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Rodseth E, Sumasgutner P, Tate G, Nilsson JF, Watson H, Maritz MF, Ingle RA, Amar A. Pleiotropic effects of melanin pigmentation: haemoparasite infection intensity but not telomere length is associated with plumage morph in black sparrowhawks. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:230370. [PMID: 38577209 PMCID: PMC10987988 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/06/2024]
Abstract
There is increasing recognition of the potential pleiotropic effects of melanin pigmentation, particularly on immunity, with reports of variation in haemoparasite infection intensity and immune responses between the morphs of colour-polymorphic bird species. In a population of the black sparrowhawk (Accipiter melanoleucus) in western South Africa, light morphs have a higher haemoparasite infection intensity, but no physiological effects of this are apparent. Here, we investigate the possible effects of haemoparasite infection on telomere length in this species and explore whether relative telomere length is associated with either plumage morph or sex. Using quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis, we confirmed that dark morphs had a lower haemoparasite infection intensity than light morphs. However, we found no differences in telomere length associated with either the haemoparasite infection status or morph in adults, although males have longer telomeres than females. While differences in haemoparasite intensity between morphs are consistent with pleiotropic effects of melanin pigmentation in the black sparrowhawk, we found no evidence that telomere length was associated with haemoparasite infection. Further work is needed to investigate the implications of possible pleiotropic effects of plumage morph and their potential role in the maintenance of colour polymorphism in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edmund Rodseth
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Petra Sumasgutner
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
- Konrad Lorenz Research Centre, Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gareth Tate
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
- Birds of Prey Programme, Endangered Wildlife Trust, Midrand, South Africa
| | - Johan F. Nilsson
- Evolutionary Ecology, Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Hannah Watson
- Evolutionary Ecology, Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Michelle F. Maritz
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Robert A. Ingle
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Arjun Amar
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
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2
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Gangoso L, Viana DS, Merchán M, Figuerola J. A new trophic specialization buffers a top predator against climate-driven resource instability. Behav Ecol 2024; 35:arae005. [PMID: 38287939 PMCID: PMC10824164 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arae005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
Intraspecific phenotypic variability is key to respond to environmental changes and anomalies. However, documenting the emergence of behavioral diversification in natural populations has remained elusive due to the difficulty of observing such a phenomenon at the right time and place. Here, we investigated how the emergence of a new trophic strategy in a population subjected to high fluctuations in the availability of its main trophic resource (migrating songbirds) affected the breeding performance, population structure, and population fitness of a specialized color polymorphic predator, the Eleonora's falcon from the Canary Islands. Using long-term data (2007-2022), we found that the exploitation of an alternative prey (a local petrel species) was associated with the growth of a previously residual falcon colony. Pairs in this colony laid earlier and raised more fledglings than in the other established colonies. The specialization on petrels increased over time, independently of annual fluctuations in prey availability. Importantly, however, the positive effect of petrel consumption on productivity was stronger in years with lower food availability. This trophic diversification was further associated with the genetically determined color morph, with dark individuals preying more frequently on petrels than pale ones, which might promote the long-term maintenance of genotypic and phenotypic diversity. We empirically demonstrate how the emergence of an alternative trophic strategy can buffer populations against harsh environmental fluctuations by stabilizing their productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gangoso
- Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Complutense University of Madrid, C/Antonio Novais 12, 28040, Madrid, Spain
| | - Duarte S Viana
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Marina Merchán
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Jordi Figuerola
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
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3
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Cumer T, Machado AP, San-Jose LM, Ducrest AL, Simon C, Roulin A, Goudet J. The genomic architecture of continuous plumage colour variation in the European barn owl ( Tyto alba). Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20231995. [PMID: 38196365 PMCID: PMC10777144 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1995] [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: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024] Open
Abstract
The maintenance of colour variation in wild populations has long fascinated evolutionary biologists, although most studies have focused on discrete traits exhibiting rather simple inheritance patterns and genetic architectures. However, the study of continuous colour traits and their potentially oligo- or polygenic genetic bases remains rare in wild populations. We studied the genetics of the continuously varying white-to-rufous plumage coloration of the European barn owl (Tyto alba) using a genome-wide association approach on the whole-genome data of 75 individuals. We confirmed a mutation at the melanocortin-1-receptor gene (MC1R) is involved in the coloration and identified two new regions, located in super-scaffolds 9 and 42. The combination of the three regions explains most of the colour variation (80.37%, 95% credible interval 58.45-100%). One discovered region, located in the sex chromosome, differs between the most extreme colorations in owls sharing a specific MC1R genotype. This region may play a role in the colour sex dimorphism of this species, possibly in interaction with the autosomal MC1R. We thus provide insights into the genetic architecture of continuous colour variation, pointing to an oligogenic basis with potential epistatic effects among loci that should aid future studies understanding how continuous colour variation is maintained in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tristan Cumer
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Ana Paula Machado
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Luis M. San-Jose
- Laboratoire Évolution and Diversité Biologique, UMR 5174, CNRS, Université Toulouse III Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Anne-Lyse Ducrest
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Céline Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Jérôme Goudet
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
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4
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Guo Y, Rubin CJ, Rönneburg T, Wang S, Li H, Hu X, Carlborg Ö. Whole-genome selective sweep analyses identifies the region and candidate gene associated with white earlobe color in Mediterranean chickens. Poult Sci 2024; 103:103232. [PMID: 37980749 PMCID: PMC10692716 DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.103232] [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: 08/03/2023] [Revised: 10/07/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023] Open
Abstract
We compared the genomes of multiple domestic chicken breeds with red and white earlobes to identify the differentiated regions between groups of breeds differing in earlobe color. This was done using a selective sweep mapping approach based on whole-genome sequence data. The most significant selective sweep was identified on chromosome 11, where the white earlobe chicken breeds originated from Mediterranean share a common haplotype, and where multiple candidate genes are located. The most plausible functional candidate gene is the Melanocortin 1 Receptor (MC1R), a receptor known to regulate pigmentation in the skin and hair, and it is also the gene with the strongest positional support from the haplotype-based analyses. It, however, still needs to be explored experimentally to identify effects also on chicken earlobe color variation. Our study is the first exploration of the genetic basis of white earlobe color in Mediterranean chickens using a selective sweep mapping method based on whole-genome sequencing data and shows its value for identifying likely functional genes mediating the pigmentation in earlobe. It also indicates a potential novel role of MC1R in birds and exemplifies how selection on fancy traits has influenced the genome during formation of the modern chicken breeds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Animal Biotech Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China; National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Yazhouwan National Laboratory, Sanya, China
| | - Carl-Johan Rubin
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Tilman Rönneburg
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Shouzhi Wang
- Key Laboratory of Chicken Genetics and Breeding, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Harbin, China; Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang Province, Harbin, China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, China
| | - Hui Li
- Key Laboratory of Chicken Genetics and Breeding, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Harbin, China; Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction, Education Department of Heilongjiang Province, Harbin, China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, China
| | - Xiaoxiang Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Animal Biotech Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China; National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
| | - Örjan Carlborg
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
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Elkin J, Martin A, Courtier-Orgogozo V, Santos ME. Analysis of the genetic loci of pigment pattern evolution in vertebrates. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2023; 98:1250-1277. [PMID: 37017088 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2022] [Revised: 03/08/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/06/2023]
Abstract
Vertebrate pigmentation patterns are amongst the best characterised model systems for studying the genetic basis of adaptive evolution. The wealth of available data on the genetic basis for pigmentation evolution allows for analysis of trends and quantitative testing of evolutionary hypotheses. We employed Gephebase, a database of genetic variants associated with natural and domesticated trait variation, to examine trends in how cis-regulatory and coding mutations contribute to vertebrate pigmentation phenotypes, as well as factors that favour one mutation type over the other. We found that studies with lower ascertainment bias identified higher proportions of cis-regulatory mutations, and that cis-regulatory mutations were more common amongst animals harbouring a higher number of pigment cell classes. We classified pigmentation traits firstly according to their physiological basis and secondly according to whether they affect colour or pattern, and identified that carotenoid-based pigmentation and variation in pattern boundaries are preferentially associated with cis-regulatory change. We also classified genes according to their developmental, cellular, and molecular functions. We found a greater proportion of cis-regulatory mutations in genes implicated in upstream developmental processes compared to those involved in downstream cellular functions, and that ligands were associated with a higher proportion of cis-regulatory mutations than their respective receptors. Based on these trends, we discuss future directions for research in vertebrate pigmentation evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel Elkin
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Arnaud Martin
- Department of Biological Sciences, The George Washington University, 800 22nd St. NW, Suite 6000, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
| | | | - M Emília Santos
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
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Janssen K, Bustnes JO, Mundy NI. Variation in Genetic Mechanisms for Plumage Polymorphism in Skuas (Stercorarius). J Hered 2021; 112:430-435. [PMID: 34343335 PMCID: PMC8634071 DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esab038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Coloration is evolutionarily labile and so provides an excellent trait for examining the repeatability of evolution. Here, we investigate the repeatability of the evolution of polymorphic variation in ventral plumage coloration in skuas (Stercorarius: Stercorariidae). In 2 species, arctic (S. parasiticus) and pomarine skuas (S. pomarinus), plumage polymorphism was previously shown to be associated with coding changes at the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) locus. Here, we show that polymorphism in a third species, the south polar skua (S. maccormicki), is not associated with coding variation at MC1R or with variation at a Z-linked second candidate locus, tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TYRP1). Hence, convergent evolution of plumage polymorphisms in skuas is only partly repeatable at the level of the genetic locus involved. Interestingly, the pattern of repeatability in skuas is aligned not with phylogeny but with the nature of the phenotypic variation. In particular, south polar skuas show a strong sex bias to coloration that is absent in the other species, and it may be that this has a unique genetic architecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirstin Janssen
- Department of Natural Sciences, Tromsø University Museum, NO-9037 Tromsø, Norway.,Centre of Forensic Genetics, Institute of Medical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UIT The Arctic University of Norway, NO-9037 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, The Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø,Norway
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7
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Kulikova IV. Molecular Mechanisms and Gene Regulation of Melanic Plumage Coloration in Birds. RUSS J GENET+ 2021. [DOI: 10.1134/s102279542108007x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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8
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Nebel C, Sumasgutner P, Rodseth E, Ingle RA, Childs DZ, Curtis‐Scott O, Amar A. Multigenerational pedigree analysis of wild individually marked black sparrowhawks suggests that dark plumage coloration is a dominant autosomal trait. J Zool (1987) 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. Nebel
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DSI‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
- Department of Biology University of Turku Turku Finland
| | - P. Sumasgutner
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DSI‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
- Department of Behavioral & Cognitive Biology Konrad Lorenz Research Centre (KLF) Core Facility for Behaviour and Cognition University of Vienna Vienna Austria
| | - E. Rodseth
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
| | - R. A. Ingle
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
| | - D. Z. Childs
- School of Biosciences University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
| | - O. Curtis‐Scott
- Department of Biological Sciences University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
| | - A. Amar
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DSI‐NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Cape Town South Africa
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Stothart MR, Newman AEM. Shades of grey: host phenotype dependent effect of urbanization on the bacterial microbiome of a wild mammal. Anim Microbiome 2021; 3:46. [PMID: 34225812 PMCID: PMC8256534 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-021-00105-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Host-associated microbiota are integral to the ecology of their host and may help wildlife species cope with rapid environmental change. Urbanization is a globally replicated form of severe environmental change which we can leverage to better understand wildlife microbiomes. Does the colonization of separate cities result in parallel changes in the intestinal microbiome of wildlife, and if so, does within-city habitat heterogeneity matter? Using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, we quantified the effect of urbanization (across three cities) on the microbiome of eastern grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis). Grey squirrels are ubiquitous in rural and urban environments throughout their native range, across which they display an apparent coat colour polymorphism (agouti, black, intermediate). RESULTS Grey squirrel microbiomes differed between rural and city environments; however, comparable variation was explained by habitat heterogeneity within cities. Our analyses suggest that operational taxonomic unit (OTU) community structure was more strongly influenced by local environmental conditions (rural and city forests versus human built habitats) than urbanization of the broader landscape (city versus rural). The bacterial genera characterizing the microbiomes of built-environment squirrels are thought to specialize on host-derived products and have been linked in previous research to low fibre diets. However, despite an effect of urbanization at fine spatial scales, phylogenetic patterns in the microbiome were coat colour phenotype dependent. City and built-environment agouti squirrels displayed greater phylogenetic beta-dispersion than those in rural or forest environments, and null modelling results indicated that the phylogenetic structure of urban agouti squirrels did not differ greatly from stochastic expectations. CONCLUSIONS Squirrel microbiomes differed between city and rural environments, but differences of comparable magnitude were observed between land classes at a within-city scale. We did not observe strong evidence that inter-environmental differences were the result of disparate selective pressures. Rather, our results suggest that microbiota dispersal and ecological drift are integral to shaping the inter-environmental differences we observed. However, these processes were partly mediated by squirrel coat colour phenotype. Given a well-known urban cline in squirrel coat colour melanism, grey squirrels provide a useful free-living system with which to study how host genetics mediate environment x microbiome interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mason R. Stothart
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, T2N 4Z6 Canada
| | - Amy E. M. Newman
- Department of Integrative Biology, College of Biological Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, N1G 2W1 Canada
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10
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Vrettos M, Reynolds C, Amar A. Malar stripe size and prominence in peregrine falcons vary positively with solar radiation: support for the solar glare hypothesis. Biol Lett 2021; 17:20210116. [PMID: 34062086 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Many falcons (Falco spp.) exhibit a distinct dark plumage patch below the eye, termed the malar stripe. This stripe is hypothesized to reduce the amount of solar glare reflected into the eyes while foraging, thereby increasing hunting efficiency in bright conditions. Here, we use a novel, global-scale correlative approach to test this 'solar glare hypothesis' in peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus), the most widespread falcon species, using web-sourced photographs from across the species' global range. We found that the size and prominence of the malar stripe were positively associated with average annual solar radiation, but not with other environmental variables, such as temperature and rainfall. Our results provide the first published evidence for the hypothesis that this plumage feature functions to reduce the amount of solar glare reflected into the falcon's eyes, thereby improving the ability to pinpoint and target agile prey in bright conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Vrettos
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Chevonne Reynolds
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa.,School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Arjun Amar
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa
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Posso-Terranova A, Andrés J. Skin transcriptional profiles in Oophaga poison frogs. Genet Mol Biol 2020; 43:e20190401. [PMID: 33211057 PMCID: PMC7678260 DOI: 10.1590/1678-4685-gmb-2019-0401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2019] [Accepted: 06/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Aposematic organisms advertise their defensive toxins to predators using a variety of warning
signals, including bright coloration. While most Neotropical poison frogs (Dendrobatidae) rely on
crypsis to avoid predators, Oophaga poison frogs from South America advertise their
chemical defenses, a complex mix of diet-derived alkaloids, by using conspicuous hues. The present
study aimed to characterize the skin transcriptomic profiles of South American
Oophaga poison frogs. Our analyses showed very similar transcriptomic profiles for
these closely related species in terms of functional annotation and relative abundance of gene
ontology terms expressed. Analyses of expression profiles of Oophaga and available
skin transcriptomes of cryptic anurans allowed us to propose initial hypotheses for the active
sequestration of alkaloid-based chemical defenses and to highlight some genes that may be
potentially involved in resistance mechanisms to avoid self-intoxication and skin coloration. In
doing so, we provide an important molecular resource for the study of warning signals that will
facilitate the assembly and annotation of future poison frog genomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés Posso-Terranova
- University of Saskatchewan, Department of Biology, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.,Universidad Nacional de Colombia sede Palmira, Palmira, Colombia
| | - José Andrés
- University of Saskatchewan, Department of Biology, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.,Cornell University, Department of Ecology and Evolution, Ithaca, NY, USA
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Tsarpali V, Kassara C, Barboutis C, Papadimitraki M, Kloukinioti M, Giokas S, Dailianis S. Assessing the seasonal and intrinsic variability of neurotoxic and cyto-genotoxic biomarkers in blood of free-living Eleonoras' falcons. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 711:135101. [PMID: 32000341 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Revised: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 10/19/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
In the present study we investigated seasonal and intrinsic variability of neurotoxic and cyto-genotoxic biomarkers in blood plasma and erythrocytes of free-living Eleonoras' falcons, captured during the pre-breeding (May of 2017 and 2018) and breeding period (September of 2017) on the Antikythira Island (Greece). Specifically, blood samples of captured birds were prepared for the determination of cholinesterase (ChEs, i.e. acetylcholinesterase/AChE and butyrylcholinesterase/ BChE) activity, as well as the formation of nuclear (i.e. the formation of micronuclei into the cells/MN, binucleated cells/BN and others), and cellular/cytoplasmic (i.e. echinocytes/EC, acanthocytes/AC and notched cells/NC) abnormalities in blood plasma and erythrocytes, respectively. Our results indicated that birds sampled in late May had higher ChE and BChE activity levels, as well as higher frequency of total nuclear abnormalities. The latter were also higher in second calendar year (2cy) birds. Cellular/cytoplasmic abnormalities were less frequent in falcons having better body condition, sampled in late May, as well as in light-morph falcons. The observed ChEs activities, as well as nuclear and cellular/cytoplasmic abnormalities revealed that Eleonora's falcons are likely to be exposed to chemical agents with neurotoxic and cyto-genotoxic potential year round, while different aspects of their biology and ecology, such as their reproductive and nutritional status, could mediate their levels. Although we encourage more sampling campaigns to verify the identified seasonal and intrinsic sources of variation in biomarkers tested, the current study enriches the existing knowledge about their usefulness in the environmental monitoring and risk assessment of migratory birds, like Eleonoras' falcon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vasiliki Tsarpali
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece
| | - Christina Kassara
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece
| | - Christos Barboutis
- Antikythira Bird Observatory, Hellenic Ornithological Society/BirdLife Greece, Themistokleous str. 80, GR-10681 Athens, Greece
| | - Maria Papadimitraki
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece
| | - Maria Kloukinioti
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece
| | - Sinos Giokas
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece
| | - Stefanos Dailianis
- Department of Biology, Section of Animal Biology, University of Patras, GR-26500 Patras, Greece.
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Park H, Yang I, Choi M, Jang KS, Jung JC, Choi KY. Engineering of melanin biopolymer by co-expression of MelC tyrosinase with CYP102G4 monooxygenase: Structural composition understanding by 15 tesla FT-ICR MS analysis. Biochem Eng J 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bej.2020.107530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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14
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Bam S, Hart L, Willows-Munro S. Mc1r genotype and plumage colouration in highly polymorphic jackal buzzards, Buteo rufofuscus. AFRICAN ZOOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/15627020.2019.1658539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sophia Bam
- School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
| | - Lorinda Hart
- School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
| | - Sandi Willows-Munro
- School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
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15
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McRobie HR, Moncrief ND, Mundy NI. Multiple origins of melanism in two species of North American tree squirrel (Sciurus). BMC Evol Biol 2019; 19:140. [PMID: 31296164 PMCID: PMC6625063 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-019-1471-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/30/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND While our understanding of the genetic basis of convergent evolution has improved there are still many uncertainties. Here we investigate the repeated evolution of dark colouration (melanism) in eastern fox squirrels (Sciurus niger; hereafter "fox squirrels") and eastern gray squirrels (S. carolinensis; hereafter "gray squirrels"). RESULTS We show that convergent evolution of melanism has arisen by independent genetic mechanisms in two populations of the fox squirrel. In a western population, melanism is associated with a 24 bp deletion in the melanocortin-1-receptor gene (MC1RΔ24 allele), whereas in a south-eastern population, melanism is associated with a point substitution in the agouti signalling protein gene causing a Gly121Cys mutation. The MC1R∆24 allele is also associated with melanism in gray squirrels, and, remarkably, all the MC1R∆24 haplotypes are identical in the two species. Evolutionary analyses show that the MC1R∆24 haplotype is more closely related to other MC1R haplotypes in the fox squirrel than in the gray squirrel. Modelling supports the possibility of gene flow between the two species. CONCLUSIONS The presence of the MC1R∆24 allele and melanism in gray squirrels is likely due to introgression from fox squirrels, although we cannot completely rule out alternative hypotheses including introgression from gray squirrels to fox squirrels, or an ancestral polymorphism. Convergent melanism in these two species of tree squirrels has evolved by at least two and probably three different evolutionary routes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen R McRobie
- School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, CB1 1PT, UK.
| | - Nancy D Moncrief
- Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsville, VA, 24112, USA
| | - Nicholas I Mundy
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
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16
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Gangoso L, Figuerola J. Breeding success but not mate choice is phenotype- and context-dependent in a color polymorphic raptor. Behav Ecol 2019; 30:763-769. [PMID: 31210721 PMCID: PMC6562304 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2018] [Revised: 01/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Morph-specific mate choice has been proposed as one of the evolutionary mechanisms that contribute to the maintenance of variation in color polymorphic systems. Coloration usually covaries with other phenotypic traits affecting life history and thus is often used as a criterion for mate choice. Here, we assess whether mating patterns, natal dispersal, and breeding output are phenotype-dependent in the color polymorphic Eleonora's falcon. We used a long-term dataset of 946 individually ringed adult falcons that included 109 individuals monitored from birth up to recruitment into the breeding population. Overall, patterns of mate choice with regard to coloration were neither assortative nor disassortative. Natal dispersal distance was greater in females but was not associated with coloration. Breeding success was both morph-dependent and context-dependent. Although clutch size was similar in differently colored pairs, differences arose in the number of chicks that fledge. In some years, dark males raised more offspring, regardless of female color morph. Differences in the breeding tactics between male morphs could be associated with intraspecific predation and may thus contribute to the observed differences in breeding output, especially when food availability is low. This suggests that mating patterns may interact with other factors and give rise to the observed higher breeding output of dark males only under certain environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gangoso
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Jordi Figuerola
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, Sevilla, Spain
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17
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Construction of MC1R and ASIP Eukaryotic Expression Vector and its Regulation of Plumage Color in Japanese Quail ( Coturnix japonica). J Poult Sci 2019; 56:84-90. [PMID: 32055201 PMCID: PMC7005409 DOI: 10.2141/jpsa.0180058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The Japanese quail expresses polymorphism in plumage colors, including black, yellow, white, wild-type (maroon), and various intermediate colors through hybridization of quail with different plumage colors. The expression levels of MC1R and ASIP play important roles in the regulation of plumage colors in birds. In this study, the eukaryotic expression vector of pcDNA 3.1 + was used to analyze the effects of forced expression of MC1R and ASIP on the plumage colors of Japanese quail embryos. The constructed eukaryotic expression vectors of pcDNA 3.1 (+)-MC1R and pcDNA 3.1(+)-ASIP were transfected into wild-type Japanese quail embryos by Lipofectamine™ 2000 liposome at 6 days of incubation. After 3 days, the embryos were collected to analyze the plumage colors and the expression levels of MC1R, ASIP, and DCT genes in skin tissue. Forced expression of the MC1R gene by transfection of the pcDNA 3.1(+)-MC1R vector led to hyperpigmentation (similar to black plumage), whereas forced expression of the ASIP gene by transfection of the pcDNA 3.1(+)-ASIP vector led to hypopigmentation (similar to white plumage) in wild-type quail embryos. Two kinds of ASIP alternative splicing (ASIP1 and ASIP2) were found in Japanese quail, which did not have a significant effect on the plumage color or the main motifs of the ASIP protein. This study indicated that the black plumage color may be caused by increased production of MC1R and the white plumage color may be caused by increased production of ASIP in Japanese quail.
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18
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Côte J, Boniface A, Blanchet S, Hendry AP, Gasparini J, Jacquin L. Melanin-based coloration and host-parasite interactions under global change. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:rspb.2018.0285. [PMID: 29848644 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2018] [Accepted: 05/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of parasites in shaping melanin-based colour polymorphism, and the consequences of colour polymorphism for disease resistance, remain debated. Here we review recent evidence of the links between melanin-based coloration and the behavioural and immunological defences of vertebrates against their parasites. First we propose that (1) differences between colour morphs can result in variable exposure to parasites, either directly (certain colours might be more or less attractive to parasites) or indirectly (variations in behaviour and encounter probability). Once infected, we propose that (2) immune variation between differently coloured individuals might result in different abilities to cope with parasite infection. We then discuss (3) how these different abilities could translate into variable sexual and natural selection in environments varying in parasite pressure. Finally, we address (4) the potential role of parasites in the maintenance of melanin-based colour polymorphism, especially in the context of global change and multiple stressors in human-altered environments. Because global change will probably affect both coloration and the spread of parasitic diseases in the decades to come, future studies should take into account melanin-based coloration to better predict the evolutionary responses of animals to changing disease risk in human-altered environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Côte
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique EDB, UMR 5174, UPS; CNRS; ENSFEA; IRD, Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - A Boniface
- Department of Biology & Redpath Museum, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - S Blanchet
- Station d'Ecologie Théorique et Expérimentale SETE, UMR 5321, UPS, CNRS, Moulis, France
| | - A P Hendry
- Department of Biology & Redpath Museum, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - J Gasparini
- Sorbonnes Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UPEC, Paris 7, CNRS, INRA, IRD, Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, 75005, Paris, France
| | - L Jacquin
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique EDB, UMR 5174, UPS; CNRS; ENSFEA; IRD, Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
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19
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Briolat ES, Burdfield‐Steel ER, Paul SC, Rönkä KH, Seymoure BM, Stankowich T, Stuckert AMM. Diversity in warning coloration: selective paradox or the norm? Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:388-414. [PMID: 30152037 PMCID: PMC6446817 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2017] [Revised: 07/25/2018] [Accepted: 07/27/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Aposematic theory has historically predicted that predators should select for warning signals to converge on a single form, as a result of frequency-dependent learning. However, widespread variation in warning signals is observed across closely related species, populations and, most problematically for evolutionary biologists, among individuals in the same population. Recent research has yielded an increased awareness of this diversity, challenging the paradigm of signal monomorphy in aposematic animals. Here we provide a comprehensive synthesis of these disparate lines of investigation, identifying within them three broad classes of explanation for variation in aposematic warning signals: genetic mechanisms, differences among predators and predator behaviour, and alternative selection pressures upon the signal. The mechanisms producing warning coloration are also important. Detailed studies of the genetic basis of warning signals in some species, most notably Heliconius butterflies, are beginning to shed light on the genetic architecture facilitating or limiting key processes such as the evolution and maintenance of polymorphisms, hybridisation, and speciation. Work on predator behaviour is changing our perception of the predator community as a single homogenous selective agent, emphasising the dynamic nature of predator-prey interactions. Predator variability in a range of factors (e.g. perceptual abilities, tolerance to chemical defences, and individual motivation), suggests that the role of predators is more complicated than previously appreciated. With complex selection regimes at work, polytypisms and polymorphisms may even occur in Müllerian mimicry systems. Meanwhile, phenotypes are often multifunctional, and thus subject to additional biotic and abiotic selection pressures. Some of these selective pressures, primarily sexual selection and thermoregulation, have received considerable attention, while others, such as disease risk and parental effects, offer promising avenues to explore. As well as reviewing the existing evidence from both empirical studies and theoretical modelling, we highlight hypotheses that could benefit from further investigation in aposematic species. Finally by collating known instances of variation in warning signals, we provide a valuable resource for understanding the taxonomic spread of diversity in aposematic signalling and with which to direct future research. A greater appreciation of the extent of variation in aposematic species, and of the selective pressures and constraints which contribute to this once-paradoxical phenomenon, yields a new perspective for the field of aposematic signalling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuelle S. Briolat
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental SciencesUniversity of ExeterPenryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FEU.K.
| | - Emily R. Burdfield‐Steel
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental ScienceUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskylä, 40014Finland
| | - Sarah C. Paul
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental SciencesUniversity of ExeterPenryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FEU.K.
- Department of Chemical EcologyBielefeld UniversityUniversitätsstraße 25, 33615, BielefeldGermany
| | - Katja H. Rönkä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental ScienceUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskylä, 40014Finland
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinki, 00014Finland
| | - Brett M. Seymoure
- Department of BiologyColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCO 80525U.S.A.
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation BiologyColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCO 80525U.S.A.
| | - Theodore Stankowich
- Department of Biological SciencesCalifornia State UniversityLong BeachCA 90840U.S.A.
| | - Adam M. M. Stuckert
- Department of BiologyEast Carolina University1000 E Fifth St, GreenvilleNC 27858U.S.A.
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20
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Bosch J, Mestre J, Baiges C, Martínez JE, Calvo JF, Jiménez‐Franco MV. Colour plumage polymorphism in the Booted Eagle: inheritance pattern and temporal stability of the morph frequencies. J Zool (1987) 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J. Bosch
- Cra. de Navarcles 43, Santpedor Barcelona Spain
| | - J. Mestre
- Departament de Territori i Sostenibilitat Parc Natural dels Ports Tarragona Spain
| | - C. Baiges
- Departament de Territori i Sostenibilitat Parc Natural dels Ports Tarragona Spain
| | - J. E. Martínez
- Departamento de Ecología e Hidrología Universidad de Murcia Murcia Spain
- Bonelli′s Eagle Study and Conservation Group Murcia Spain
| | - J. F. Calvo
- Departamento de Ecología e Hidrología Universidad de Murcia Murcia Spain
| | - M. V. Jiménez‐Franco
- Departamento de Biología Aplicada Universidad Miguel Hernández Elche, Alicante Spain
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21
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Janssen K, Mundy NI. The genetic basis and enigmatic origin of melanic polymorphism in pomarine skuas ( Stercorarius pomarinus). Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.1735. [PMID: 29187628 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2017] [Accepted: 10/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
A key outstanding issue in adaptive evolution is the relationship between the genetics of intraspecific polymorphism and interspecific evolution. Here, we show that the pale/dark ventral plumage polymorphism that occurs in both the pomarine skua (Stercorarius pomarinus) and Arctic skua (S. parasiticus) is the result of convergent evolution at the same locus (MC1R), involving some of the same amino acid sites. The dark melanic MC1R allele in the pomarine skua is strongly divergent from the pale MC1R alleles. Whereas the dark allele is closely related to MC1R alleles in three species of great skua (S. skua, S. maccormicki, S. lonnbergi), the pale pomarine skua MC1R alleles present a star-like pattern in an intermediate position on the haplotype network, closer to alleles of the long-tailed skua (S. longicaudus). Variation at other nuclear loci confirms a close relationship between the pomarine skua and the great skuas. The plumage polymorphism in pomarine skuas might have arisen in the common ancestor of pomarine and great skuas, only being retained in pomarine skuas. Alternatively, the pale and melanic MC1R alleles may have evolved independently in different lineages and been brought together in pomarine skuas by hybridization. In this case, introgression of a pale MC1R allele into the pomarine skua from another skua lineage is most likely. Our current data do not permit us to distinguish between these hypotheses, and assaying genome-wide variation holds much promise in this regard. Nevertheless, we have uncovered an intriguing example of a functionally important allele within one species that is shared across species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirstin Janssen
- Department of Natural Sciences, Tromsø University Museum, UiT The Arctic University of Tromsø, 9037 Tromsø, Norway.,Centre of Forensic Genetics, Institute of Medical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UIT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Nicholas I Mundy
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
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22
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San-Jose LM, Roulin A. Toward Understanding the Repeated Occurrence of Associations between Melanin-Based Coloration and Multiple Phenotypes. Am Nat 2018; 192:111-130. [PMID: 30016163 DOI: 10.1086/698010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Melanin is the most widespread pigment in organisms. Melanin-based coloration has been repeatedly observed to be associated with the same traits and in the same direction in different vertebrate and insect species. However, whether any factors that are common to different taxa account for the repeated evolution of melanin-phenotype associations remains unclear. We propose to approach this question from the perspective of convergent and parallel evolution to clarify to what extent different species have evolved the same associations owing to a shared genetic basis and being subjected to similar selective pressures. Our current understanding of the genetic basis of melanin-phenotype associations allows for both convergent and parallel evolution, but this understanding is still limited. Further research is needed to clarify the generality and interdependencies of the different proposed mechanisms (supergenes, pleiotropy based on hormones, or neural crest cells). The general ecological scenarios whereby melanin-based coloration is under selection-protection from ultraviolet radiation, thermoregulation in cold environments, or as a signal of social status-offer a good opportunity to study how melanin-phenotype associations evolve. Reviewing these scenarios shows that some traits associated with melanin-based coloration might be selected together with coloration by also favoring adaptation but that other associated traits might impede adaptation, which may be indicative of genetic constraints. We therefore encourage further research on the relative roles that selection and genetic constraints play in shaping multiple melanin-phenotype associations. Placed into a phylogenetic context, this will help clarify to what extent these associations result from convergent or parallel evolutionary processes and why melanin-phenotype associations are so common across the tree of life.
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23
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Dib L, San-Jose LM, Ducrest AL, Salamin N, Roulin A. Selection on the Major Color Gene Melanocortin-1-Receptor Shaped the Evolution of the Melanocortin System Genes. Int J Mol Sci 2017; 18:ijms18122618. [PMID: 29206201 PMCID: PMC5751221 DOI: 10.3390/ijms18122618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2017] [Revised: 11/28/2017] [Accepted: 11/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Modular genetic systems and networks have complex evolutionary histories shaped by selection acting on single genes as well as on their integrated function within the network. However, uncovering molecular coevolution requires the detection of coevolving sites in sequences. Detailed knowledge of the functions of each gene in the system is also necessary to identify the selective agents driving coevolution. Using recently developed computational tools, we investigated the effect of positive selection on the coevolution of ten major genes in the melanocortin system, responsible for multiple physiological functions and human diseases. Substitutions driven by positive selection at the melanocortin-1-receptor (MC1R) induced more coevolutionary changes on the system than positive selection on other genes in the system. Contrarily, selection on the highly pleiotropic POMC gene, which orchestrates the activation of the different melanocortin receptors, had the lowest coevolutionary influence. MC1R and possibly its main function, melanin pigmentation, seems to have influenced the evolution of the melanocortin system more than functions regulated by MC2-5Rs such as energy homeostasis, glucocorticoid-dependent stress and anti-inflammatory responses. Although replication in other regulatory systems is needed, this suggests that single functional aspects of a genetic network or system can be of higher importance than others in shaping coevolution among the genes that integrate it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda Dib
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Laboratoire de Recherche en Neuroimagerie, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Luis M San-Jose
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Anne-Lyse Ducrest
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Nicolas Salamin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Quartier Sorge, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Rue du Bugnon 27, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Rue du Bugnon 27, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland.
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24
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Kerimov AB, Ilyina TA, Ivankina EV, Bushuev AV, Sokolova OV, Rogovin KA. Melanin-based coloration and immunity in polymorphic population of pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca. Evol Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-017-9926-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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25
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Posso-Terranova A, Andrés JÁ. Diversification and convergence of aposematic phenotypes: truncated receptors and cellular arrangements mediate rapid evolution of coloration in harlequin poison frogs. Evolution 2017; 71:2677-2692. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.13335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2017] [Revised: 07/28/2017] [Accepted: 08/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Andrés Posso-Terranova
- Department of Biology; University of Saskatchewan; 112 Science Pl Saskatoon SK Canada
- Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias; Universidad Nacional de Colombia; Sede de Palmira A.A. 237 Palmira Colombia
| | - José Á. Andrés
- Department of Biology; University of Saskatchewan; 112 Science Pl Saskatoon SK Canada
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26
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Ahmad HI, Liu G, Jiang X, Liu C, Chong Y, Huarong H. Adaptive molecular evolution of MC1R gene reveals the evidence for positive diversifying selection in indigenous goat populations. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:5170-5180. [PMID: 28770057 PMCID: PMC5528238 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2919] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Revised: 02/10/2017] [Accepted: 02/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Detecting signatures of selection can provide a new insight into the mechanism of contemporary breeding and artificial selection and further reveal the causal genes associated to the phenotypic variation. However, the signatures of selection on genes entailing for profitable traits between Chinese commercial and indigenous goats have been poorly interpreted. We noticed footprints of positive selection at MC1R gene containing SNPs genotyped in five Chinese native goat breeds. An experimental distribution of FST was built based on approximations of FST for each SNP across five breeds. We identified selection using the high FST outlier method and found that MC1R candidate gene show evidence of positive selection. Furthermore, adaptive selection pressure on specific codons was determined using different codon based on maximum‐likelihood methods; signature of positive selection in mammalian MC1R was explored in individual codons. Evolutionary analyses were inferred under maximum likelihood models, the HyPhy package implemented in the DATAMONKEY Web Server. The results of codon selection displayed positive diversifying selection at the sites were mainly involved in development of genetic variations in coat color in various mammalian species. Positive diversifying selection inferred with recent evolutionary changes in domesticated goat MC1R provides new insights that the gene evolution may have been modulated by domestication events in goats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hafiz Ishfaq Ahmad
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
| | - Guiqiong Liu
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
| | - Xunping Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
| | - Chenhui Liu
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
| | - Yuqing Chong
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
| | - Huang Huarong
- Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Education College of Animal Science and Technology Huazhong Agricultural University Wuhan China
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27
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Gangoso L, Gutiérrez-López R, Martínez-de la Puente J, Figuerola J. Genetic colour polymorphism is associated with avian malarial infections. Biol Lett 2016; 12:20160839. [PMID: 28003524 PMCID: PMC5206593 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2016.0839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Individual genetic diversity is predicted to influence host-parasite interactions. Together with the genes directly associated with immune responses, variation in genes regulating vertebrate melanin-based pigmentation may play an important role in these interactions, mainly through the pleiotropic effects that affect colour-specific physiology, behaviour and immunity. Here, we test the hypothesis that the prevalence of avian malarial parasites differs between phenotypes in a raptor species in which the genetic basis of colour polymorphism and its pleiotropic effects over immune functions are known. We found that dark morphs had a higher prevalence of Plasmodium parasites than pale ones but detected no such association for Haemoproteus This pattern may be associated with unequal exposure to vectors or, as suggested by our circumstantial evidence, to a differential ability to mount an immune response against blood parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gangoso
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio, s/n, 41092 Seville, Spain
| | - Rafael Gutiérrez-López
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio, s/n, 41092 Seville, Spain
| | - Josué Martínez-de la Puente
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio, s/n, 41092 Seville, Spain
| | - Jordi Figuerola
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio, s/n, 41092 Seville, Spain
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28
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Chakarov N, Pauli M, Krüger O. Immune responses link parasite genetic diversity, prevalence and plumage morphs in common buzzards. Evol Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-016-9871-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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29
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San-Jose LM, Ducrest AL, Ducret V, Simon C, Richter H, Wakamatsu K, Roulin A. MC1R variants affect the expression of melanocortin and melanogenic genes and the association between melanocortin genes and coloration. Mol Ecol 2016; 26:259-276. [PMID: 27664794 DOI: 10.1111/mec.13861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2016] [Revised: 09/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene influences coloration by altering the expression of genes acting downstream in the melanin synthesis. MC1R belongs to the melanocortin system, a genetic network coding for the ligands that regulate MC1R and other melanocortin receptors controlling different physiological and behavioural traits. The impact of MC1R variants on these regulatory melanocortin genes was never considered, even though MC1R mutations could alter the influence of these genes on coloration (e.g. by decreasing MC1R response to melanocortin ligands). Using barn owl growing feathers, we investigated the differences between MC1R genotypes in the (co)expression of six melanocortin and nine melanogenic-related genes and in the association between melanocortin gene expression and phenotype (feather pheomelanin content). Compared to the MC1R rufous allele, responsible for reddish coloration, the white allele was not only associated with an expected lower expression of melanogenic-related genes (TYR, TYRP1, OCA2, SLC45A2, KIT, DCT) but also with a lower MC1R expression and a higher expression of ASIP, the MC1R antagonist. More importantly, the expression of PCSK2, responsible for the maturation of the MC1R agonist, α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, was positively related to pheomelanin content in MC1R white homozygotes but not in individuals carrying the MC1R rufous allele. These findings indicate that MC1R mutations not only alter the expression of melanogenic-related genes but also the association between coloration and the expression of melanocortin genes upstream of MC1R. This suggests that MC1R mutations can modulate the regulation of coloration by the pleiotropic melanocortin genes, potentially decoupling the often-observed associations between coloration and other phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis M San-Jose
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Anne-Lyse Ducrest
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Valérie Ducret
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Céline Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Richter
- Centre for Integrative Genomics, Genomic Technologies Facility, University of Lausanne, Genopode Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kazumasa Wakamatsu
- Department of Chemistry, Fujita Health University School of Health Sciences, Toyoake, Aichi, 470-1192, Japan
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
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Hõrak P, Männiste M. Viability selection affects black but not yellow plumage colour in greenfinches. Oecologia 2015; 180:23-32. [PMID: 26386701 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-015-3451-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2015] [Accepted: 09/07/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Much of the debate surrounding the selective forces responsible for the expression of conspicuous plumage colouration is centred on the question of precisely which individual qualities are signalled by carotenoid- and melanin-based pigments. To examine this and other related issues, we performed viability selection analyses in wild-caught captive male greenfinches (Carduelis chloris) in Estonia during winters between 2003 and 2014. Based on our measurements, birds with a darker black eumelanin-based colouration of tail feathers survived better than those whose tail feathers had a paler black colouration. The carotenoid-based yellow colouration of the same feathers was not associated with mortality in captivity and showed much less between-year variation in the field than the black colouration. Between year-variation in the black (but not yellow) colouration of feathers was parallel in wild-grown feathers (on birds in the wild) and laboratory-grown ones (on birds held temporarily in captivity). Taken together, these findings imply that eumelanotic colouration in greenfinches is currently under selection and suggest the presence of sufficient genetic variation for a rapid response to selection. In particular, tail feathers have become darker black since the emergence of avian trichomonosis, which is known to selectively kill paler individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peeter Hõrak
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, Tartu University, Vanemuise 46, 51014, Tartu, Estonia.
| | - Marju Männiste
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, Tartu University, Vanemuise 46, 51014, Tartu, Estonia
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Skin transcriptome profiles associated with skin color in chickens. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0127301. [PMID: 26030885 PMCID: PMC4452617 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0127301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2014] [Accepted: 04/14/2015] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Nutritional and medicinal benefits have been attributed to the consumption of tissues from the black-boned chickens in oriental countries. Lueyang black-boned chicken is one of the native chicken breeds. However, some birds may instead have white or lighter skin, which directly causes economic losses every year. Previous studies of pigmentation have focused on a number of genes that may play important roles in coat color regulation. Illumina2000 sequencing technology was used to catalog the global gene expression profiles in the skin of the Lueyang chicken with white versus black skin. A total of 18,608 unigenes were assembled from the reads obtained from the skin of the white and black chickens. A total of 649 known genes were differentially expressed in the black versus white chickens, with 314 genes that were up regulated and 335 genes that were down-regulated, and a total of 162 novel genes were differentially expressed in the black versus white chickens, consisting of 73 genes that were up-regulated (including 4 highly expressed genes that were expressed exclusively in the skin of the black chickens) and 89 genes that were down-regulated. There were also a total of 8 known coat-color genes expressed in previous studies (ASIP, TYR, KIT, TYRP1, OCA2, KITLG, MITF and MC1R). In this study, 4 of which showed greater expression in the black chickens, and several were up-regulated, such as KIT, ASIP, TYR and OCA2. To our surprise, KITLG, MITF and MC1R showed no significant difference in expression between the black- and white-skinned chickens, and the expression of TYRP1 was not detected in either skin color. The expression of ASIP, TYR, KIT, TYRP1, OCA2, KITLG, MITF and MC1R was validated by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), and the results of the qPCR were consistent with the RNA-seq. This study provides several candidate genes that may be associated with the development of black versus white skin. More importantly, the fact that the MC1R gene showed no significant difference in expression between the black and white chickens is of particular interest for future studies that aim to elucidate its functional role in the regulation of skin color.
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San-Jose LM, Ducrest AL, Ducret V, Béziers P, Simon C, Wakamatsu K, Roulin A. Effect of the MC1R gene on sexual dimorphism in melanin-based colorations. Mol Ecol 2015; 24:2794-808. [PMID: 25857339 DOI: 10.1111/mec.13193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2015] [Revised: 03/27/2015] [Accepted: 03/31/2015] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Variants of the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene result in abrupt, naturally selected colour morphs. These genetic variants may differentially affect sexual dimorphism if one morph is naturally selected in the two sexes but another morph is naturally or sexually selected only in one of the two sexes (e.g. to confer camouflage in reproductive females or confer mating advantage in males). Therefore, the balance between natural and sexual selections can differ between MC1R variants, as suggest studies showing interspecific correlations between sexual dimorphism and the rate of nonsynonymous vs. synonymous amino acid substitutions at the MC1R. Surprisingly, how MC1R is related to within-species sexual dimorphism, and thereby to sex-specific selection, has not yet been investigated. We tackled this issue in the barn owl (Tyto alba), a species showing pronounced variation in the degree of reddish pheomelanin-based coloration and in the number and size of black feather spots. We found that a valine (V)-to-isoleucine (I) substitution at position 126 explains up to 30% of the variation in the three melanin-based colour traits and in feather melanin content. Interestingly, MC1R genotypes also differed in the degree of sexual colour dimorphism, with individuals homozygous for the II MC1R variant being 2 times redder and 2.5 times less sexually dimorphic than homozygous individuals for the VV MC1R variant. These findings support that MC1R interacts with the expression of sexual dimorphism and suggest that a gene with major phenotypic effects and weakly influenced by variation in body condition can participate in sex-specific selection processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis M San-Jose
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Anne-Lyse Ducrest
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Valérie Ducret
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paul Béziers
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Céline Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kazumasa Wakamatsu
- Department of Chemistry, Fujita Health University School of Health Sciences, Toyoake, Aichi, 470-1192, Japan
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
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Gangoso L, Afán I, Grande J, Figuerola J. Sociospatial structuration of alternative breeding strategies in a color polymorphic raptor. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Gangoso L, Roulin A, Ducrest AL, Grande JM, Figuerola J. Morph-specific genetic and environmental variation in innate and acquired immune response in a color polymorphic raptor. Oecologia 2015; 178:1113-23. [PMID: 25834999 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-015-3306-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2014] [Accepted: 03/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Genetic color polymorphism is widespread in nature. There is an increasing interest in understanding the adaptive value of heritable color variation and trade-off resolution by differently colored individuals. Melanin-based pigmentation is often associated with variation in many different life history traits. These associations have recently been suggested to be the outcome of pleiotropic effects of the melanocortin system. Although pharmacological research supports that MC1R, a gene with a major role in vertebrate pigmentation, has important immunomodulatory effects, evidence regarding pleiotropy at MC1R in natural populations is still under debate. We experimentally assessed whether MC1R-based pigmentation covaries with both inflammatory and humoral immune responses in the color polymorphic Eleonora's falcon. By means of a cross-fostering experiment, we disentangled potential genetic effects from environmental effects on the covariation between coloration and immunity. Variation in both immune responses was primarily due to genetic factors via the nestlings' MC1R-related color genotype/phenotype, although environmental effects via the color morph of the foster father also had an influence. Overall, dark nestlings had lower immune responses than pale ones. The effect of the color morph of the foster father was also high, but in the opposite direction, and nestlings raised by dark eumelanic foster fathers had higher immune responses than those raised by pale foster fathers. Although we cannot completely discard alternative explanations, our results suggest that MC1R might influence immunity in this species. Morph-specific variation in immunity as well as pathogen pressure may therefore contribute to the long-term maintenance of genetic color polymorphism in natural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Gangoso
- Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, Avda Américo Vespucio s/n, 41092, Seville, Spain,
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Fulgione D, Lega C, Trapanese M, Buglione M. Genetic factors implied in melanin‐based coloration of the Italian wall lizard. J Zool (1987) 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- D. Fulgione
- Department of Biology University of Naples ‘Federico II’ Napoli Italy
| | - C. Lega
- Department of Biology University of Naples ‘Federico II’ Napoli Italy
- Department of Earth Science University of Pisa Pisa Italy
| | - M. Trapanese
- Department of Biology University of Naples ‘Federico II’ Napoli Italy
| | - M. Buglione
- Department of Biology University of Naples ‘Federico II’ Napoli Italy
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Chakarov N, Linke B, Boerner M, Goesmann A, Krüger O, Hoffman JI. Apparent vector-mediated parent-to-offspring transmission in an avian malaria-like parasite. Mol Ecol 2015; 24:1355-63. [PMID: 25688585 DOI: 10.1111/mec.13115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2014] [Revised: 02/05/2015] [Accepted: 02/11/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Parasite transmission strategies strongly impact host-parasite co-evolution and virulence. However, studies of vector-borne parasites such as avian malaria have neglected the potential effects of host relatedness on the exchange of parasites. To test whether extended parental care in the presence of vectors increases the probability of transmission from parents to offspring, we used high-throughput sequencing to develop microsatellites for malaria-like Leucocytozoon parasites of a wild raptor population. We show that host siblings carry genetically more similar parasites than unrelated chicks both within and across years. Moreover, chicks of mothers of the same plumage morph carried more similar parasites than nestlings whose mothers were of different morphs, consistent with matrilineal transmission of morph-specific parasite strains. Ours is the first evidence of an association between host relatedness and parasite genetic similarity, consistent with vector-mediated parent-to-offspring transmission. The conditions for such 'quasi-vertical' transmission may be common and could suppress the evolution of pathogen virulence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nayden Chakarov
- Department of Animal Behaviour, Bielefeld University, PO Box 10 01 31, 33501, Bielefeld, Germany
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Roulin A. Condition-dependence, pleiotropy and the handicap principle of sexual selection in melanin-based colouration. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2015; 91:328-48. [PMID: 25631160 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2014] [Revised: 11/30/2014] [Accepted: 12/11/2014] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The signalling function of melanin-based colouration is debated. Sexual selection theory states that ornaments should be costly to produce, maintain, wear or display to signal quality honestly to potential mates or competitors. An increasing number of studies supports the hypothesis that the degree of melanism covaries with aspects of body condition (e.g. body mass or immunity), which has contributed to change the initial perception that melanin-based colour ornaments entail no costs. Indeed, the expression of many (but not all) melanin-based colour traits is weakly sensitive to the environment but strongly heritable suggesting that these colour traits are relatively cheap to produce and maintain, thus raising the question of how such colour traits could signal quality honestly. Here I review the production, maintenance and wearing/displaying costs that can generate a correlation between melanin-based colouration and body condition, and consider other evolutionary mechanisms that can also lead to covariation between colour and body condition. Because genes controlling melanic traits can affect numerous phenotypic traits, pleiotropy could also explain a linkage between body condition and colouration. Pleiotropy may result in differently coloured individuals signalling different aspects of quality that are maintained by frequency-dependent selection or local adaptation. Colouration may therefore not signal absolute quality to potential mates or competitors (e.g. dark males may not achieve a higher fitness than pale males); otherwise genetic variation would be rapidly depleted by directional selection. As a consequence, selection on heritable melanin-based colouration may not always be directional, but mate choice may be conditional to environmental conditions (i.e. context-dependent sexual selection). Despite the interest of evolutionary biologists in the adaptive value of melanin-based colouration, its actual role in sexual selection is still poorly understood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Building Biophore, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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38
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Männiste M, Hõrak P. Emerging infectious disease selects for darker plumage coloration in greenfinches. Front Ecol Evol 2014. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2014.00004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
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39
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Hoffman JI, Krause ET, Lehmann K, Krüger O. MC1R genotype and plumage colouration in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata): population structure generates artefactual associations. PLoS One 2014; 9:e86519. [PMID: 24489736 PMCID: PMC3906038 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2013] [Accepted: 12/13/2013] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Polymorphisms at the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene have been linked to coloration in many vertebrate species. However, the potentially confounding influence of population structure has rarely been controlled for. We explored the role of the MC1R in a model avian system by sequencing the coding region in 162 zebra finches comprising 79 wild type and 83 white individuals from five stocks. Allelic counts differed significantly between the two plumage morphs at multiple segregating sites, but these were mostly synonymous. To provide a control, the birds were genotyped at eight microsatellites and subjected to Bayesian cluster analysis, revealing two distinct groups. We therefore crossed wild type with white individuals and backcrossed the F1s with white birds. No significant associations were detected in the resulting offspring, suggesting that our original findings were a byproduct of genome-wide divergence. Our results are consistent with a previous study that found no association between MC1R polymorphism and plumage coloration in leaf warblers. They also contribute towards a growing body of evidence suggesting that care should be taken to quantify, and where necessary control for, population structure in association studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph I. Hoffman
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - E. Tobias Krause
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Animal Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Katrin Lehmann
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Oliver Krüger
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany
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Differential haemoparasite intensity between black sparrowhawk (Accipiter melanoleucus) morphs suggests an adaptive function for polymorphism. PLoS One 2013; 8:e81607. [PMID: 24391707 PMCID: PMC3876978 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0081607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2013] [Accepted: 10/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent research suggests that genes coding for melanin based colouration may have pleiotropic properties, in particular conveying raised immune function. Thus adaptive function of polymorphism may be associated with parasite resistance. The black sparrowhawk Accipiter melanoleucus is a polymorphic raptor with two morphs. Over most of its range the light morph is commonest, however within the recently colonised Western Cape of South Africa the dark morph predominates. The species breeds in winter throughout South Africa, however unlike in the rest of the species' South African range, the Western Cape experiences a winter rainfall regime, where arthropod vectors which transmit haematozoan parasites may be more abundant. We hypothesise that the higher frequency of dark morph birds in this region may be due to their improved parasite resistance, which enables them to cope with higher parasite pressure. If so, we predict that dark morph black sparrowhawks would have lower parasite burdens than light morph birds. Within our population the prevalence of the two most common haematozoan parasites was high, with 72% of adults infected with Haemoproteus nisi and 59% of adults infected with Leucocytozoon toddi. We found no difference in prevalence for either parasite between adult morphs, or between chicks of different parental morphs. However, within adults infected with H. nisi, infection intensity was significantly higher in light morphs than dark morphs. This suggests that dark morphs have lower parasite loads than light morphs due to resistance rather than morph-specific habitat exploitation. Greater resistance to Haemoproteus parasites may therefore be one of the mechanisms through which dark morph black sparrowhawks have a selective advantage in this region and may explain why they are most common in our study area. In other regions, the cost to benefit ratio may be in favour of the light morph, where parasites are less abundant or virulent.
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Chakarov N, Jonker RM, Boerner M, Hoffman JI, Krüger O. Variation at phenological candidate genes correlates with timing of dispersal and plumage morph in a sedentary bird of prey. Mol Ecol 2013; 22:5430-40. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.12493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2013] [Revised: 07/19/2013] [Accepted: 08/08/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nayden Chakarov
- Department of Animal Behaviour; Bielefeld University; PO Box 10 01 31 33501 Bielefeld Germany
| | - Rudy M. Jonker
- Department of Animal Behaviour; Bielefeld University; PO Box 10 01 31 33501 Bielefeld Germany
| | - Martina Boerner
- Department of Animal Behaviour; Bielefeld University; PO Box 10 01 31 33501 Bielefeld Germany
| | - Joseph I. Hoffman
- Department of Animal Behaviour; Bielefeld University; PO Box 10 01 31 33501 Bielefeld Germany
| | - Oliver Krüger
- Department of Animal Behaviour; Bielefeld University; PO Box 10 01 31 33501 Bielefeld Germany
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42
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Janssen K, Mundy NI. Molecular population genetics of the melanic plumage polymorphism in Arctic skuas (Stercorarius parasiticus): evidence for divergent selection on plumage colour. Mol Ecol 2013; 22:4634-43. [PMID: 23980902 DOI: 10.1111/mec.12428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2013] [Revised: 05/28/2013] [Accepted: 06/03/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The Arctic skua (Stercorarius parasiticus) is a classic example of an avian plumage polymorphism, with variation in melanin-based ventral plumage coloration defining pale, intermediate and dark morphs in adults of both sexes. However, despite several decades of field research, there is an incomplete understanding of how the polymorphism in ventral plumage colour is maintained and the selective forces involved. Here, we investigate selection on a locus (MC1R) that is strongly associated with plumage colour variation in Arctic skuas using patterns of nucleotide variation and comparison to neutral loci (nuclear introns and mtDNA). We find that three linked nonsynonymous mutations in MC1R, including the single mutation described previously, are associated with plumage colour in the Arctic skua. The position of nonsynonymous mutations on a MC1R haplotype network implies that divergent selection drove the initial evolution of the colour morphs. Comparisons of F(ST)s of MC1R vs. nuclear introns among five skua populations differing in proportion of dark morphs along an approximate north-south cline reveal a signature of divergent selection on MC1R. In contrast, we find limited evidence for balancing selection on MC1R within populations, although the power is low. Our results provide strong evidence for both past and ongoing selection on MC1R, and, by implication, plumage colour in Arctic skuas. The results suggest that a fruitful avenue for future ecological studies will be analysis of selection on morphs in colonies at the extremes along the morph ratio cline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirstin Janssen
- Department of Natural Sciences, Tromsø University Museum, Tromsø, N-9037, Norway
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Guernsey MW, Ritscher L, Miller MA, Smith DA, Schöneberg T, Shapiro MD. A Val85Met mutation in melanocortin-1 receptor is associated with reductions in eumelanic pigmentation and cell surface expression in domestic rock pigeons (Columba livia). PLoS One 2013; 8:e74475. [PMID: 23977400 PMCID: PMC3744500 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2013] [Accepted: 08/02/2013] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Variation in the melanocortin-1 receptor (Mc1r) is associated with pigmentation diversity in wild and domesticated populations of vertebrates, including several species of birds. Among domestic bird species, pigmentation variation in the rock pigeon (Columbalivia) is particularly diverse. To determine the potential contribution of Mc1r variants to pigment diversity in pigeons, we sequenced Mc1r in a wide range of pigeon breeds and identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms, including a variant that codes for an amino acid substitution (Val85Met). In contrast to the association between Val85Met and eumelanism in other avian species, this change was associated with pheomelanism in pigeons. In vitro cAMP accumulation and protein expression assays revealed that Val85Met leads to decreased receptor function and reduced cell surface expression of the mutant protein. The reduced in vitro function is consistent with the observed association with reduced eumelanic pigmentation. Comparative genetic and cellular studies provide important insights about the range of mechanisms underlying diversity among vertebrates, including different phenotypic associations with similar mutations in different species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael W. Guernsey
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Lars Ritscher
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Matthew A. Miller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Daniel A. Smith
- Department of Chemistry, Goshen College, Goshen, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Torsten Schöneberg
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Michael D. Shapiro
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Derelle R, Kondrashov FA, Arkhipov VY, Corbel H, Frantz A, Gasparini J, Jacquin L, Jacob G, Thibault S, Baudry E. Color differences among feral pigeons (Columba livia) are not attributable to sequence variation in the coding region of the melanocortin-1 receptor gene (MC1R). BMC Res Notes 2013; 6:310. [PMID: 23915680 PMCID: PMC3750627 DOI: 10.1186/1756-0500-6-310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2013] [Accepted: 07/22/2013] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Genetic variation at the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene is correlated with melanin color variation in many birds. Feral pigeons (Columba livia) show two major melanin-based colorations: a red coloration due to pheomelanic pigment and a black coloration due to eumelanic pigment. Furthermore, within each color type, feral pigeons display continuous variation in the amount of melanin pigment present in the feathers, with individuals varying from pure white to a full dark melanic color. Coloration is highly heritable and it has been suggested that it is under natural or sexual selection, or both. Our objective was to investigate whether MC1R allelic variants are associated with plumage color in feral pigeons. FINDINGS We sequenced 888 bp of the coding sequence of MC1R among pigeons varying both in the type, eumelanin or pheomelanin, and the amount of melanin in their feathers. We detected 10 non-synonymous substitutions and 2 synonymous substitution but none of them were associated with a plumage type. It remains possible that non-synonymous substitutions that influence coloration are present in the short MC1R fragment that we did not sequence but this seems unlikely because we analyzed the entire functionally important region of the gene. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that color differences among feral pigeons are probably not attributable to amino acid variation at the MC1R locus. Therefore, variation in regulatory regions of MC1R or variation in other genes may be responsible for the color polymorphism of feral pigeons.
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Roulin A, Ducrest AL. Genetics of colouration in birds. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2013; 24:594-608. [PMID: 23665152 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2013.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 110] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2012] [Revised: 04/19/2013] [Accepted: 05/01/2013] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Establishing the links between phenotype and genotype is of great importance for resolving key questions about the evolution, maintenance and adaptive function of phenotypic variation. Bird colouration is one of the most studied systems to investigate the role of natural and sexual selection in the evolution of phenotypic diversity. Given the recent advances in molecular tools that allow discovering genetic polymorphisms and measuring gene and protein expression levels, it is timely to review the literature on the genetics of bird colouration. The present study shows that melanin-based colour phenotypes are often associated with mutations at melanogenic genes. Differences in melanin-based colouration are caused by switches of eumelanin to pheomelanin production or by changes in feather keratin structure, melanoblast migration and differentiation, as well as melanosome structure. Similar associations with other types of colourations are difficult to establish, because our knowledge about the molecular genetics of carotenoid-based and structural colouration is quasi inexistent. This discrepancy stems from the fact that only melanin-based colouration shows pronounced heritability estimates, i.e. the resemblance between related individuals is usually mainly explained by genetic factors. In contrast, the expression of carotenoid-based colouration is phenotypically plastic with a high sensitivity to variation in environmental conditions. It therefore appears that melanin-based colour traits are prime systems to understand the genetic basis of phenotypic variation. In this context, birds have a great potential to bring us to new frontiers where many exciting discoveries will be made on the genetics of phenotypic traits, such as colouration. In this context, a major goal of our review is to suggest a number of exciting future avenues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Saino N, Canova L, Costanzo A, Rubolini D, Roulin A, Møller AP. Immune and Stress Responses Covary with Melanin-Based Coloration in the Barn Swallow. Evol Biol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s11692-013-9228-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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Jacquin L, Haussy C, Bertin C, Laroucau K, Gasparini J. Darker female pigeons transmit more specific antibodies to their eggs than do paler ones. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Jacquin
- Laboratoire Ecologie et Evolution (EcoEvo); UMR 7625; CNRS UPMC ENS; Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC); 75005 Paris France
- Université Versailles-St-Quentin UVSQ; 78000 Versailles France
| | - Claudy Haussy
- Laboratoire Ecologie et Evolution (EcoEvo); UMR 7625; CNRS UPMC ENS; Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC); 75005 Paris France
| | - Claire Bertin
- Bacterial Zoonoses Unit; French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES); 94700 Maisons-Alfort France
| | - Karine Laroucau
- Bacterial Zoonoses Unit; French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES); 94700 Maisons-Alfort France
| | - Julien Gasparini
- Laboratoire Ecologie et Evolution (EcoEvo); UMR 7625; CNRS UPMC ENS; Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC); 75005 Paris France
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MacColl ADC, Stevenson IR, Richardson DS. Melanocortin-1-receptor (MC1R) variation is not associated with parasite burden in a neotropical bird, the bananaquit (Coereba flaveola). Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Andrew D. C. MacColl
- School of Biology; University of Nottingham; University Park; Nottingham; NG7 2RD; UK
| | | | - David S. Richardson
- School of Biological Sciences; University of East Anglia; Norwich; NR4 7TJ; UK
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Bourgeois YXC, Bertrand JAM, Thébaud C, Milá B. Investigating the role of the melanocortin-1 receptor gene in an extreme case of microgeographical variation in the pattern of melanin-based plumage pigmentation. PLoS One 2012; 7:e50906. [PMID: 23227219 PMCID: PMC3515493 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2012] [Accepted: 10/26/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED The Réunion grey white-eye (Zosterops borbonicus) is a single-island endemic passerine bird that exhibits striking geographically structured melanic polymorphism at a very small spatial scale. We investigated the genetic basis of this color polymorphism by testing whether the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R), a gene often involved in natural melanic polymorphism in birds, was associated with the observed plumage variation. Although we found three non-synonymous mutations, we detected no association between MC1R variants and color morphs, and the main amino-acid variant found in the Réunion grey white-eye was also present at high frequency in the Mauritius grey white-eye (Zosterops mauritianus), its sister species which shows no melanic polymorphism. In addition, neutrality tests and analysis of population structure did not reveal any obvious pattern of positive or balancing selection acting on MC1R. Altogether these results indicate that MC1R does not play a role in explaining the melanic variation observed in the Réunion grey white-eye. We propose that other genes such as POMC, Agouti or any other genes involved in pigment synthesis will need to be investigated in future studies if we are to understand how selection shapes complex patterns of melanin-based plumage pigmentation. TRIAL REGISTRATION All sequences submitted to Genbank. Accession number: JX914505 to JX914564.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yann X. C. Bourgeois
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 CNRS - Université Paul Sabatier – ENFA, Toulouse, France
- * E-mail:
| | - Joris A. M. Bertrand
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 CNRS - Université Paul Sabatier – ENFA, Toulouse, France
| | - Christophe Thébaud
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 CNRS - Université Paul Sabatier – ENFA, Toulouse, France
| | - Borja Milá
- Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
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Amar A, Koeslag A, Curtis O. Plumage polymorphism in a newly colonized black sparrowhawk population: classification, temporal stability and inheritance patterns. J Zool (1987) 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-7998.2012.00963.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. Amar
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST/NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Rondebosch South Africa
| | - A. Koeslag
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST/NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Rondebosch South Africa
| | - O. Curtis
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST/NRF Centre of Excellence University of Cape Town Rondebosch South Africa
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