scholarly journals The eastern migratory caribou: the role of genetic introgression in ecotype evolution

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 150469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cornelya F. C. Klütsch ◽  
Micheline Manseau ◽  
Vicki Trim ◽  
Jean Polfus ◽  
Paul J. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Genetic Introgression ◽  
Conservation Unit ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Barren Ground ◽  
Specific Contact ◽  
History Of ◽  
Species At Risk Act

Understanding the evolutionary history of contemporary animal groups is essential for conservation and management of endangered species like caribou ( Rangifer tarandus ). In central Canada, the ranges of two caribou subspecies (barren-ground/woodland caribou) and two woodland caribou ecotypes (boreal/eastern migratory) overlap. Our objectives were to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the eastern migratory ecotype and to assess the potential role of introgression in ecotype evolution. STRUCTURE analyses identified five higher order groups (i.e. three boreal caribou populations, eastern migratory ecotype and barren-ground). The evolutionary history of the eastern migratory ecotype was best explained by an early genetic introgression from barren-ground into a woodland caribou lineage during the Late Pleistocene and subsequent divergence of the eastern migratory ecotype during the Holocene. These results are consistent with the retreat of the Laurentide ice sheet and the colonization of the Hudson Bay coastal areas subsequent to the establishment of forest tundra vegetation approximately 7000 years ago. This historical reconstruction of the eastern migratory ecotype further supports its current classification as a conservation unit, specifically a Designatable Unit, under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. These findings have implications for other sub-specific contact zones for caribou and other North American species in conservation unit delineation.

Elaborating the role of reflection and individual differences in the study of folk-economic beliefs

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Arceneaux
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Behavioral Responses ◽  
History Of ◽  
Economic Beliefs

AbstractIntuitions guide decision-making, and looking to the evolutionary history of humans illuminates why some behavioral responses are more intuitive than others. Yet a place remains for cognitive processes to second-guess intuitive responses – that is, to be reflective – and individual differences abound in automatic, intuitive processing as well.

scholarly journals Gut bacteria are essential for normal cuticle development in herbivorous turtle ants

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christophe Duplais ◽  
Vincent Sarou-Kanian ◽  
Dominique Massiot ◽  
Alia Hassan ◽  
Barbara Perrone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Nitrogen Assimilation ◽  
Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Gut Bacteria ◽  
Resonance Spectroscopy ◽  
Nitrogen Flow ◽  
Isotopic Enrichment ◽  
History Of ◽  
Cuticle Development

AbstractAcross the evolutionary history of insects, the shift from nitrogen-rich carnivore/omnivore diets to nitrogen-poor herbivorous diets was made possible through symbiosis with microbes. The herbivorous turtle ants Cephalotes possess a conserved gut microbiome which enriches the nutrient composition by recycling nitrogen-rich metabolic waste to increase the production of amino acids. This enrichment is assumed to benefit the host, but we do not know to what extent. To gain insights into nitrogen assimilation in the ant cuticle we use gut bacterial manipulation, 15N isotopic enrichment, isotope-ratio mass spectrometry, and 15N nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to demonstrate that gut bacteria contribute to the formation of proteins, catecholamine cross-linkers, and chitin in the cuticle. This study identifies the cuticular components which are nitrogen-enriched by gut bacteria, highlighting the role of symbionts in insect evolution, and provides a framework for understanding the nitrogen flow from nutrients through bacteria into the insect cuticle.

Early origin of sweet perception in the songbird radiation

Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 373 (6551) ◽  
pp. 226-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasuka Toda ◽  
Meng-Ching Ko ◽  
Qiaoyi Liang ◽  
Eliot T. Miller ◽  
Alejandro Rico-Guevara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Sensory Biology ◽  
Avian Evolution ◽  
Nectar Feeding ◽  
Evolutionary Radiation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sensory Convergence ◽  
Early Origin

Early events in the evolutionary history of a clade can shape the sensory systems of descendant lineages. Although the avian ancestor may not have had a sweet receptor, the widespread incidence of nectar-feeding birds suggests multiple acquisitions of sugar detection. In this study, we identify a single early sensory shift of the umami receptor (the T1R1-T1R3 heterodimer) that conferred sweet-sensing abilities in songbirds, a large evolutionary radiation containing nearly half of all living birds. We demonstrate sugar responses across species with diverse diets, uncover critical sites underlying carbohydrate detection, and identify the molecular basis of sensory convergence between songbirds and nectar-specialist hummingbirds. This early shift shaped the sensory biology of an entire radiation, emphasizing the role of contingency and providing an example of the genetic basis of convergence in avian evolution.

scholarly journals Putting the environmental impact assessment process into practice for woodland caribou in the Alberta Oil Sands Region

Rangifer ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 89
Author(s):  
Paula R. Bentham
Keyword(s):  
Oil Sands ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
The Government ◽  
Current Operating ◽  
Impact Predictions

Since 1985, woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) have been designated as a threatened species in Alberta. Populations studied since the 1970s have been stable or declining, with no population increases documented. Resource expansion into previously undeveloped areas and associated increases in access have been implicated as possible causes for the declines. To facilitate development on caribou ranges, while ensuring the integrity and supply of caribou habitat, standing committees have been formed. The primary role of the committees is to act as advisory bodies to the government and to search for effective and efficient industrial operating guidelines. Recent research has been conducted on the responses of woodland caribou ecotypes to increased human and predator access. Based on this research, operating guidelines have been refined and implemented through Caribou Protection Plans. I discuss how the current operating guidelines are put into practice and linked to the Environmental Assessment process within the Oil Sands Region of Alberta. In particular, I discuss the origination of impact predictions, specific mitigation measures to reduce impacts and monitoring.

Adaptive convergent evolution of genome proofreading in SARS-CoV2: insights into the Eigen’s paradox

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keerthic Aswin ◽  
Srinivasan Ramachandran ◽  
Vivek T Natarajan
Keyword(s):  
Convergent Evolution ◽  
Genome Stability ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Comparative Genome Analysis ◽  
The Family ◽  
History Of ◽  
Key Residues

AbstractEvolutionary history of coronaviruses holds the key to understand mutational behavior and prepare for possible future outbreaks. By performing comparative genome analysis of nidovirales that contain the family of coronaviruses, we traced the origin of proofreading, surprisingly to the eukaryotic antiviral component ZNFX1. This common recent ancestor contributes two zinc finger (ZnF) motifs that are unique to viral exonuclease, segregating them from DNA proof-readers. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that following acquisition, genomes of coronaviruses retained and further fine-tuned proofreading exonuclease, whereas related families harbor substitution of key residues in ZnF1 motif concomitant to a reduction in their genome sizes. Structural modelling followed by simulation suggests the role of ZnF in RNA binding. Key ZnF residues strongly coevolve with replicase, and the helicase involved in duplex RNA unwinding. Hence, fidelity of replication in coronaviruses is a result of convergent evolution, that enables maintenance of genome stability akin to cellular proofreading systems.

scholarly journals Morphological stasis in the first myxomycete from the Mesozoic, and the likely role of cryptobiosis

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jouko Rikkinen ◽  
David A. Grimaldi ◽  
Alexander R. Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
Fruiting Bodies ◽  
Ecological Adaptations ◽  
Environmental Selection ◽  
Morphological Stasis ◽  
Ancient Lineage ◽  
History Of ◽  
Spore Mass

AbstractMyxomycetes constitute a group within the Amoebozoa well known for their motile plasmodia and morphologically complex fruiting bodies. One obstacle hindering studies of myxomycete evolution is that their fossils are exceedingly rare, so evolutionary analyses of this supposedly ancient lineage of amoebozoans are restricted to extant taxa. Molecular data have significantly advanced myxomycete systematics, but the evolutionary history of individual lineages and their ecological adaptations remain unknown. Here, we report exquisitely preserved myxomycete sporocarps in amber from Myanmar, ca. 100 million years old, one of the few fossil myxomycetes, and the only definitive Mesozoic one. Six densely-arranged stalked sporocarps were engulfed in tree resin while young, with almost the entire spore mass still inside the sporotheca. All morphological features are indistinguishable from those of the modern, cosmopolitan genus Stemonitis, demonstrating that sporocarp morphology has been static since at least the mid-Cretaceous. The ability of myxomycetes to develop into dormant stages, which can last years, may account for the phenotypic stasis between living Stemonitis species and this fossil one, similar to the situation found in other organisms that have cryptobiosis. We also interpret Stemonitis morphological stasis as evidence of strong environmental selection favouring the maintenance of adaptations that promote wind dispersal.

scholarly journals Culicidae evolutionary history focusing on the Culicinae subfamily based on mitochondrial phylogenomics

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Freitas da Silva ◽  
Laís Ceschini Machado ◽  
Marcia Bicudo de Paula ◽  
Carla Júlia da Silva Pessoa Vieira ◽  
Roberta Vieira de Morais Bronzoni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Mining ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Mosquito Species ◽  
Whole Genome ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Fundamental Information ◽  
History Of ◽  
Medical Importance ◽  
Low Coverage

Abstract Mosquitoes are insects of medical importance due their role as vectors of different pathogens to humans. There is a lack of information about the evolutionary history and phylogenetic positioning of the majority of mosquito species. Here we characterized the mitogenomes of mosquito species through low-coverage whole genome sequencing and data mining. A total of 37 draft mitogenomes of different species were assembled from which 16 are newly-sequenced species. We datamined additional 49 mosquito mitogenomes, and together with our 37 mitogenomes, we reconstructed the evolutionary history of 86 species including representatives from 15 genera and 7 tribes. Our results showed that most of the species clustered in clades with other members of their own genus with exception of Aedes genus which was paraphyletic. We confirmed the monophyletic status of the Mansoniini tribe including both Coquillettidia and Mansonia genus. The Aedeomyiini and Uranotaeniini were consistently recovered as basal to other tribes in the subfamily Culicinae, although the exact relationships among these tribes differed between analyses. These results demonstrate that low-coverage sequencing is effective to recover mitogenomes, establish phylogenetic knowledge and hence generate basic fundamental information that will help in the understanding of the role of these species as pathogen vectors.

scholarly journals Genome-specific histories of divergence and introgression between an allopolyploid unisexual salamander lineage and two sexual species

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. Denton ◽  
Ariadna E. Morales ◽  
H. Lisle Gibbs
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Parental Species ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Reproductive Mode ◽  
Mapping Method ◽  
Genetic Introgression ◽  
Sexual Species ◽  
History Of ◽  
Genomic Material

AbstractQuantifying genetic introgression between sexual species and polyploid lineages traditionally thought to be asexual is an important step in understanding what factors drive the longevity of putatively asexual groups. However, the presence of multiple distinct subgenomes within a single lineage provides a significant logistical challenge to evaluating the origin of genetic variation in most polyploids. Here, we capitalize on three recent innovations—variation generated from ultraconserved elements (UCEs), bioinformatic techniques for assessing variation in polyploids, and model-based methods for evaluating historical gene flow—to measure the extent and tempo of introgression over the evolutionary history of an allopolyploid lineage of all-female salamanders and two ancestral sexual species. We first analyzed variation from more than a thousand UCEs using a reference mapping method developed for polyploids to infer subgenome specific patterns of variation in the all-female lineage. We then used PHRAPL to choose between sets of historical models that reflected different patterns of introgression and divergence between the genomes of the parental species and the same genomes found within the polyploids. Our analyses support a scenario in which the genomes sampled in unisexuals salamanders were present in the lineage ∼3.4 million years ago, followed by an extended period of divergence from their parental species. Recent secondary introgression has occurred at different times between each sexual species and their representative genomes within the unisexuals during the last 500,000 years. Sustained introgression of sexual genomes into the unisexual lineage has been the defining characteristic of their reproductive mode, but this study provides the first evidence that unisexual genomes have also undergone long periods of divergence without introgression. Unlike other unisexual, sperm-dependent taxa in which introgression is rare, the alternating periods of divergence and introgression between unisexual salamanders and their sexual relatives could reveal the scenarios in which the influx of novel genomic material is favored and potentially explain why these salamanders are among the oldest described unisexual animals.

scholarly journals Habitat partitioning between woodland caribou and moose in Ontario: the potential role of shared prédation risk

Rangifer ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 81 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.G. Cumming ◽  
D.B. Beange ◽  
G. Lavoie
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Habitat Partitioning ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Direct Competition

This paper explores mechanisms of coexistence for woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) and moose (Akes alces) preyed upon by gray wolves (Canis lupus) in northern Ontario. Autocorrelation analysis of winter track locations showed habitat partitioning by caribou and moose. Numbers of Delaunay link edges for moose-wolves did not differ significantly from what would be expected by random process, but those for caribou-wolves were significantly fewer. Thus, habitat partitioning provided implicit refuges that put greater distances between caribou and wolves, presumably decreasing predation on the caribou. Yet, direct competition cannot be ruled out; both apparent and direct competition may be involved in real-life situations. A synthesis including both explanations fits ecological theory, as well as current understanding about caribou ecology.

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