Gradual evolution towards flightlessness in steamer ducks

© 2019 The Author(s). Evolution © 2019 The Society for the Study of Evolution..

Flightlessness in birds is the product of changes in suites of characters-including increased body size and reduced anterior limbs-that have evolved repeatedly and independently under similar ecological conditions (generally insularity). It remains unknown whether this phenotypic convergence extends to the genomic level, partially because many losses of flight occurred long ago (such as in penguins or ratites), thus complicating the study of the genetic pathways to flightlessness. Here, we use genome sequencing to study the evolution of flightlessness in a group of ducks that are current and dynamic exemplars of this major functional transition. These recently diverged Tachyeres steamer ducks differ in their ability to fly: one species is predominantly flighted and three are mainly flightless. Through a genome-wide association analysis, we identify two narrow candidate genomic regions implicated in the morphological changes that led to flightlessness, and reconstruct the number of times flightlessness has evolved in Tachyeres. The strongest association is with DYRK1A, a gene that when knocked out in mice leads to alterations in growth and bone morphogenesis. These findings, together with phylogenetic and demographic analyses, imply that the genomic changes leading to flightlessness in Tachyeres may have evolved once, and that this trait remains functionally polymorphic in two species.

Errataetall:

CommentIn: Nature. 2019 Aug;572(7768):182-184. - PMID 31384052

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2019

Erschienen:

2019

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:73

Enthalten in:

Evolution; international journal of organic evolution - 73(2019), 9 vom: 18. Sept., Seite 1916-1926

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Campagna, Leonardo [VerfasserIn]
McCracken, Kevin G [VerfasserIn]
Lovette, Irby J [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Birds
DYRK1A
EC 2.7.10.1
EC 2.7.11.1
Genomics
Islands
Journal Article
Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
Protein-Tyrosine Kinases
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Tachyeres

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 18.08.2020

Date Revised 13.12.2023

published: Print-Electronic

Dryad: 10.5061/dryad.6n7v8r3

CommentIn: Nature. 2019 Aug;572(7768):182-184. - PMID 31384052

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1111/evo.13758

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM297249096