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Arnold P, Janiszewska K, Li Q, O'Connor JK, Fostowicz-Frelik Ł. The Late Cretaceous eutherian Zalambdalestes reveals unique axis and complex evolution of the mammalian neck. Sci Bull (Beijing) 2024:S2095-9273(24)00261-5. [PMID: 38702276 DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2024.04.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 03/24/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/06/2024]
Abstract
The typical mammalian neck consisting of seven cervical vertebrae (C1-C7) was established by the Late Permian in the cynodont forerunners of modern mammals. This structure is precisely adapted to facilitate movements of the head during feeding, locomotion, predator evasion, and social interactions. Eutheria, the clade including crown placentals, has a fossil record extending back more than 125 million years revealing significant morphological diversification in the Mesozoic. Yet very little is known concerning the early evolution of eutherian cervical morphology and its functional adaptations. A specimen of Zalambdalestes lechei from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia boasts exceptional preservation of an almost complete series of cervical vertebrae (C2-C7) revealing a highly modified axis (C2). The significance of this cervical morphology is explored utilizing an integrated approach combining comparative anatomical examination across mammals, muscle reconstruction, geometric morphometrics and virtual range of motion analysis. We compared the shape of the axis in Zalambdalestes to a dataset of 88 mammalian species (monotremes, marsupials, and placentals) using three-dimensional landmark analysis. The results indicate that the unique axis morphology of Zalambdalestes has no close analog among living mammals. Virtual range of motion analysis of the neck strongly implies Zalambdalestes was capable of exerting very forceful head movements and had a high degree of ventral flexion for an animal its size. These findings reveal unexpected complexity in the early evolution of the eutherian cervical morphology and suggest a feeding behavior similar to insectivores specialized in vermivory and defensive behaviors in Zalambdalestes akin to modern spiniferous mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Arnold
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam D-14476, Germany
| | - Katarzyna Janiszewska
- Environmental Paleobiology Department, Institute of Paleobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw 00-818, Poland
| | - Qian Li
- Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Systematics of Vertebrates, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
| | | | - Łucja Fostowicz-Frelik
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, The University of Chicago, Chicago IL 60637, USA; Evolutionary Paleobiology Department, Institute of Paleobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw 00-818, Poland.
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2
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Liao BY, Weng MP, Chang TY, Chang AYF, Ching YH, Wu CH. Degeneration of the Olfactory System in a Murid Rodent that Evolved Diurnalism. Mol Biol Evol 2024; 41:msae037. [PMID: 38376543 PMCID: PMC10906987 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024] Open
Abstract
In mammalian research, it has been debated what can initiate an evolutionary tradeoff between different senses, and the phenomenon of sensory tradeoff in rodents, the most abundant mammalian clade, is not evident. The Nile rat (Arvicanthis niloticus), a murid rodent, recently adapted to a diurnal niche through an evolutionary acquisition of daylight vision with enhanced visual acuity. As such, this model provides an opportunity for a cross-species investigation where comparative morphological and multi-omic analyses of the Nile rat are made with its closely related nocturnal species, e.g. the mouse (Mus musculus) and the rat (Rattus norvegicus). Thus, morphological examinations were performed, and evolutionary reductions in relative sizes of turbinal bone surfaces, the cribriform plate, and the olfactory bulb were discovered in Nile rats. Subsequently, we compared multiple murid genomes, and profiled olfactory epithelium transcriptomes of mice and Nile rats at various ages with RNA sequencing. The results further demonstrate that, in comparison with mouse olfactory receptor (OR) genes, Nile rat OR genes have experienced less frequent gain, more frequent loss, and more frequent expression reduction during their evolution. Furthermore, functional degeneration of coding sequences in the Nile rat lineage was found in OR genes, yet not in other genes. Taken together, these results suggest that acquisition of improved vision in the Nile rat has been accompanied by degeneration of both olfaction-related anatomical structures and OR gene repertoires, consistent with the hypothesis of an olfaction-vision tradeoff initiated by the switch from a nocturnal to a diurnal lifestyle in mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben-Yang Liao
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Meng-Pin Weng
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Ting-Yan Chang
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Andrew Ying-Fei Chang
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Yung-Hao Ching
- Department of Molecular Biology and Human Genetics, Tzu Chi University, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Chia-Hwa Wu
- Laboratory Animal Center, National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, Republic of China
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3
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Bellvert A, Adrián-Serrano S, Macías-Hernández N, Toft S, Kaliontzopoulou A, Arnedo MA. The Non-Dereliction in Evolution: Trophic Specialisation Drives Convergence in the Radiation of Red Devil Spiders (Araneae: Dysderidae) in the Canary Islands. Syst Biol 2023; 72:998-1012. [PMID: 37474131 DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syad046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Natural selection plays a key role in deterministic evolution, as clearly illustrated by the multiple cases of repeated evolution of ecomorphological characters observed in adaptive radiations. Unlike most spiders, Dysdera species display a high variability of cheliceral morphologies, which has been suggested to reflect different levels of specialization to feed on isopods. In this study, we integrate geometric morphometrics and experimental trials with a fully resolved phylogeny of the highly diverse endemic species from the Canary Islands to 1) quantitatively delimit the different cheliceral morphotypes present in the archipelago, 2) test their association with trophic specialization, as reported for continental species, 3) reconstruct the evolution of these ecomorphs throughout the diversification of the group, 4) test the hypothesis of convergent evolution of the different morphotypes, and 5) examine whether specialization constitutes a case of evolutionary irreversibility in this group. We show the existence of 9 cheliceral morphotypes and uncovered their significance for trophic ecology. Further, we demonstrate that similar ecomorphs evolved multiple times in the archipelago, providing a novel study system to explain how convergent evolution and irreversibility due to specialization may be combined to shape phenotypic diversification in adaptive radiations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrià Bellvert
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Av. Diagonal, 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Silvia Adrián-Serrano
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Av. Diagonal, 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Nuria Macías-Hernández
- Department of Animal Biology, Edaphology and Geology, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain
- Laboratory for Integrative Biodiversity Research (LIBRe), Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Søren Toft
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, DK-8000 Århus C, Denmark
| | - Antigoni Kaliontzopoulou
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Av. Diagonal, 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miquel A Arnedo
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Av. Diagonal, 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
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Courcelle M, Fabre PH, Douzery EJP. Phylogeny, Ecology, and Gene Families Covariation Shaped the Olfactory Subgenome of Rodents. Genome Biol Evol 2023; 15:evad197. [PMID: 37972291 PMCID: PMC10653590 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evad197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Olfactory receptor (OR) genes represent the largest multigenic family in mammalian genomes and encode proteins that bind environmental odorant molecules. The OR repertoire is extremely variable among species and is subject to many gene duplications and losses, which have been linked to ecological adaptations in mammals. Although they have been studied on a broad taxonomic scale (i.e., placental), finer sampling has rarely been explored in order to better capture the mechanisms that drove the evolution of the OR repertoire. Among placental mammals, rodents are well-suited for this task, as they exhibit diverse life history traits, and genomic data are available for most major families and a diverse array of lifestyles. In this study, 53 rodent published genomes were mined for their OR subgenomes. We retrieved more than 85,000 functional and pseudogene OR sequences that were subsequently classified into phylogenetic clusters. Copy number variation among rodents is similar to that of other mammals. Using our OR counts along with comparative phylogenetic approaches, we demonstrated that ecological niches such as diet, period of activity, and a fossorial lifestyle strongly impacted the proportion of OR pseudogenes. Within the OR subgenome, phylogenetic inertia was the main factor explaining the relative variations of the 13 OR gene families. However, a striking exception was a convergent 10-fold expansion of the OR family 14 among the phylogenetically divergent subterranean mole-rat lineages belonging to Bathyergidae and Spalacidae families. This study illustrates how the diversity of the OR repertoire has evolved among rodents, both shaped by selective forces stemming from species life history traits and neutral evolution along the rodent phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Courcelle
- Institutdes Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier (ISEM), CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
- CIRAD, UMR ASTRE, Montpellier, France
| | - Pierre-Henri Fabre
- Institutdes Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier (ISEM), CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
- Mammal Section, Life Sciences, Vertebrate Division, The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
- Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), Section Biologie-Médecine-Santé, Paris, France
| | - Emmanuel J P Douzery
- Institutdes Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier (ISEM), CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
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Martinez Q, Okrouhlík J, Šumbera R, Wright M, Araújo R, Braude S, Hildebrandt TB, Holtze S, Ruf I, Fabre PH. Mammalian maxilloturbinal evolution does not reflect thermal biology. Nat Commun 2023; 14:4425. [PMID: 37479710 PMCID: PMC10361988 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39994-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2023] [Indexed: 07/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolution of endothermy in vertebrates is a major research topic in recent decades that has been tackled by a myriad of research disciplines including paleontology, anatomy, physiology, evolutionary and developmental biology. The ability of most mammals to maintain a relatively constant and high body temperature is considered a key adaptation, enabling them to successfully colonize new habitats and harsh environments. It has been proposed that in mammals the anterior nasal cavity, which houses the maxilloturbinal, plays a pivotal role in body temperature maintenance, via a bony system supporting an epithelium involved in heat and moisture conservation. The presence and the relative size of the maxilloturbinal has been proposed to reflect the endothermic conditions and basal metabolic rate in extinct vertebrates. We show that there is no evidence to relate the origin of endothermy and the development of some turbinal bones by using a comprehensive dataset of µCT-derived maxilloturbinals spanning most mammalian orders. Indeed, we demonstrate that neither corrected basal metabolic rate nor body temperature significantly correlate with the relative surface area of the maxilloturbinal. Instead, we identify important variations in the relative surface area, morpho-anatomy, and complexity of the maxilloturbinal across the mammalian phylogeny and species ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quentin Martinez
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, Montpellier, France.
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, DE-70191, Stuttgart, Germany.
| | - Jan Okrouhlík
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, 37005, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Radim Šumbera
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, 37005, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Mark Wright
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, Montpellier, France
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology & Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
| | - Ricardo Araújo
- Instituto de Plasmas e Fusão Nuclear, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Stan Braude
- Biology Department, Washington University, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA
| | - Thomas B Hildebrandt
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz-Instiute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, 10315, Berlin, Germany
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany
| | - Susanne Holtze
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz-Instiute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, 10315, Berlin, Germany
| | - Irina Ruf
- Abteilung Messelforschung und Mammalogie, Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum Frankfurt, 60325, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Pierre-Henri Fabre
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, Montpellier, France
- Mammal Section, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, SW7 5DB, London, United Kingdom
- Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), Paris, France
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6
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Martinez Q, Courcelle M, Douzery E, Fabre PH. When morphology does not fit the genomes: the case of rodent olfaction. Biol Lett 2023; 19:20230080. [PMID: 37042683 PMCID: PMC10092080 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2023.0080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/24/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Linking genes to phenotypes has been a major question in evolutionary biology for the last decades. In the genomic era, few studies attempted to link olfactory-related genes to different anatomical proxies. However, they found very inconsistent results. This study is the first to investigate a potential relation between olfactory turbinals and olfactory receptor (OR) genes. We demonstrated that despite the use of similar methodology in the acquisition of data, OR genes do not correlate with the relative and the absolute surface area of olfactory turbinals. These results challenged the interpretations of several studies based on different proxies related to olfaction and their potential relation to olfactory capabilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quentin Martinez
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM-EPHE), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart DE-70191, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Maxime Courcelle
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM-EPHE), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Emmanuel Douzery
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM-EPHE), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Pierre-Henri Fabre
- Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM, UMR 5554 CNRS-IRD-UM-EPHE), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon - CC 064 - 34095, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
- Mammal Section, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5DB, UK
- Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), Paris, France
- Division of Vertebrate Zoology (Mammalogy), American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West, 79th St., New York, NY 10024-5192, USA
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7
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Salazar-Bravo J, Tinoco N, Zeballos H, Brito J, Arenas-Viveros D, Marín-C D, Ramírez-Fernández JD, Percequillo AR, Lee, Jr. TE, Solari S, Colmenares-Pinzon J, Nivelo C, Rodríguez Herrera B, Merino W, Medina CE, Murillo-García O, Pardiñas UF. Systematics and diversification of the Ichthyomyini (Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) revisited: evidence from molecular, morphological, and combined approaches. PeerJ 2023; 11:e14319. [PMID: 36655048 PMCID: PMC9841913 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Ichthyomyini, a morphologically distinctive group of Neotropical cricetid rodents, lacks an integrative study of its systematics and biogeography. Since this tribe is a crucial element of the Sigmodontinae, the most speciose subfamily of the Cricetidae, we conducted a study that includes most of its recognized diversity (five genera and 19 species distributed from southern Mexico to northern Bolivia). For this report we analyzed a combined matrix composed of four molecular markers (RBP3, GHR, RAG1, Cytb) and 56 morphological traits, the latter including 15 external, 14 cranial, 19 dental, five soft-anatomical and three postcranial features. A variety of results were obtained, some of which are inconsistent with the currently accepted classification and understanding of the tribe. Ichthyomyini is retrieved as monophyletic, and it is divided into two main clades that are here recognized as subtribes: one to contain the genus Anotomys and the other composed by the remaining genera. Neusticomys (as currently recognized) was found to consist of two well supported clades, one of which corresponds to the original concept of Daptomys. Accordingly, we propose the resurrection of the latter as a valid genus to include several species from low to middle elevations and restrict Neusticomys to several highland forms. Numerous other revisions are necessary to reconcile the alpha taxonomy of ichthyomyines with our phylogenetic results, including placement of the Cajas Plateau water rat (formerly Chibchanomys orcesi) in the genus Neusticomys (sensu stricto), and the recognition of at least two new species (one in Neusticomys, one in Daptomys). Additional work is necessary to confirm other unanticipated results, such as the non-monophyletic nature of Rheomys and the presence of a possible new genus and species from Peru. Our results also suggest that ichthyomyines are one of the main Andean radiations of sigmodontine cricetids, with an evolutionary history dating to the Late Miocene and subsequent cladogenesis during the Pleistocene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Salazar-Bravo
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States,Instituto de Ecologia, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia,Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Nicolás Tinoco
- Museo de Zoología Escuela de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
| | | | - Jorge Brito
- Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Quito, Ecuador
| | | | - David Marín-C
- Colección Teriológica, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
| | | | - Alexandre R. Percequillo
- Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz”, Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade de São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Thomas E. Lee, Jr.
- Department of Biology, Abilene Christian University, Abilene, Texas, United States
| | - Sergio Solari
- Instituto de Biología, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Antioquia, Colombia
| | - Javier Colmenares-Pinzon
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, United States,Grupo de Estudios en Biodiversidad, Escuela de Biología, Universidad Industrial de Santander, Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia
| | - Carlos Nivelo
- Museo de Zoologia, Escuela de Biología, Universidad del Azuay, Cuenca, Ecuador,Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina
| | | | - William Merino
- Escuela de Biología, Universidad de El Salvador, San Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador
| | - Cesar E. Medina
- Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional de San Agustin, Arequipa, Arequipa, Peru
| | - Oscar Murillo-García
- Departamento de Biología, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
| | - Ulyses F.J. Pardiñas
- Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Quito, Ecuador,Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina
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Brito J, Tinoco N, Pinto CM, García R, Koch C, Fernandez V, Burneo S, Pardiñas UFJ. Unlocking Andean sigmodontine diversity: five new species of Chilomys (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the montane forests of Ecuador. PeerJ 2022; 10:e13211. [PMID: 35462758 PMCID: PMC9029390 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The Andean cloud forests of Ecuador are home to several endemic mammals. Members of the Thomasomyini rodents are well represented in the Andes, with Thomasomys being the largest genus (47 species) of the subfamily Sigmodontinae. Within this tribe, however, there are genera that have escaped a taxonomic revision, and Chilomys Thomas, 1897, constitutes a paradigmatic example of these "forgotten" Andean cricetids. Described more than a century ago, current knowledge of this externally unmistakable montane rodent is very limited, and doubts persist as to whether or not it is monotypic. After several years of field efforts in Ecuador, a considerable quantity of specimens of Chilomys were collected from various localities representing both Andean chains. Based on an extensive genetic survey of the obtained material, we can demonstrate that what is currently treated as C. instans in Ecuador is a complex comprising at least five new species which are described in this paper. In addition, based on these noteworthy new evidence, we amend the generic diagnosis in detail, adding several key craniodental traits such as incisor procumbency and microdonty. These results indicate that Chilomys probably has a hidden additional diversity in large parts of the Colombian and Peruvian territories, inviting a necessary revision of the entire genus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Brito
- Sección de Mastozoología, Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
| | - Nicolás Tinoco
- Sección de Mastozoología, Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
| | - C. Miguel Pinto
- Observatorio de Biodiversidad Ambiente y Salud (OBBAS), Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador. Current address: Charles Darwin Research Station, Charles Darwin Foundation, Puerto Ayora, Galápagos, Ecuador
| | - Rubí García
- Sección de Mastozoología, Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
| | - Claudia Koch
- Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change/Museum Koenig, Bonn, Germany
| | - Vincent Fernandez
- Imaging and Analysis Centre, Natural History Museum (NHM), London, United Kingdom
| | - Santiago Burneo
- Sección de Mastozoología, Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
| | - Ulyses F. J. Pardiñas
- Sección de Mastozoología, Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador,Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral (IDEAus – CONICET), Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina
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9
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Kwak HJ, Lee SG, Park SC, Kim JH, Weisblat DA, Park C, Cho SJ. Head transcriptome profiling of glossiphoniid leech ( Helobdella austinensis) reveals clues about proboscis development. Open Biol 2022; 12:210298. [PMID: 35232253 PMCID: PMC8889196 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.210298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Cephalization refers to the evolutionary trend towards the concentration of neural tissues, sensory organs, mouth and associated structures at the front end of bilaterian animals. Comprehensive studies on gene expression related to the anterior formation in invertebrate models are currently lacking. In this study, we performed de novo transcriptional profiling on a proboscis-bearing leech (Helobdella austinensis) to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the anterior versus other parts of the body, in particular to find clues as to the development of the proboscis. Between the head and the body, 132 head-specific DEGs were identified, of which we chose 11 to investigate their developmental function during embryogenesis. Analysis of the spatial expression of these genes using in situ hybridization showed that they were characteristically expressed in the anterior region of the developing embryo, including the proboscis. Our results provide information on the genes related to head formation and insights into the function of proboscis-related genes during organogenesis with the potential roles of genes not yet characterized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hee-Jin Kwak
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, College of Natural Sciences, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Chungbuk 28644, Republic of Korea,Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Sung-Gwon Lee
- School of Biological Sciences and Technology, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
| | - Soon Cheol Park
- Department of Life Science, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Republic of Korea
| | - Jung-Hyeuk Kim
- Wildlife Disease Response Team, National Institute of Wildlife Disease Control and Prevention, Incheon 22689, Republic of Korea
| | - David A. Weisblat
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, 385 Weill Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA
| | - Chungoo Park
- School of Biological Sciences and Technology, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
| | - Sung-Jin Cho
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, College of Natural Sciences, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Chungbuk 28644, Republic of Korea
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10
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Brito J, Koch C, Tinoco N, Pardiñas UFJ. A new species of Mindomys (Rodentia, Cricetidae) with remarks on external traits as indicators of arboreality in sigmodontine rodents. EvolSyst 2022. [DOI: 10.3897/evolsyst.6.76879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The diversity of the oryzomyine rat Mindomys (Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae, Oryzomyini), is doubled here with the description of a new species from the remote Cordillera de Kutukú (Ecuador). The novel form can be easily differentiated from Mindomys hammondi –type species of the genus– by a large set of anatomical traits including, among others, larger jugals, parietal “wings” extending to zygomatic roots, larger otic capsules, well-exposed petrosals, narrow zygomatic plates almost without upper free borders, foramen magnum caudally oriented, larger molars, and accessory root of first upper molar present. Until now, the records of Mindomys were restricted to western Andean foothills. The material from Kutukú highlights an Amazonian species and reinforces the valuable biological significance of isolated mountain ranges in eastern Ecuador. Since Mindomys shows some external traits classically related to arboreal life, here we present a brief reappraisal of this poorly explored topic. A partially neglected anatomical system in sigmodontine studies, the fore feet, encloses crucial information reflecting arboreality.
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11
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12
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13
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Smith TD, Corbin HM, King SEE, Bhatnagar KP, DeLeon VB. A comparison of diceCT and histology for determination of nasal epithelial type. PeerJ 2021; 9:e12261. [PMID: 34760352 PMCID: PMC8571959 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Diffusible iodine-based contrast-enhanced computed tomography (diceCT) has emerged as a viable tool for discriminating soft tissues in serial CT slices, which can then be used for three-dimensional analysis. This technique has some potential to supplant histology as a tool for identification of body tissues. Here, we studied the head of an adult fruit bat (Cynopterus sphinx) and a late fetal vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) using diceCT and µCT. Subsequently, we decalcified, serially sectioned and stained the same heads. The two CT volumes were rotated so that the sectional plane of the slice series closely matched that of histological sections, yielding the ideal opportunity to relate CT observations to corresponding histology. Olfactory epithelium is typically thicker, on average, than respiratory epithelium in both bats. Thus, one investigator (SK), blind to the histological sections, examined the diceCT slice series for both bats and annotated changes in thickness of epithelium on the first ethmoturbinal (ET I), the roof of the nasal fossa, and the nasal septum. A second trial was conducted with an added criterion: radioopacity of the lamina propria as an indicator of Bowman’s glands. Then, a second investigator (TS) annotated images of matching histological sections based on microscopic observation of epithelial type, and transferred these annotations to matching CT slices. Measurements of slices annotated according to changes in epithelial thickness alone closely track measurements of slices based on histologically-informed annotations; matching histological sections confirm blind annotations were effective based on epithelial thickness alone, except for a patch of unusually thick non-OE, mistaken for OE in one of the specimens. When characteristics of the lamina propria were added in the second trial, the blind annotations excluded the thick non-OE. Moreover, in the fetal bat the use of evidence for Bowman’s glands improved detection of olfactory mucosa, perhaps because the epithelium itself was thin enough at its margins to escape detection. We conclude that diceCT can by itself be highly effective in identifying distribution of OE, especially where observations are confirmed by histology from at least one specimen of the species. Our findings also establish that iodine staining, followed by stain removal, does not interfere with subsequent histological staining of the same specimen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy D Smith
- School of Physical Therapy, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA, USA
| | - Hayley M Corbin
- Department of Biology, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA, United States
| | - Scot E E King
- School of Physical Therapy, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA, USA
| | - Kunwar P Bhatnagar
- Department of Anatomical Sciences and Neurobiology, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA
| | - Valerie B DeLeon
- Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
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14
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Petrosky AL, Rowsey DM, Heaney LR. Molecular assessment of dietary niche partitioning in an endemic island radiation of tropical mammals. Mol Ecol 2021; 30:5858-5873. [PMID: 34460971 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2020] [Revised: 07/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Island radiations represent unique evolutionary histories in unique ecological contexts. These radiations provide opportunities to investigate ecological diversification in groups that typically exhibit niche partitioning among their constituents, including partitioning of food resources. DNA metabarcoding produces finer levels of diet identification than traditional methods, allowing us to examine dietary niche partitioning in communities or clades in which species share superficially similar diets. Here, we use DNA metabarcoding to investigate dietary niche partitioning in an endemic radiation of mammals in the Philippines. Our data reveal niche partitioning as well as phylogenetically-uncorrelated adaptive evolution in this small mammal community. Because 70% of the focal species belong to the tribe Chrotomyini, an endemic Philippine radiation of murid rodents that feed extensively on earthworms, this study sheds light on dietary adaptation and its role in the co-occurrence of closely related species. Our results reveal fine-scale resource partitioning within this community; our data provide compelling evidence for niche partitioning of diet that was masked by previous diet categories and will help in further dissecting the model adaptive radiation of endemic small mammals on Luzon. This study reinforces the notion that DNA metabarcoding can be a valuable tool for investigating both ecological relationships and evolutionary ecology at the community and phylogenetic level, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna L Petrosky
- Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois, USA.,Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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15
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Ruf I, Meng J, Fostowicz-Frelik Ł. Anatomy of the Nasal and Auditory Regions of the Fossil Lagomorph Palaeolagus haydeni: Systematic and Evolutionary Implications. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.636110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Palaeolagus, a late Eocene to early Miocene North American lagomorph genus, represented by numerous and well-preserved specimens, has been long considered a basal leporid, although it is currently understood as a stem lagomorph. Based on micro-computed tomography (μCT) data and 3D reconstructions, here we present the first description of intracranial structures of the nasal and auditory regions of a complete skull of Palaeolagus haydeni from the early Oligocene of Nebraska. Although Palaeolagus haydeni shows a puzzling mixture of extant leporid and ochotonid characters, it helps to polarize and re-evaluate already known lagomorph intracranial characters based on outgroup comparison with Rodentia and Scandentia. Common derived features of Palaeolagus haydeni and extant Lagomorpha are the dendritic maxilloturbinal and the excavated nasoturbinal that contacts the lamina semicircularis. Generally, Palaeolagus haydeni and Leporidae have several characters in common, some of which are certainly plesiomorphic (e.g., thin wall of bulla tympani and flat conic cochlea). Palaeolagus haydeni resembles Leporidae in having an interturbinal between the two frontoturbinals, and three ethmoturbinals plus one interturbinal between ethmoturbinal I and II. Now, this should also be regarded as a plesiomorphic grundplan pattern for Leporidae whereas ochotonids are derived from the lagomorph grundplan as concerns the number of frontoturbinals. Concerning the middle ear, Palaeolagus haydeni significantly contributes to the polarization of the anterior anchoring of the malleus in extant lagomorphs. Palaeolagus haydeni resembles the pattern observed in early ontogenetic stages of Ochotonidae, i.e., the attachment of the malleus to the ectotympanic via a short processus anterior. The patterns in adult ochotonids and leporids now can be regarded as two different and apomorphic character states. Autapomorphic characters of Palaeolagus haydeni are the reduced frontoturbinal 2 and the additional anterolaterally oriented process of the lamina semicircularis. Interestingly, among the investigated intracranial structures the loss of the secondary crus commune is the only apomorphic grundplan character of crown Lagomorpha.
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16
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Kwak HJ, Kim JH, Kim JY, Jeon D, Lee DH, Yoo S, Kim J, Eyun SI, Park SC, Cho SJ. Behavioral variation according to feeding organ diversification in glossiphoniid leeches (Phylum: Annelida). Sci Rep 2021; 11:10940. [PMID: 34035418 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90421-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive radiation is a phenomenon in which various organs are diversified morphologically or functionally as animals adapt to environmental inputs. Leeches exhibit a variety of ingestion behaviors and morphologically diverse ingestion organs. In this study, we investigated the correlation between behavioral pattern and feeding organ structure of leech species. Among them, we found that Alboglossiphonia sp. swallows prey whole using its proboscis, whereas other leeches exhibit typical fluid-sucking behavior. To address whether the different feeding behaviors are intrinsic, we investigated the behavioral patterns and muscle arrangements in the earlier developmental stage of glossiphoniid leeches. Juvenile Glossiphoniidae including the Alboglossiphonia sp. exhibit the fluid ingestion behavior and have the proboscis with the compartmentalized muscle layers. This study provides the characteristics of leeches with specific ingestion behaviors, and a comparison of structural differences that serves as the first evidence of the proboscis diversification.
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17
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Roycroft E, Achmadi A, Callahan CM, Esselstyn JA, Good JM, Moussalli A, Rowe KC. Molecular Evolution of Ecological Specialisation: Genomic Insights from the Diversification of Murine Rodents. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:6275684. [PMID: 33988699 PMCID: PMC8258016 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive radiations are characterized by the diversification and ecological differentiation of species, and replicated cases of this process provide natural experiments for understanding the repeatability and pace of molecular evolution. During adaptive radiation, genes related to ecological specialization may be subject to recurrent positive directional selection. However, it is not clear to what extent patterns of lineage-specific ecological specialization (including phenotypic convergence) are correlated with shared signatures of molecular evolution. To test this, we sequenced whole exomes from a phylogenetically dispersed sample of 38 murine rodent species, a group characterized by multiple, nested adaptive radiations comprising extensive ecological and phenotypic diversity. We found that genes associated with immunity, reproduction, diet, digestion, and taste have been subject to pervasive positive selection during the diversification of murine rodents. We also found a significant correlation between genome-wide positive selection and dietary specialization, with a higher proportion of positively selected codon sites in derived dietary forms (i.e., carnivores and herbivores) than in ancestral forms (i.e., omnivores). Despite striking convergent evolution of skull morphology and dentition in two distantly related worm-eating specialists, we did not detect more genes with shared signatures of positive or relaxed selection than in a nonconvergent species comparison. Although a small number of the genes we detected can be incidentally linked to craniofacial morphology or diet, protein-coding regions are unlikely to be the primary genetic basis of this complex convergent phenotype. Our results suggest a link between positive selection and derived ecological phenotypes, and highlight specific genes and general functional categories that may have played an integral role in the extensive and rapid diversification of murine rodents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Roycroft
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Sciences Department, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.,Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Anang Achmadi
- Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense, Research Center for Biology, Cibinong, Jawa Barat, Indonesia
| | - Colin M Callahan
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, USA
| | - Jacob A Esselstyn
- Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Jeffrey M Good
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, USA.,Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, USA
| | - Adnan Moussalli
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Sciences Department, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Kevin C Rowe
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Sciences Department, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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18
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Camacho-Sanchez M, Leonard JA. Mitogenomes Reveal Multiple Colonization of Mountains by Rattus in Sundaland. J Hered 2021; 111:392-404. [PMID: 32485737 PMCID: PMC7423070 DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esaa014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Accepted: 05/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Tropical mountains are cradles of biodiversity and endemism. Sundaland, tropical Southeast Asia, hosts 3 species of Rattus endemic to elevations above 2000 m with an apparent convergence in external morphology: Rattus korinchi and R. hoogerwerfi from Sumatra, and R. baluensis from Borneo. A fourth one, R. tiomanicus, is restricted to lowland elevations across the whole region. The origins of these endemics are little known due to the absence of a robust phylogenetic framework. We use complete mitochondrial genomes from the 3 high altitude Rattus, and several related species to determine their relationships, date divergences, reconstruct their history of colonization, and test for selection on the mitochondrial DNA. We show that mountain colonization happened independently in Borneo (<390 Kya) and Sumatra (~1.38 Mya), likely from lowland lineages. The origin of the Bornean endemic R. baluensis is very recent and its genetic diversity is nested within the diversity of R. tiomanicus. We found weak evidence of positive selection in the high-elevation lineages and attributed the greater nonsynonymous mutations on these branches (specially R. baluensis) to lesser purifying selection having acted on the terminal branches in the phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Camacho-Sanchez
- Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics Group, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Jennifer A Leonard
- Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics Group, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
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19
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Brito J, Vaca-Puente S, Koch C, Tinoco N. Discovery of the first Amazonian Thomasomys (Rodentia, Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae): a new species from the remote Cordilleras del Cóndor and Kutukú in Ecuador. J Mammal 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyaa183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
A new species of the cricetid rodent genus Thomasomys is described from the montane forests of the Cordilleras del Cóndor and Kutukú, southeastern Ecuador, at elevations between 1,770 and 2,215 m. The species has a large body size (head and body length 137–147 mm) in comparison with other species in the genus, and also is distinguished from its congeners by presenting a tail longer than the head–body length, presence of genal vibrissae 1 and 2, wide presphenoid, first and second lower molars with ectolophid, and third lower molar slightly shorter than the second. A molecular phylogeny based on mitochondrial genes resolved the new species a member of the “aureus” group, most closely related to Thomasomys aureus sensu stricto (genetic distance 8.57%) and as well as an additional undescribed species from southeastern Ecuador. This finding increases the diversity of Thomasomys to 46 species, of which 17 species are present in Ecuador. In addition, the species described herein is the first Thomasomys from the Amazonian basin, a genus that up to now was thought to be restricted to Andean ranges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Brito
- División de Mastozoología, Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Rumipamba 341 y Av. de los Shyris, Casilla: 17-07-8976, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Sarah Vaca-Puente
- The Ray Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, MS 43131, Lubbock TX 79409, USA
| | - Claudia Koch
- Sektion Herpetologie, Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig, 53113 Bonn, Germany
| | - Nicolás Tinoco
- Sección de Mastozoología, Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, 170525 Quito, Ecuador (NT)
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20
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Nations JA, Mount GG, Morere SM, Achmadi AS, Rowe KC, Esselstyn JA. Locomotory mode transitions alter phenotypic evolution and lineage diversification in an ecologically rich clade of mammals. Evolution 2021; 75:376-393. [PMID: 33370843 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Revised: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 12/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The relationship between organismal function and form is a cornerstone of biology because functional diversity is key to generating and maintaining ecological diversity. Morphological changes often occur in unison with behavioral or ecological transitions, and this process may foster diversification, but alternately could trap a species on an adaptive peak. We estimated the most comprehensive phylogenetic hypothesis of Murinae, a young (∼15 million years) and diverse (∼700 species) clade of mammals. We then tested for correlated evolution among four morphological traits with potential links to locomotor modes (Arboreal, General, Terrestrial, and Amphibious), then investigated the effects of locomotion on morphological and lineage diversification. We found unique combinations of trait values for each locomotor mode, including strong covariance between the tail and hindfoot lengths of specialized Arboreal and ecologically flexible General species. Low diversification rates and long branch lengths suggest that specialized lineages represent stable evolutionary "cul-de-sacs." General species, characterized by the classic "rat-like" body plan and broad locomotor abilities, have narrow optimal trait values and slow phenotypic evolution, but high lineage diversification rates. Our findings suggest that versatile, generalist forms act as seeds of species diversity and morphological specialization, which together build ecologically diverse radiations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan A Nations
- Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, 119 Foster Hall, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Genevieve G Mount
- Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, 119 Foster Hall, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Sara M Morere
- Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, 119 Foster Hall, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Anang S Achmadi
- Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense, Research Centre for Biology, Cibinong, Jawa Barat, 16911, Indonesia
| | - Kevin C Rowe
- Sciences Department, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia
| | - Jacob A Esselstyn
- Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, 119 Foster Hall, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803.,Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
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21
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Missagia RV, Patterson BD, Krentzel D, Perini FA. Insectivory leads to functional convergence in a group of Neotropical rodents. J Evol Biol 2020; 34:391-402. [PMID: 33617138 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Revised: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/28/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The mandible of vertebrates serves as insertion area for masticatory muscles that originate on the skull, and its functional properties are subject to selective forces related to trophic ecology. The efficiency of masticatory muscles can be measured as mechanical advantage on the mandible, which, in turn, has the property of correlating with bite force and shape. In the present work, we quantify the mechanical advantage of the mandible of akodontine rodents, which present a diverse radiation of insectivorous specialists, to assess their relationship to the estimated bite force and diet. We also tested the degree of morphofunctional convergence in response to insectivory on the group. We found the mechanical advantages to be convergent on insectivorous species, and associated with the estimated bite force, with higher mechanical advantages in species with a stronger bite and short, robust mandibles and lower mechanical advantages in insectivorous species with weaker bites and more elongated, dorso-ventrally compressed mandibles. Insectivorous species of Akodontini are functional specialists for the consumption of live prey and may exploit the resources that shrews, moles and hedgehogs consume elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafaela V Missagia
- PPG - Zoologia/Departamento de Zoologia - Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Bruce D Patterson
- Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Dallas Krentzel
- Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA.,Department of Biology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Fernando A Perini
- PPG - Zoologia/Departamento de Zoologia - Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
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22
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Brito J, Koch C, Percequillo AR, Tinoco N, Weksler M, Pinto CM, Pardiñas UFJ. A new genus of oryzomyine rodents (Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) with three new species from montane cloud forests, western Andean cordillera of Colombia and Ecuador. PeerJ 2020; 8:e10247. [PMID: 33240614 PMCID: PMC7664470 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The Andean cloud forests of western Colombia and Ecuador are home to several endemic mammals; members of the Oryzomyini, the largest Sigmodontinae tribe, are extensively represented in the region. However, our knowledge about this diversity is still incomplete, as evidenced by several new taxa that have been described in recent years. Extensive field work in two protected areas enclosing remnants of Chocó montane forest recovered a high diversity of small mammals. Among them, a medium-sized oryzomyine is here described as a new genus having at least three new species, two of them are named and diagnosed. Although externally similar to members of the genera Nephelomys and Tanyuromys, the new genus has a unique molar pattern within the tribe, being characterized by a noticeable degree of hypsodonty, simplification, lamination, and third molar compression. A phylogeny based on a combination of molecular markers, including nuclear and mitochondrial genes, and morphological data recovered the new genus as sister to Mindomys, and sequentially to Nephelomys. The new genus seems to be another example of a sigmodontine rodent unique to the Chocó biogeographic region. Its type species inhabits cloud forest between 1,600 and 2,300 m in northernmost Ecuador (Carchi Province); a second species is restricted to lower montane forest, 1,200 m, in northern Ecuador (Imbabura Province); a third putative species, here highlighted exclusively by molecular evidence from one immature specimen, is recorded in the montane forest of Reserva Otonga, northern Ecuador (Cotopaxi Province). Finally, the new genus is also recorded in southernmost Colombia (Nariño Department), probably represented there also by a new species. These species are spatially separated by deep river canyons through Andean forests, resulting in marked environmental discontinuities. Unfortunately, Colombian and Ecuadorian Pacific cloud forests are under rapid anthropic transformation. Although the populations of the type species are moderately abundant and occur in protected areas, the other two persist in threatened forest fragments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Brito
- Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Quito, Ecuador
| | - Claudia Koch
- Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig (ZFMK), Bonn, Germany
| | - Alexandre R. Percequillo
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz”, Universidade de São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Nicolás Tinoco
- Sección de Mastozoología, Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Marcelo Weksler
- Setor de Mastozoologia, Departamento de Vertebrados, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - C. Miguel Pinto
- Observatorio de Biodiversidad Ambiente y Salud (OBBAS), Quito, Ecuador
| | - Ulyses F. J. Pardiñas
- Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Quito, Ecuador
- Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral (IDEAus—CONICET), Puerto Madryn, Argentina
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23
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis D. Verde Arregoitia
- Instituto de Ciencias Ambientales y Evolutivas Universidad Austral de Chile Campus Isla Teja Valdivia CP 5090000 Chile
| | - Guillermo D’Elía
- Instituto de Ciencias Ambientales y Evolutivas Universidad Austral de Chile Campus Isla Teja Valdivia CP 5090000 Chile
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24
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Affiliation(s)
- Anderson Feijó
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
| | - Deyan Ge
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
| | - Zhixin Wen
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
| | - Lin Xia
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
| | - Qisen Yang
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing China
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25
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Martinez Q, Clavel J, Esselstyn JA, Achmadi AS, Grohé C, Pirot N, Fabre PH. Convergent evolution of olfactory and thermoregulatory capacities in small amphibious mammals. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:8958-65. [PMID: 32253313 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1917836117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Olfaction and thermoregulation are key functions for mammals. The former is critical to feeding, mating, and predator avoidance behaviors, while the latter is essential for homeothermy. Aquatic and amphibious mammals face olfactory and thermoregulatory challenges not generally encountered by terrestrial species. In mammals, the nasal cavity houses a bony system supporting soft tissues and sensory organs implicated in either olfactory or thermoregulatory functions. It is hypothesized that to cope with aquatic environments, amphibious mammals have expanded their thermoregulatory capacity at the expense of their olfactory system. We investigated the evolutionary history of this potential trade-off using a comparative dataset of three-dimensional (3D) CT scans of 189 skulls, capturing 17 independent transitions from a strictly terrestrial to an amphibious lifestyle across small mammals (Afrosoricida, Eulipotyphla, and Rodentia). We identified rapid and repeated loss of olfactory capacities synchronously associated with gains in thermoregulatory capacity in amphibious taxa sampled from across mammalian phylogenetic diversity. Evolutionary models further reveal that these convergences result from faster rates of turbinal bone evolution and release of selective constraints on the thermoregulatory-olfaction trade-off in amphibious species. Lastly, we demonstrated that traits related to vital functions evolved faster to the optimum compared to traits that are not related to vital functions.
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Hart PB, Niemiller ML, Burress ED, Armbruster JW, Ludt WB, Chakrabarty P. Cave-adapted evolution in the North American amblyopsid fishes inferred using phylogenomics and geometric morphometrics. Evolution 2020; 74:936-949. [PMID: 32187649 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2019] [Revised: 02/23/2020] [Accepted: 02/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Cave adaptation has evolved repeatedly across the Tree of Life, famously leading to pigmentation and eye degeneration and loss, yet its macroevolutionary implications remain poorly understood. We use the North American amblyopsid fishes, a family spanning a wide degree of cave adaptation, to examine the impact of cave specialization on the modes and tempo of evolution. We reconstruct evolutionary relationships using ultraconserved element loci, estimate the ancestral histories of eye-state, and examine the impact of cave adaptation on body shape evolution. Our phylogenomic analyses provide a well-supported hypothesis for amblyopsid evolutionary relationships. The obligate blind cavefishes form a clade and the cave-facultative eyed spring cavefishes are nested within the obligate cavefishes. Using ancestral state reconstruction, we find support for at least two independent subterranean colonization events within the Amblyopsidae. Eyed and blind fishes have different body shapes, but not different rates of body shape evolution. North American amblyopsids highlight the complex nature of cave-adaptive evolution and the necessity to include multiple lines of evidence to uncover the underlying processes involved in the loss of complex traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pamela B Hart
- Museum of Natural Sciences and Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
| | - Matthew L Niemiller
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, 35899
| | - Edward D Burress
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, California, 95616
| | - Jonathan W Armbruster
- Museum of Natural History and Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, 36830
| | - William B Ludt
- Department of Ichthyology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California, 9007
| | - Prosanta Chakrabarty
- Museum of Natural Sciences and Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803
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Roycroft EJ. Digest: Colonizing rodents overcome ecological incumbency in an island system. Evolution 2019; 73:1496-1497. [PMID: 31131440 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2019] [Accepted: 05/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Do primary radiations inhibit the persistence and diversification of secondary colonizers? Rowsey et al. test predictions of this "incumbency effect" by contrasting patterns of morphological variation in two murine rodent clades on the Philippine island of Luzon. They find that in this system, primary colonizers may impose constraints via biotic filtering, and may also restrict size evolution in secondary colonists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily J Roycroft
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Sciences Department, Museums Victoria, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
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