERIAN AND METATHERIAN MAMMALS. Evolution 2017; 51:1663-1678. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1997.tb01489.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/1996] [Accepted: 05/30/1997] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen K. Smith
- Departments of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy and Zoology, Box 3170 Duke University Medical Center Durham North Carolina 27710
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12
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Werneburg I, Laurin M, Koyabu D, Sánchez-Villagra MR. Evolution of organogenesis and the origin of altriciality in mammals. Evol Dev 2017; 18:229-44. [PMID: 27402569 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Mammals feature not only great phenotypic disparity, but also diverse growth and life history patterns, especially in maturity level at birth, ranging from altriciality to precocity. Gestation length, morphology at birth, and other markers of life history are fundamental to our understanding of mammalian evolution. Based on the first synthesis of embryological data and the study of new ontogenetic series, we reconstructed estimates of the ancestral chronology of organogenesis and life-history modes in placental mammals. We found that the ancestor of marsupial and placental mammals was placental-like at birth but had a long, marsupial-like infancy. We hypothesize that mammalian viviparity might have evolved in association with the extension of growth after birth, enabled through lactation, and that mammalian altriciality is inherited from the earliest amniotes. The precocial lifestyle of extant sauropsids and that of many placental mammals were acquired secondarily. We base our conclusions on the best estimates and provide a comprehensive discussion on the methods used and the limitations of our dataset. We provide the most comprehensive embryological dataset ever published, "rescue" old literature sources, and apply available methods and illustrate thus an approach on how to investigate comparatively organogenesis in macroevolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingmar Werneburg
- Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich, Karl Schmid Strasse 4, 8006 Zürich, Switzerland.,Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment (HEP) at Eberhard Karls Universität, Sigwartstraße 10, 72074 Tübingen, Germany.,Fachbereich Geowissenschaften, Eberhard Karls Universität, Hölderlinstraße 12, D-72076 Tübingen, Germany.,Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- and Biodiversitätsforschung an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michel Laurin
- Sorbonne Universités, CR2P, CNRS/MNHN/UPMC (U. Paris 6), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Batiment de Géologie, Case postale 48, 43 rue Buffon, F-75231 Paris Cedex 05, France
| | - Daisuke Koyabu
- University Museum, University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Marcelo R Sánchez-Villagra
- Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich, Karl Schmid Strasse 4, 8006 Zürich, Switzerland
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13
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Spiekman SNF, Werneburg I. Patterns in the bony skull development of marsupials: high variation in onset of ossification and conserved regions of bone contact. Sci Rep 2017; 7:43197. [PMID: 28233826 PMCID: PMC5324120 DOI: 10.1038/srep43197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Accepted: 01/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Development in marsupials is specialized towards an extremely short gestation and highly altricial newborns. As a result, marsupial neonates display morphological adaptations at birth related to functional constraints. However, little is known about the variability of marsupial skull development and its relation to morphological diversity. We studied bony skull development in five marsupial species. The relative timing of the onset of ossification was compared to literature data and the ossification sequence of the marsupial ancestor was reconstructed using squared-change parsimony. The high range of variation in the onset of ossification meant that no patterns could be observed that differentiate species. This finding challenges traditional studies concentrating on the onset of ossification as a marker for phylogeny or as a functional proxy. Our study presents observations on the developmental timing of cranial bone-to-bone contacts and their evolutionary implications. Although certain bone contacts display high levels of variation, connections of early and late development are quite conserved and informative. Bones that surround the oral cavity are generally the first to connect and the bones of the occipital region are among the last. We conclude that bone contact is preferable over onset of ossification for studying cranial bone development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephan N. F. Spiekman
- Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich, Karl-Schmid-Strasse 4, 8006 Zürich, Switzerland
- Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) at Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333 BE Leiden, the Netherlands
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- and Biodiversitätsforschung an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Ingmar Werneburg
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- and Biodiversitätsforschung an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany
- Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment (HEP) at Eberhard Karls Universität, Sigwartstraße 10, 72074 Tübingen, Germany
- Eberhard Karls Universität, Hölderlinstraße 12, room: 308g, D-72076 Tübingen, Germany
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14
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Klüg-Baerwald B, Gower L, Lausen C, Brigham R. Environmental correlates and energetics of winter flight by bats in southern Alberta, Canada. CAN J ZOOL 2016. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2016-0055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Winter activity of bats is common, yet poorly understood. Other studies suggest a relationship between winter activity and ambient temperature, particularly temperature at sunset. We recorded echolocation calls to determine correlates of hourly bat activity in Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada. We documented bat activity in temperatures as low as −10.4 °C. We observed big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus (Palisot de Beauvois, 1796)) flying at colder temperatures than species of Myotis bats (genus Myotis Kaup, 1829). We show that temperature and wind are important predictors of winter activity by E. fuscus and Myotis, and that Myotis may also use changes in barometric pressure to cue activity. In the absence of foraging opportunity, we suggest these environmental factors relate to heat loss and thus the energetic cost of flight. To understand the energetic consequences of bat flight in cold temperatures, we estimated energy expenditure during winter flights of E. fuscus and little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus (Le Conte, 1831)) using species-specific parameters. We estimated that winter flight uses considerable fat stores and that flight thermogenesis could mitigate energetic costs by 20% or more. We also show that temperature-dependent interspecific differences in winter activity likely stem from differences between species in heat loss and potential for activity–thermoregulatory heat substitution.
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Affiliation(s)
- B.J. Klüg-Baerwald
- Department of Biology, University of Regina, 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, SK S4S 0A2, Canada
| | - L.E. Gower
- School of Biosciences, Sir Martin Evans Building, Cardiff University, Museum Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3AX, United Kingdom
| | - C.L. Lausen
- Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, P.O. Box 606, Kaslo, BC V0G 1M0, Canada
| | - R.M. Brigham
- Department of Biology, University of Regina, 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, SK S4S 0A2, Canada
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15
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Goswami A, Randau M, Polly PD, Weisbecker V, Bennett CV, Hautier L, Sánchez-Villagra MR. Do Developmental Constraints and High Integration Limit the Evolution of the Marsupial Oral Apparatus? Integr Comp Biol 2016; 56:404-15. [PMID: 27260858 PMCID: PMC4990707 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icw039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Developmental constraints can have significant influence on the magnitude and direction of evolutionary change, and many studies have demonstrated that these effects are manifested on macroevolutionary scales. Phenotypic integration, or the strong interactions among traits, has been similarly invoked as a major influence on morphological variation, and many studies have demonstrated that trait integration changes through ontogeny, in many cases decreasing with age. Here, we unify these perspectives in a case study of the ontogeny of the mammalian cranium, focusing on a comparison between marsupials and placentals. Marsupials are born at an extremely altricial state, requiring, in most cases, the use of the forelimbs to climb to the pouch, and, in all cases, an extended period of continuous suckling, during which most of their development occurs. Previous work has shown that marsupials are less disparate in adult cranial form than are placentals, particularly in the oral apparatus, and in forelimb ontogeny and adult morphology, presumably due to functional selection pressures on these two systems during early postnatal development. Using phenotypic trajectory analysis to quantify prenatal and early postnatal cranial ontogeny in 10 species of therian mammals, we demonstrate that this pattern of limited variation is also apparent in the development of the oral apparatus of marsupials, relative to placentals, but not in the skull more generally. Combined with the observation that marsupials show extremely high integration of the oral apparatus in early postnatal ontogeny, while other cranial regions show similar levels of integration to that observed in placentals, we suggest that high integration may compound the effects of the functional constraints for continuous suckling to ultimately limit the ontogenetic and adult disparity of the marsupial oral apparatus throughout their evolutionary history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjali Goswami
- *Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Marcela Randau
- *Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - P David Polly
- Department of Geological Sciences, 1001 E. 10th Street, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA
| | - Vera Weisbecker
- School of Biological Sciences, Goddard Building 8, University of Queensland, St. Lucia 4072, Australia
| | - C Verity Bennett
- *Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Lionel Hautier
- Laboratoire de Paléontologie, Institut des Sciences de l'Èvolution de Montpellier (CNRS, UM, IRD, EPHE), c.c. 064, Université Montpellier 2, Place Eugène Bataillon, F-34095 Montpellier, Cedex 5 , France
| | - Marcelo R Sánchez-Villagra
- Palaeontological Institute and Museum, University of Zürich, Karl-Schmid-Strasse 4, CH-8006, Zürich, Switzerland
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Kupfer A, Maxwell E, Reinhard S, Kuehnel S. The evolution of parental investment in caecilian amphibians: a comparative approach. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Kupfer
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart; Rosenstein 1 Stuttgart 70191 Germany
- Institut für Biochemie und Biologie; Allgemeine Zoologie und Evolutionsgenomik; Universität Potsdam; Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24-25 Haus 26 Potsdam 14476 Germany
- Institut für Spezielle Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie mit Phyletischem Museum; Friedrich Schiller-Universität Jena; Erbertstrasse 1 Jena 07743 Germany
| | - Erin Maxwell
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart; Rosenstein 1 Stuttgart 70191 Germany
| | - Sandy Reinhard
- Institut für Spezielle Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie mit Phyletischem Museum; Friedrich Schiller-Universität Jena; Erbertstrasse 1 Jena 07743 Germany
- Naturhistorisches Museum; Thüringer Landesmuseum Heidecksburg; Schlossbezirk 1 Rudolstadt 07407 Germany
| | - Susanne Kuehnel
- Institut für Spezielle Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie mit Phyletischem Museum; Friedrich Schiller-Universität Jena; Erbertstrasse 1 Jena 07743 Germany
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17
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Behavioral and ecological factors account for variation in the mass-independent energy expenditures of endotherms. J Comp Physiol B 2014; 185:1-13. [PMID: 25155184 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-014-0850-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2014] [Revised: 07/16/2014] [Accepted: 07/27/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
A persistent controversy has concerned the identification of the factors that influence the quantitative variation in the physiological characters of species, an example of which is the basal rate of metabolism of endotherms. The most important factor accounting for its variation is body mass as long as the range in mass is appreciable. But mass never accounts for all of the variation and none if species have the same mass. Most of the residual variation around the mass curve is associated with behavioral characters, ecological factors, and phylogeny, i.e., history. These agents influence energy expenditure by different means and at different stages in the life history of species. Phylogeny describes the historic origin, evolution, and distribution of character states in contemporary species. However, the level of energy expenditure is quantitatively determined by the collective of realized states in combination with conditions in the environment. Therefore, two stages determine energy expenditure: (1) the evolution of character states and (2) their impact in conjunction with conditions on the environment. Behavioral characters and ecological factors, when coupled with log10 mass, usually account for >94 % of the variation in the log10 basal rates of birds and mammals, a capacity not found in phylogenetic analyses. The difficulty of determining a direct impact of phylogeny on physiological characters results from its correlation with behavioral characters. When appropriate, the passerine/non-passerine dichotomy in birds and the sub/infraclass dichotomy in mammals combine with behavioral characters, ecological factors, and log10 mass to increase r (2) to account for 96-99 % of the variation in log10 basal rate. This occurs because dichotomies incorporate factors other than those already in the analyses. The clearest demonstration of the direct impact of character states is the equality of energy expenditure in species convergent with species from other clades without any evidence of the clade to which the species belong. A multifactorial approach depends on the inclusion of life history characteristics of species, but this analysis applies only to continuous, quantitative relationships, which are often modified by discontinuous agents. Distinctive character states distinguish species and therefore must be included in any attempt to account for differences in their level of energy expenditure. No analysis that ignores life history characteristics can account for the quantitative variation in energy expenditure beyond that associated with body mass.
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18
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Blackburn DG. Evolution of vertebrate viviparity and specializations for fetal nutrition: A quantitative and qualitative analysis. J Morphol 2014; 276:961-90. [DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 184] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2013] [Revised: 01/27/2014] [Accepted: 02/09/2014] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel G. Blackburn
- Department of Biology and; Electron Microscopy Center, Trinity College; Hartford Connecticut 06106
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Abstract
The mammalian placenta exhibits elevated expression of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), but the evolutionary significance of this feature remains unclear. I propose that ERV-mediated regulatory evolution was, and continues to be, an important mechanism underlying the evolution of placental development. Many recent studies have focused on the co-option of ERV-derived genes for specific functional adaptations in the placenta. However, the co-option of ERV-derived regulatory elements could potentially lead to the incorporation of entire gene regulatory networks, which, I argue, would facilitate relatively rapid developmental evolution of the placenta. I suggest a model in which an ancient retroviral infection led to the establishment of the ancestral placental developmental gene network through the co-option of ERV-derived regulatory elements. Consequently, placental development would require elevated tolerance to ERV activity. This in turn would expose a continuous stream of novel ERV mutations that may have catalyzed the developmental diversification of the mammalian placenta.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward B Chuong
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
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20
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Sánchez-Villagra MR. Why are There Fewer Marsupials than Placentals? On the Relevance of Geography and Physiology to Evolutionary Patterns of Mammalian Diversity and Disparity. J MAMM EVOL 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-012-9220-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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21
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Van Dyke JU, Beaupre SJ. Stable isotope tracer reveals that viviparous snakes transport amino acids to offspring during gestation. J Exp Biol 2012; 215:760-5. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.058644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
SUMMARY
Viviparity and placentation have evolved from oviparity over 100 times in squamate reptiles (lizards and snakes). The independent origins of placentation have resulted in a variety of placental morphologies in different taxa, ranging from simple apposition of fetal and maternal tissues to endotheliochorial implantation that is homoplasious with mammalian placentation. Because the eggs of oviparous squamates transport gases and water from the environment and calcium from the eggshell, the placentae of viviparous squamates are thought to have initially evolved to accomplish these functions from within the maternal oviduct. Species with complex placentae have also been shown to rely substantially, or even primarily, on placental transport of organic nutrients for embryonic nutrition. However, it is unclear whether species with only simple placentae are also capable of transporting organic nutrients to offspring. Among viviparous squamates, all of the snakes that have been studied thus far have been shown to have simple placentae. However, most studies of snake placentation are limited to a single lineage, the North American Natricinae. We tested the abilities of four species of viviparous snakes – Agkistrodon contortrix (Viperidae), Boa constrictor (Boidae), Nerodia sipedon (Colubridae: Natricinae) and Thamnophis sirtalis (Colubridae: Natricinae) – to transport diet-derived amino acids to offspring during gestation. We fed [15N]leucine to pregnant snakes, and compared offspring 15N content with that of unlabeled controls. Labeled females allocated significantly more 15N to offspring than did controls, but 15N allocation did not differ among species. Our results indicate that viviparous snakes are capable of transporting diet-derived amino acids to their offspring during gestation, possibly via placentation.
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Affiliation(s)
- James U. Van Dyke
- 601 SCEN, Department of Biological Sciences, 1 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA
| | - Steven J. Beaupre
- 601 SCEN, Department of Biological Sciences, 1 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA
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22
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Davies TJ, Buckley LB. Phylogenetic diversity as a window into the evolutionary and biogeographic histories of present-day richness gradients for mammals. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2011; 366:2414-25. [PMID: 21768156 PMCID: PMC3130431 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2011.0058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Phylogenetic diversity (PD) captures the shared ancestry of species, and is increasingly being recognized as a valuable conservation currency. Regionally, PD frequently covaries closely with species richness; however, variation in speciation and extinction rates and/or the biogeographic history of lineages can result in significant deviation. Locally, these differences may be pronounced. Rapid recent speciation or high temporal turnover of lineages can result in low PD but high richness. In contrast, rare dispersal events, for example, between biomes, can elevate PD but have only small impact on richness. To date, environmental predictors of species richness have been well studied but global models explaining variation in PD are lacking. Here, we contrast the global distribution of PD versus species richness for terrestrial mammals. We show that an environmental model of lineage diversification can predict well the discrepancy in the distribution of these two variables in some places, for example, South America and Africa but not others, such as Southeast Asia. When we have information on multiple diversity indices, conservation efforts directed towards maximizing one currency or another (e.g. species richness versus PD) should also consider the underlying processes that have shaped their distributions.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Jonathan Davies
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 1B1.
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23
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Parente RCM, Bergqvist LP, Soares MB, Filho OBM. The history of vaginal birth. Arch Gynecol Obstet 2011; 284:1-11. [PMID: 21547459 DOI: 10.1007/s00404-011-1918-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2011] [Accepted: 04/21/2011] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Vaginal delivery, as known today, is a still unfinished product that originated hundreds of million years ago, much before mammals evolved on land. In this article, we will discuss the way in which our direct ancestors were born over the eons until the present day, focusing on the factors that presented substantial changes in how birth occurred, in relation to our earlier ancestors. The history begins with the first amniotes around 300 million years ago and ends with the appearance of the first Homo sapiens around 160,000 years ago.
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Abstract
Patterns and risks of human disease have evolved. In this article, I review evidence regarding the importance of recent adaptive evolution, positive selection, and genomic conflicts in shaping the genetic and phenotypic architectures of polygenic human diseases. Strong recent selection in human populations can create and maintain genetically based disease risk primarily through three processes: increased scope for dysregulation from recent human adaptations, divergent optima generated by intraspecific genomic conflicts, and transient or stable deleterious by-products of positive selection caused by antagonistic pleiotropy, ultimately due to trade-offs at the levels of molecular genetics, development, and physiology. Human disease due to these processes appears to be concentrated in three sets of phenotypes: cognition and emotion, reproductive traits, and life-history traits related to long life-span. Diverse, convergent lines of evidence suggest that a small set of tissues whose pleiotropic patterns of gene function and expression are under especially strong selection-brain, placenta, testis, prostate, breast, and ovary-has mediated a considerable proportion of disease risk in modern humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard J Crespi
- Department of Biosciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B. C., Canada V5A 1S6.
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26
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Szdzuy K, Zeller U. Lung and metabolic development in mammals: contribution to the reconstruction of the marsupial and eutherian morphotype. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY PART B-MOLECULAR AND DEVELOPMENTAL EVOLUTION 2009; 312:555-78. [PMID: 18623108 DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.21228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Marsupials represent only 6% of all living mammals. Marsupialia and Placentalia are distinguished mainly by their modes of reproduction. In particular, the differences in the stage of development of the neonates may be one explanation for the divergent evolutionary success. In this respect one important question is whether the survivability of the neonate depends on the degree of maturation of the respiratory system relative to the metabolic capacity at the time of birth. Therefore, this review highlights the differences in lung morphology and metabolic development of extant Marsupialia and Placentalia. The Marsupial neonate is born with a low birth weight and is highly immature. The neonatal lung is characterized by large terminal sacs, a poorly developed bronchial system and late formation of alveoli. Marsupialia have a low metabolic rate at birth and attain adult metabolic rate and thermoregulatory capacity late in postnatal development. In contrast, the eutherian neonate is born with a relative high birth weight and is always more mature than marsupial neonates. The neonatal lung has small terminal sacs, the bronchial system is well developed and the formation of alveoli begins few days after birth. Placentalia have a high metabolic rate at birth and attain adult metabolic rate and thermoregulatory capacity early in postnatal development. The differences in the developmental degree of the newborn lung between Marsupialia and Placentalia have consequences for their metabolic and thermoregulatory capacity. These differences could be advantageous for Placentalia in the changing environments in which they evolved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirsten Szdzuy
- Institute of Systematic Zoology, Museum of Natural History, Berlin, Germany.
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27
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McNab BK. The Comparative Energetics of New Guinean Cuscuses (Metatheria: Phalangeridae). J Mammal 2008. [DOI: 10.1644/07-mamm-a-402.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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28
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McNab BK. An analysis of the factors that influence the level and scaling of mammalian BMR. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2008; 151:5-28. [PMID: 18617429 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2008.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 219] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2008] [Revised: 05/16/2008] [Accepted: 05/20/2008] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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30
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Smith KK. Craniofacial development in marsupial mammals: Developmental origins of evolutionary change. Dev Dyn 2006; 235:1181-93. [PMID: 16408286 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.20676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Biologists have long studied the evolutionary consequences of the differences in reproductive and life history strategies of marsupial and eutherian mammals. Over the past few decades, the impact of these strategies on the development of the marsupial embryo and neonate has received attention. In this review, the differences in development in the craniofacial region in marsupial and eutherian mammals will be discussed. The review will highlight differences at the organogenic and cellular levels, and discuss hypotheses for shifts in the expression of important regulatory genes. The major difference in the organogenic period is a whole-scale shift in the relative timing of central nervous system structures, in particular those of the forebrain, which are delayed in marsupials, relative to the structures of the oral-facial apparatus. Correlated with the delay in development of nervous system structures, the ossification of the bones of the neurocranium are delayed, while those of the face are accelerated. This study will also review work showing that the neural crest, which provides much of the cellular material to the facial skeleton and may also carry important patterning information, is notably accelerated in its development in marsupials. Potential consequences of these observations for hypotheses on constraint, evolutionary integration, and the existence of developmental modules is discussed. Finally, the implications of these results for hypotheses on the genetic modulation of craniofacial patterning are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen K Smith
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.
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31
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Vogel P. The current molecular phylogeny of Eutherian mammals challenges previous interpretations of placental evolution. Placenta 2005; 26:591-6. [PMID: 16085037 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2004.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2004] [Revised: 11/08/2004] [Accepted: 11/09/2004] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Based on histology, the placentae of eutherians are currently grouped in epitheliochorial, endotheliochorial and haemochorial placentae. In a haeckelian sense, the epitheliochorial contact with marked histiotrophic feeding by uterine milk is generally considered as primitive, especially since similar contacts exist in Marsupials. In contrast, the more intimate endotheliochorial and haemochorial contact, facilitating haemotrophic nutrition, is interpreted as a derived state. A cladistic analysis based on the phylogenetic relationships established by molecular analyses reveals that the basic clades are all characterized by an endotheliochorial or haemochorial placenta, and that the epitheliochorial placenta evolved at least three times in a convergent manner. This evolution may be explained by the fact that the epitheliochorial placenta in eutherians is more efficient in nutritional transfer (flow rate by exchange surface). Moreover, this arrangement may confer an advantage to the mother who can probably reduce the degree of manipulation by a genetically imprinted embryo.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Vogel
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
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32
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard L Cifelli
- Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73072, USA.
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33
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McNab BK. Standard energetics of phyllostomid bats: the inadequacies of phylogenetic-contrast analyses. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2003; 135:357-68. [PMID: 12829044 DOI: 10.1016/s1095-6433(03)00090-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The basal rates of metabolism (BMR) of bats belonging to the family Phyllostomidae are re-examined after an earlier correlation with food habits was rejected because it did not take phylogeny into consideration. This rejection was based on an erroneous attribution of food habits and on an analytical method, phylogenetic contrasts, that ignores interactions that occur among character states and preferentially attributes responsibility for character states to phylogeny. The re-examination made here was based on analysis of covariance, which makes no a priori assumptions on the relative impact of factors that influence character states and permits factor interactions to be identified. A resulting model, based on variation in body mass, food habits, occurrence with respect to elevation, and residence on islands or continents, accounts for 99.4% of the variation in the BMR of 30 species of phyllostomids. Basal rate is also correlated with subfamily, but only if food habits are excluded because they are correlated with subfamily affiliation, as is residence on islands and continents, two examples of factor interaction. The preference to assign the effects of food habits and island residence on basal rate to subfamily affiliation (and phylogeny) is not justified. The concept that quantitative physiological characters can be transmitted via phylogeny without regard to the habits of animals and the characteristics of their environments cannot be defended. Phylogeny is the historical context in which the evolution of character states occurs, not the 'cause' of their evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian K McNab
- Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
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34
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Abstract
All vertebrate follicles have the same basic structure. Viviparity also occurs in all vertebrates except birds, but it is the only form of reproduction in eutherians ("placental mammals"). Their mature follicles are vesicular, and their oocytes are yolkless. Clues to the origin of these unique characteristics are in the incidence of atresia and the role of yolk in reproduction. In broadcast spawning, atresia is as rare as it is common among eutherians and other nonspawning vertebrates. In all but the eutherians, at least the initial-and in most cases all-stages of embryogenesis depend crucially on the zygote's yolk. Eutherian reproduction, therefore, must have evolved in connection with genetic changes that caused fragility of the oocyte, instability of the follicle, and loss of the ability to produce vitellogenin (VTG), the main lipoprotein of yolk. Mutations can result in adaptations by uncovering hidden properties in a trait and/or its environment. Useful mutations in recessive alleles can spread through a population as heterozygotes, invisible until the number of homozygotes for the mutation is large enough for them to suddenly appear and form the nucleus of a new breeding population. Such a mutation probably truncated a long, oviductal-based, aplacental gestation of a small, lightly yolked zygote in an endothermic, mammal-like reptile and converted it into an early monotreme or marsupial-like mammal (pantothere). Against tremendous odds, another mutation later caused loss of the genes for VTG. The resultant yolkless zygote survived because 1). the mutation also affected a network of homeiotic genes controlling the ontogeny of the entire reproductive system and 2). the system contained enough hidden properties for the mutation to change the character of the oocyte, its granulosa cells and corpus luteum, the zygote, and the uterus in a way that virtually assured the new zygote's survival. Eutherian reproduction, however, is neither better nor worse than other forms; it is only different.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irving Rothchild
- Department of Reproductive Biology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
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35
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Abstract
One of the most persistent questions in comparative developmental biology concerns whether there are general rules by which ontogeny and phylogeny are related. Answering this question requires conceptual and analytic approaches that allow biologists to examine a wide range of developmental events in well-structured phylogenetic contexts. For evolutionary biologists, one of the most dominant approaches to comparative developmental biology has centered around the concept of heterochrony. However, in recent years the focus of studies of heterochrony largely has been limited to one aspect, changes in size and shape. I argue that this focus has restricted the kinds of questions that have been asked about the patterns of developmental change in phylogeny, which has narrowed our ability to address some of the most fundamental questions about development and evolution. Here I contrast the approaches of growth heterochrony with a broader view of heterochrony that concentrates on changes in developmental sequence. I discuss a general approach to sequence heterochrony and summarize newly emerging methods to analyze a variety of kinds of developmental change in explicit phylogenetic contexts. Finally, I summarize a series of studies on the evolution of development in mammals that use these new approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen K Smith
- Departments of Biology and Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.
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36
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McNab BK, Bosque C. Energetics of Toucans, A Barbet, and A Hornbill: Implications for Avian Frugivory. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2001. [DOI: 10.1093/auk/118.4.916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Rate of oxygen consumption was measured in eight species of toucans, one barbet, and one hornbill to examine factors that influence their energy expenditures. Basal rate of metabolism in those species, supplemented with measurements from three woodpeckers and three mousebirds, is correlated with body mass and either food habits or climate: temperate acorn- and insect-eating species have basal rates that are ∼70% greater than tropical fruit-eating species. The temperate, insect- or acorn-eating species are woodpeckers, so level of basal rate is also correlated with familial affiliation. The toucans, barbet, and hornbill have basal rates similar to those of frugivorous pigeons and bats, which collectively are low by avian standards. The effects of climate, food habits, and family affiliation on basal rates in endotherms are difficult to separate, given the restricted data set available. Earlier conclusions that the basal rates of birds greatly exceed those of mammals are confounded by character interactions that influence dependence of basal rate on body mass. The largest toucan showed a remarkable ability to reduce energy expenditure at low ambient temperatures without reducing core body temperature, possibly as a result of peripheral vasoconstriction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian K. McNab
- Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - C. Bosque
- Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
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37
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Abstract
Marsupial mammals have a distinctive reproductive strategy. The young are born after an exceptionally short period of organogenesis and are consequently extremely altricial. Yet because they must be functionally independent in an essentially embryonic condition, the marsupial neonate exhibits a unique suite of adaptations. In particular, certain bones of the facial region, most cranial musculature and a few additional structures are accelerated in their development. In contrast, central nervous system structures, especially the forebrain, are markedly premature at birth, resembling an embryonic d 11 or 12 mouse. This review examines the developmental processes that are modified to produce these evolutionary changes. The focus is on the early development of the neural plate, neural crest and facial region in the marsupial, Monodelphis domestica, compared with patterns reported for rodents. Neural crest begins differentiation and migration at the neural plate stage, which results in large accumulations of neural crest in the facial region at an early stage of development. The early accumulation of neural crest provides the material for the accelerated development of oral and facial structures. The first arch region is massive in the early embryo, and the development of the olfactory placode and frontonasal region is advanced relative to the forebrain region. The development of the forebrain is delayed in marsupials relative to the hindbrain or facial region. These observations illustrate how development may be modified to produce evolutionary changes that distinguish taxa. Further, they suggest that development is not necessarily highly conserved, but instead may be quite plastic.
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Affiliation(s)
- K K Smith
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA.
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WIBLE JOHNR, ROUGIER GUILLERMOW. CRANIAL ANATOMY OF KRYPTOBAATAR DASHZEVEGI (MAMMALIA, MULTITUBERCULATA), AND ITS BEARING ON THE EVOLUTION OF MAMMALIAN CHARACTERS. BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 2000. [DOI: 10.1206/0003-0090(2000)247<0001:caokdm>2.0.co;2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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Cifelli RL. Tribosphenic mammal from the North American Early Cretaceous. Nature 1999; 401:363-6. [PMID: 16862109 DOI: 10.1038/43860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/1999] [Accepted: 07/27/1999] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The main groups of living mammals, marsupials and eutherians, are presumed to have diverged in the Early Cretaceous, but their early history and biogeography are poorly understood. Dental remains have suggested that the eutherians may have originated in Asia, spreading to North America in the Late Cretaceous, where an endemic radiation of marsupials was already well underway. Here I describe a new tribosphenic mammal (a mammal with lower molar heels that are three-cusped and basined) from the Early Cretaceous of North America, based on an unusually complete specimen. The new taxon bears characteristics (molarized last premolar, reduction to three molars) otherwise known only for Eutheria among the tribosphenic mammals. Morphometric analysis and character comparisons show, however, that its molar structure is primitive (and thus phylogenetically uninformative), emphasizing the need for caution in interpretation of isolated teeth. The new mammal is approximately contemporaneous with the oldest known Eutheria from Asia. If it is a eutherian, as is indicated by the available evidence, then this group was far more widely distributed in the Early Cretaceous than previously appreciated. An early presence of Eutheria in North America offers a potential source for the continent's Late Cretaceous radiations, which have, in part, proven difficult to relate to contemporary taxa in Asia.
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Affiliation(s)
- R L Cifelli
- Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma 73019, USA
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Novacek MJ, Rougier GW, Wible JR, McKenna MC, Dashzeveg D, Horovitz I. Epipubic bones in eutherian mammals from the late Cretaceous of Mongolia. Nature 1997; 389:483-6. [PMID: 9333234 DOI: 10.1038/39020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
An important transformation in the evolution of mammals was the loss of the epipubic bones. These are elements projecting anteriorly from the pelvic girdle into the abdominal region in a variety of Mesozoic mammals, related tritylodonts, marsupials and monotremes but not in living eutherian (placental) mammals. Here we describe a new eutherian from the Late Cretaceous period of Mongolia, and report the first record of epipubic bones in two distinct eutherian lineages. The presence of epipubic bones and other primitive features suggests that these groups occupy a basal position in the Eutheria. It has been argued that the epipubic bones support the pouch in living mammals, but epipubic bones have since been related to locomotion and suspension of the litter mass of several attached, lactating offspring. The loss of the epipubic bones in eutherians can be related to the evolution of prolonged gestation, which would not require prolonged external attachment of altricial young. Thus the occurrence of epipubic bones in two Cretaceous eutherians suggests that the dramatic modifications connected with typical placental reproduction may have been later events in the evolution of the Eutheria.
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Affiliation(s)
- M J Novacek
- Department of Vertebrate Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York 10024, USA.
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Abstract
Seventeen of eighteen orders of living placental mammals are not known before 65 million years ago. The monophyly of each order is well established, but interrelations have been less certain. A superordinal grouping of up to seven extant orders plus a variety of extinct orders, all included within Ungulata ("hoofed" mammals), can be linked to Late Cretaceous mammals from the 85-million-year-old Bissekty Formation, Uzbekistan (and, less certainly, North America and Europe), thus pushing the origin of this major clade back by 20 million years. Ungulatomorphs are not closely related to primates, rodents, or rabbits.
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Affiliation(s)
- JD Archibald
- Department of Biology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA
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Munks SA, Green B. Energy allocation for reproduction in a marsupial arboreal folivore, the common ringtail possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus). Oecologia 1995; 101:94-104. [PMID: 28306981 DOI: 10.1007/bf00328905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/1994] [Accepted: 09/15/1994] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
This study examines the annual energetics of a small folivorous marsupial, Pseudocheirus peregrinus. Particular attention was given to the energy and time allocated to reproduction by the females. Daily energy expenditure was measured directly using the doubly labelled water technique. Energy transferred to the young via the milk was estimated from information on milk composition and production. There was no significant seasonal variation in the energy expenditure or water influx of males or females. The mean daily energy expenditure of a 1-kg non-lactating adult ringtail possum was 615 kJ day-1 or 2.2 times standard metabolic rate. Females showed significant changes in daily energy expenditure according to their reproductive status. Without the burden of lactation the total annual energy expenditure of an adult female was estimated as 212.4 MJ kg-1 year-1. The total annual energy expenditure of a female rearing two young was 247.5 MJ kg-1 year-1, with the late stage of lactation constituting the most energetically expensive period accounting for 30% of the total yearly energy expenditure during 24% of the time. Total metabolisable energy allocation during reproduction (22 MJ kg) was similar to estimates available for other herbivores, although, the peak metabolisable energy allocation during lactation (759 kJ day-1) was lower than values available for other herbivores. The total energy requirement for reproduction (metabolisable energy plus potential energy exported to young via milk) suggests that the ringtail possum also has a relatively low overall energy investment in reproduction. It is suggested that the lactational strategy of the ringtail possum has been selected in order to spread the energy demands of reproduction over time due to constraints on the rate of energy intake imposed by a leaf diet and/or to prolong the mother-young bond. The strategies a female ringtail possum may employ to achieve energy balance when faced with the energy demands of reproduction are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- S A Munks
- Department of Zoology, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - B Green
- Division of Wildlife and Ecology, CSIRO, P.O. Box 84, 2602, Lyneham, ACT, Australia
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Smith KK. Development of craniofacial musculature in Monodelphis domestica (Marsupialia, Didelphidae). J Morphol 1994; 222:149-73. [PMID: 7799438 DOI: 10.1002/jmor.1052220204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Development of craniofacial muscles of Monodelphis domestica (Marsupialia, Didelphidae) is described. In a period of 4-6 days all craniofacial muscles in M. domestica progress from myoblast condensation, to striated myofibers that are aligned in the direction of adult muscles and possess multiple, lateral nuclei. This process begins 1 to 2 days before birth and continues during the first few days after birth. Compared to other aspects of cranial development, muscle development in M. domestica is rapid. This rapid and more or less simultaneous emergence of craniofacial muscles differs from the previously described pattern of development of the cranial skeleton in marsupials, which displays a mosaic of acceleration and deceleration of regions and individual elements. Unlike the skeletal system, craniofacial muscles show no evidence of regional specialization during development. M. domestica resembles eutherian mammals in the relatively rapid and more or less simultaneous differentiation of all craniofacial muscles. It differs from eutherian taxa in that most stages of myogenesis occur postnatally, following the onset of function. The timing of the development of muscular and skeletal structures is compared and it is concluded that the relatively early development of muscle is not reflected by any particular acceleration of the differentiation or growth of skeletal structures. Finally, the difficulties in accounting for complex internal arrangements of muscles such as the tongue, given current models of myogenesis are summarized.
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Affiliation(s)
- K K Smith
- Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710
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Relationships among orders and families of marsupials based on 12S ribosomal DNA sequences and the timing of the marsupial radiation. J MAMM EVOL 1994. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01464363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Abstract
The advent of biotechnology has made data on undomesticated mammals relevant to dairy science. Such data indicate the potential of lactation for modification, reveal genetic material available for use through bioengineering, help distinguish adaptive features from historical artifacts, and clarify limits on lactational diversity that date from early evolution. Evolutionary analysis indicates that a complex degree of lactation preceded divergence of the extant mammalian lineages during the Mesozoic Era. Although aspects of monotreme lactation appear to be ancestral for extant mammals, the marsupials and eutherians exhibit divergent specializations. Evidence is consistent with the idea that protolacteal glands evolved by combining features of skin gland populations into a new functional complex. Secretions of these ancestral glands may have had antimicrobial properties that protected the eggs or hatchlings and organic components that supplemented offspring nutrition. Following development of highly nutritious milks, evolution produced diversity in milk composition and function, milk output, length of lactation, mammary gland anatomy, and contributions of lactation to offspring nutrition. Certain marsupials are specialized in terms of functional independence and temporal plasticity of mammary tissues. Mammalian diversity indicates that artificial selection and physiological manipulation of domestic artiodactyls has only modestly exploited the potential of mammary glands as a nutritional source for humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- D G Blackburn
- Department of Biology, Life Science Center, Trinity College, Hartford, CT 06106
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Stephenson PJ, Racey PA. Reproductive Energetics of the Tenrecidae (Mammalia: Insectivora). II. The Shrew-Tenrecs, Microgale spp. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1993. [DOI: 10.1086/physzool.66.5.30163817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Clark CT, Smith KK. Cranial osteogenesis in Monodelphis domestica (Didelphidae) and Macropus eugenii (Macropodidae). J Morphol 1993; 215:119-49. [PMID: 8445660 DOI: 10.1002/jmor.1052150203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
The pattern of onset and general rate of cranial ossification are compared in two marsupials, Monodelphis domestica (Didelphidae) and Macropus eugenii (Macropodidae). In both species a similar suite of bones is present at birth, specifically those surrounding the oral cavity and the exoccipital, and in both postnatal events follow a similar course. The facial skeleton matures more rapidly than the neurocranium, which is characterized by an extended period of ossification. Most dermal bones begin ossification before most endochondral bones. Endochondral bones of the neurocranium are particularly extended in both the period of onset of ossification and the rate of ossification. These data confirm suggestions that morphology at birth is conservative in marsupials and we hypothesize that the pattern of cranial osteogenesis is related to two distinct demands. Bones that are accelerated in marsupials are correlated with a number of functional adaptations including head movements during migration, attachment to the teat, and suckling. However, the very slow osteogenesis of the neurocranium is probably correlated with the very extended period of neurogenesis. Marsupials appear to be derived relative to both monotreme and placental mammals in the precocious ossification of the bones surrounding the oral cavity, but share with monotremes an extended period of neurocranial osteogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- C T Clark
- Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710
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Thompson SD. Zoo research and conservation: Beyond sperm and eggs toward the science of animal management. Zoo Biol 1993. [DOI: 10.1002/zoo.1430120202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Cork SJ. Meeting the energy requirements for lactation in a macropodid marsupial: current nutrition versus stored body reserves. J Zool (1987) 1991. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1991.tb04325.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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