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Baldwin MW, Ko MC. Functional evolution of vertebrate sensory receptors. Horm Behav 2020; 124:104771. [PMID: 32437717 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2020] [Revised: 04/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Sensory receptors enable animals to perceive their external world, and functional properties of receptors evolve to detect the specific cues relevant for an organism's survival. Changes in sensory receptor function or tuning can directly impact an organism's behavior. Functional tests of receptors from multiple species and the generation of chimeric receptors between orthologs with different properties allow for the dissection of the molecular basis of receptor function and identification of the key residues that impart functional changes in different species. Knowledge of these functionally important sites facilitates investigation into questions regarding the role of epistasis and the extent of convergence, as well as the timing of sensory shifts relative to other phenotypic changes. However, as receptors can also play roles in non-sensory tissues, and receptor responses can be modulated by numerous other factors including varying expression levels, alternative splicing, and morphological features of the sensory cell, behavioral validation can be instrumental in confirming that responses observed in heterologous systems play a sensory role. Expression profiling of sensory cells and comparative genomics approaches can shed light on cell-type specific modifications and identify other proteins that may affect receptor function and can provide insight into the correlated evolution of complex suites of traits. Here we review the evolutionary history and diversity of functional responses of the major classes of sensory receptors in vertebrates, including opsins, chemosensory receptors, and ion channels involved in temperature-sensing, mechanosensation and electroreception.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Meng-Ching Ko
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
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Another cat and mouse game: Deciphering the evolution of the SCGB superfamily and exploring the molecular similarity of major cat allergen Fel d 1 and mouse ABP using computational approaches. PLoS One 2018. [PMID: 29771985 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0197618.] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The mammalian secretoglobin (SCGB) superfamily contains functionally diverse members, among which the major cat allergen Fel d 1 and mouse salivary androgen-binding protein (ABP) display similar subunits. We searched for molecular similarities between Fel d 1 and ABP to examine the possibility that they play similar roles. We aimed to i) cluster the evolutionary relationships of the SCGB superfamily; ii) identify divergence patterns, structural overlap, and protein-protein docking between Fel d 1 and ABP dimers; and iii) explore the residual interaction between ABP dimers and steroid binding in chemical communication using computational approaches. We also report that the evolutionary tree of the SCGB superfamily comprises seven unique palm-like clusters, showing the evolutionary pattern and divergence time tree of Fel d 1 with 28 ABP paralogs. Three ABP subunits (A27, BG27, and BG26) share phylogenetic relationships with Fel d 1 chains. The Fel d 1 and ABP subunits show similarities in terms of sequence conservation, identical motifs and binding site clefts. Topologically equivalent positions were visualized through superimposition of ABP A27:BG27 (AB) and ABP A27:BG26 (AG) dimers on a heterodimeric Fel d 1 model. In docking, Fel d 1-ABP dimers exhibit the maximum surface binding ability of AG compared with that of AB dimers and the several polar interactions between ABP dimers with steroids. Hence, cat Fel d 1 is an ABP-like molecule in which monomeric chains 1 and 2 are the equivalent of the ABPA and ABPBG monomers, respectively. These findings suggest that the biological and molecular function of Fel d 1 is similar to that of ABP in chemical communication, possibly via pheromone and/or steroid binding.
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Durairaj R, Pageat P, Bienboire-Frosini C. Another cat and mouse game: Deciphering the evolution of the SCGB superfamily and exploring the molecular similarity of major cat allergen Fel d 1 and mouse ABP using computational approaches. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0197618. [PMID: 29771985 PMCID: PMC5957422 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0197618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2017] [Accepted: 05/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The mammalian secretoglobin (SCGB) superfamily contains functionally diverse members, among which the major cat allergen Fel d 1 and mouse salivary androgen-binding protein (ABP) display similar subunits. We searched for molecular similarities between Fel d 1 and ABP to examine the possibility that they play similar roles. We aimed to i) cluster the evolutionary relationships of the SCGB superfamily; ii) identify divergence patterns, structural overlap, and protein-protein docking between Fel d 1 and ABP dimers; and iii) explore the residual interaction between ABP dimers and steroid binding in chemical communication using computational approaches. We also report that the evolutionary tree of the SCGB superfamily comprises seven unique palm-like clusters, showing the evolutionary pattern and divergence time tree of Fel d 1 with 28 ABP paralogs. Three ABP subunits (A27, BG27, and BG26) share phylogenetic relationships with Fel d 1 chains. The Fel d 1 and ABP subunits show similarities in terms of sequence conservation, identical motifs and binding site clefts. Topologically equivalent positions were visualized through superimposition of ABP A27:BG27 (AB) and ABP A27:BG26 (AG) dimers on a heterodimeric Fel d 1 model. In docking, Fel d 1-ABP dimers exhibit the maximum surface binding ability of AG compared with that of AB dimers and the several polar interactions between ABP dimers with steroids. Hence, cat Fel d 1 is an ABP-like molecule in which monomeric chains 1 and 2 are the equivalent of the ABPA and ABPBG monomers, respectively. These findings suggest that the biological and molecular function of Fel d 1 is similar to that of ABP in chemical communication, possibly via pheromone and/or steroid binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajesh Durairaj
- Department of Behavioral and Physiological Mechanisms of Adaptation (D-MPCA), Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA), APT, France
| | - Patrick Pageat
- Department of Semiochemicals Identification and Analogs Design (D-ISCA), Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA), APT, France
| | - Cécile Bienboire-Frosini
- Department of Behavioral and Physiological Mechanisms of Adaptation (D-MPCA), Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA), APT, France
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Stopková R, Vinkler D, Kuntová B, Šedo O, Albrecht T, Suchan J, Dvořáková-Hortová K, Zdráhal Z, Stopka P. Mouse Lipocalins (MUP, OBP, LCN) Are Co-expressed in Tissues Involved in Chemical Communication. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
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Selection on Coding and Regulatory Variation Maintains Individuality in Major Urinary Protein Scent Marks in Wild Mice. PLoS Genet 2016; 12:e1005891. [PMID: 26938775 PMCID: PMC4777540 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2015] [Accepted: 01/31/2016] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Recognition of individuals by scent is widespread across animal taxa. Though animals can often discriminate chemical blends based on many compounds, recent work shows that specific protein pheromones are necessary and sufficient for individual recognition via scent marks in mice. The genetic nature of individuality in scent marks (e.g. coding versus regulatory variation) and the evolutionary processes that maintain diversity are poorly understood. The individual signatures in scent marks of house mice are the protein products of a group of highly similar paralogs in the major urinary protein (Mup) gene family. Using the offspring of wild-caught mice, we examine individuality in the major urinary protein (MUP) scent marks at the DNA, RNA and protein levels. We show that individuality arises through a combination of variation at amino acid coding sites and differential transcription of central Mup genes across individuals, and we identify eSNPs in promoters. There is no evidence of post-transcriptional processes influencing phenotypic diversity as transcripts accurately predict the relative abundance of proteins in urine samples. The match between transcripts and urine samples taken six months earlier also emphasizes that the proportional relationships across central MUP isoforms in urine is stable. Balancing selection maintains coding variants at moderate frequencies, though pheromone diversity appears limited by interactions with vomeronasal receptors. We find that differential transcription of the central Mup paralogs within and between individuals significantly increases the individuality of pheromone blends. Balancing selection on gene regulation allows for increased individuality via combinatorial diversity in a limited number of pheromones. Individual recognition via scent is critical for many aspects of behavior including parental care, competition, cooperation and mate choice. While animal scents can differ in a huge number of dimensions, recent work has shown that only some specialized semiochemicals in scent marks are behaviorally relevant for individual recognition. How is individuality in specialized semiochemical blends produced and maintained in populations? At the extremes, individuality may depend on either a plethora of semiochemical isoforms or on combinatorial variation in a small number of shared isoforms across individuals. Analyzing the major urinary protein (MUP) pheromone blends of a wild population of house mice, we find evidence in favor of a combinatorial diversity model for the production and maintenance of individuality. Balancing selection maintains MUP proteins at moderate frequencies in the population, though interactions with the pheromone receptors appear to limit the extent of pheromone diversity in the system. By contrast, differential transcription of proteins greatly increases individuality in pheromone blends with balancing selection maintaining diversity in promoter regions associated with gene expression patterns. Selection maintaining combinatorial diversity in a limited set of behaviorally important semiochemicals may be a widespread mechanism generating and maintaining individuality in scent across taxa.
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Karn RC, Laukaitis CM. Comparative Proteomics of Mouse Tears and Saliva: Evidence from Large Protein Families for Functional Adaptation. Proteomes 2015; 3:283-297. [PMID: 28248272 PMCID: PMC5217377 DOI: 10.3390/proteomes3030283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2015] [Revised: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 08/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
We produced a tear proteome of the genome mouse, C57BL/6, that contained 139 different protein identifications: 110 from a two-dimensional (2D) gel with subsequent trypsin digestion, 19 from a one-dimensional (1D) gel with subsequent trypsin digestion and ten from a 1D gel with subsequent Asp-N digestion. We compared this tear proteome with a C57BL/6 mouse saliva proteome produced previously. Sixteen of the 139 tear proteins are shared between the two proteomes, including six proteins that combat microbial growth. Among the 123 other tear proteins, were members of four large protein families that have no counterparts in humans: Androgen-binding proteins (ABPs) with different members expressed in the two proteomes, Exocrine secreted peptides (ESPs) expressed exclusively in the tear proteome, major urinary proteins (MUPs) expressed in one or both proteomes and the mouse-specific Kallikreins (subfamily b KLKs) expressed exclusively in the saliva proteome. All four families have members with suggested roles in mouse communication, which may influence some aspect of reproductive behavior. We discuss this in the context of functional adaptation involving tear and saliva proteins in the secretions of mouse lacrimal and salivary glands, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert C Karn
- College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA.
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Karn RC, Chung AG, Laukaitis CM. Did androgen-binding protein paralogs undergo neo- and/or Subfunctionalization as the Abp gene region expanded in the mouse genome? PLoS One 2014; 9:e115454. [PMID: 25531410 PMCID: PMC4274081 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0115454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2014] [Accepted: 11/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The Androgen-binding protein (Abp) region of the mouse genome contains 30 Abpa genes encoding alpha subunits and 34 Abpbg genes encoding betagamma subunits, their products forming dimers composed of an alpha and a betagamma subunit. We endeavored to determine how many Abp genes are expressed as proteins in tears and saliva, and as transcripts in the exocrine glands producing them. Using standard PCR, we amplified Abp transcripts from cDNA libraries of C57BL/6 mice and found fifteen Abp gene transcripts in the lacrimal gland and five in the submandibular gland. Proteomic analyses identified proteins corresponding to eleven of the lacrimal gland transcripts, all of them different from the three salivary ABPs reported previously. Our qPCR results showed that five of the six transcripts that lacked corresponding proteins are expressed at very low levels compared to those transcripts with proteins. We found 1) no overlap in the repertoires of expressed Abp paralogs in lacrimal gland/tears and salivary glands/saliva; 2) substantial sex-limited expression of lacrimal gland/tear expressed-paralogs in males but no sex-limited expression in females; and 3) that the lacrimal gland/tear expressed-paralogs are found exclusively in ancestral clades 1, 2 and 3 of the five clades described previously while the salivary glands/saliva expressed-paralogs are found only in clade 5. The number of instances of extremely low levels of transcription without corresponding protein production in paralogs specific to tears and saliva suggested the role of subfunctionalization, a derived condition wherein genes that may have been expressed highly in both glands ancestrally were down-regulated subsequent to duplication. Thus, evidence for subfunctionalization can be seen in our data and we argue that the partitioning of paralog expression between lacrimal and salivary glands that we report here occurred as the result of adaptive evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert C. Karn
- College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, 85724, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Amanda G. Chung
- College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, 85724, United States of America
| | - Christina M. Laukaitis
- College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, 85724, United States of America
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Message in a bottle: major urinary proteins and their multiple roles in mouse intraspecific chemical communication. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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Genome-wide investigation and transcriptome analysis of the WRKY gene family in Gossypium. Mol Genet Genomics 2014; 290:151-71. [DOI: 10.1007/s00438-014-0904-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2013] [Accepted: 08/19/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Lorenc A, Linnenbrink M, Montero I, Schilhabel MB, Tautz D. Genetic differentiation of hypothalamus parentally biased transcripts in populations of the house mouse implicate the Prader-Willi syndrome imprinted region as a possible source of behavioral divergence. Mol Biol Evol 2014; 31:3240-9. [PMID: 25172960 PMCID: PMC4245819 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msu257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Parentally biased expression of transcripts (genomic imprinting) in adult tissues, including the brain, can influence and possibly drive the evolution of behavioral traits. We have previously found that paternally determined cues are involved in population-specific mate choice decisions between two populations of the Western house mouse (Mus musculus domesticus). Here, we ask whether this could be mediated by genomically imprinted transcripts that are subject to fast differentiation between these populations. We focus on three organs that are of special relevance for mate choice and behavior: The vomeronasal organ (VNO), the hypothalamus, and the liver. To first identify candidate transcripts at a genome-wide scale, we used reciprocal crosses between M. m. domesticus and M. m. musculus inbred strains and RNA sequencing of the respective tissues. Using a false discovery cutoff derived from mock reciprocal cross comparisons, we find a total of 66 imprinted transcripts, 13 of which have previously not been described as imprinted. The largest number of imprinted transcripts were found in the hypothalamus; fewer were found in the VNO, and the least were found in the liver. To assess molecular differentiation and imprinting in the wild-derived M. m. domesticus populations, we sequenced the RNA of the hypothalamus from individuals of these populations. This confirmed the presence of the above identified transcripts also in wild populations and allowed us to search for those that show a high genetic differentiation between these populations. Our results identify the Ube3a–Snrpn imprinted region on chromosome 7 as a region that encompasses the largest number of previously not described transcripts with paternal expression bias, several of which are at the same time highly differentiated. For four of these, we confirmed their imprinting status via single nucleotide polymorphism-specific pyrosequencing assays with RNA from reciprocal crosses. In addition, we find the paternally expressed Peg13 transcript within the Trappc9 gene region on chromosome 15 to be highly differentiated. Interestingly, both regions have been implicated in Prader–Willi nervous system disorder phenotypes in humans. We suggest that these genomically imprinted regions are candidates for influencing the population-specific mate-choice in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Lorenc
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Department Evolutionary Genetics, Plön, Germany
| | - Miriam Linnenbrink
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Department Evolutionary Genetics, Plön, Germany
| | - Inka Montero
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Department Evolutionary Genetics, Plön, Germany
| | - Markus B Schilhabel
- Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Diethard Tautz
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Department Evolutionary Genetics, Plön, Germany
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Reduced recombination patterns in Robertsonian hybrids between chromosomal races of the house mouse: chiasma analyses. Heredity (Edinb) 2014; 114:56-64. [PMID: 25074574 DOI: 10.1038/hdy.2014.69] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2014] [Revised: 06/03/2014] [Accepted: 06/10/2014] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The recombination suppression models of chromosomal speciation posit that chromosomal rearrangements act as partial barriers to gene flow allowing these regions to accumulate genetic incompatibilities, thus contributing to the divergence of populations. Empirical and theoretical studies exploring the requirements of these models have mostly focused on the role of inversions. Here, the recombination landscape of heterozygosity for Robertsonian (Rb) fusions is investigated in the house mouse. Laboratory-bred F1 males and females between highly differentiated races from Tunisia (Rb: 2n=22, Standard, St: 2n=40) were produced in which all Rb fusions are present as trivalents in meiosis. Recombination patterns were determined by the analysis of chiasmata and compared with previous data on the Tunisian parental mice. A comparative analysis was performed on wild-caught male mice spanning the hybrid zone between two Italian races (2n=40, 2n=22). The results showed that the chiasma characteristics of both male and female Tunisian F1 and Italian hybrids clearly differed from those of Rb and St mice. Not only was the mean chiasma number (CN) intermediate between those of the parental mice in both geographic samples, but the distribution of chiasmata along the chromosomal arms of the F1 showed a distinct mosaic pattern. In short, the proximal region in the F1 exhibited a reduced CN similar to that observed in homozygous Rb, whereas distal regions more closely matched those in St mice. These results suggest that Rb rearrangements (homozygous or heterozygous) reduce recombination in the proximal regions of the chromosomes supporting their potential role in recombination-mediated speciation models.
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Ferrero DM, Moeller LM, Osakada T, Horio N, Li Q, Roy DS, Cichy A, Spehr M, Touhara K, Liberles SD. A juvenile mouse pheromone inhibits sexual behaviour through the vomeronasal system. Nature 2013; 502:368-71. [PMID: 24089208 PMCID: PMC3800207 DOI: 10.1038/nature12579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2012] [Accepted: 08/16/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Animals display a repertoire of different social behaviours. Appropriate behavioural responses depend on sensory input received during social interactions. In mice, social behaviour is driven by pheromones, chemical signals that encode information related to age, sex and physiological state. However, although mice show different social behaviours towards adults, juveniles and neonates, sensory cues that enable specific recognition of juvenile mice are unknown. Here we describe a juvenile pheromone produced by young mice before puberty, termed exocrine-gland secreting peptide 22 (ESP22). ESP22 is secreted from the lacrimal gland and released into tears of 2- to 3-week-old mice. Upon detection, ESP22 activates high-affinity sensory neurons in the vomeronasal organ, and downstream limbic neurons in the medial amygdala. Recombinant ESP22, painted on mice, exerts a powerful inhibitory effect on adult male mating behaviour, which is abolished in knockout mice lacking TRPC2, a key signalling component of the vomeronasal organ. Furthermore, knockout of TRPC2 or loss of ESP22 production results in increased sexual behaviour of adult males towards juveniles, and sexual responses towards ESP22-deficient juveniles are suppressed by ESP22 painting. Thus, we describe a pheromone of sexually immature mice that controls an innate social behaviour, a response pathway through the accessory olfactory system and a new role for vomeronasal organ signalling in inhibiting sexual behaviour towards young. These findings provide a molecular framework for understanding how a sensory system can regulate behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Ferrero
- Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
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