TY  - JOUR
A1  - Signore, Anthony V.
A1  - Paijmans, Johanna L. A.
A1  - Hofreiter, Michael
A1  - Fago, Angela
A1  - Weber, Roy E.
A1  - Springer, Mark S.
A1  - Campbell, Kevin L.
T1  - Emergence of a chimeric globin pseudogene and increased Hemoglobin Oxygen Affinity Underlie the evolution of aquatic specializations in Sirenia
JF  - Molecular biology and evolution
N2  - As limits on O2 availability during submergence impose severe constraints on aerobic respiration, the oxygen binding globin proteins of marine mammals are expected to have evolved under strong evolutionary pressures during their land-to-sea transition. Here, we address this question for the order Sirenia by retrieving, annotating, and performing detailed selection analyses on the globin repertoire of the extinct Steller’s sea cow (Hydrodamalis gigas), dugong (Dugong dugon), and Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) in relation to their closest living terrestrial relatives (elephants and hyraxes). These analyses indicate most loci experienced elevated nucleotide substitution rates during their transition to a fully aquatic lifestyle. While most of these genes evolved under neutrality or strong purifying selection, the rate of nonsynonymous/synonymous replacements increased in two genes (Hbz-T1 and Hba-T1) that encode the α-type chains of hemoglobin (Hb) during each stage of life. Notably, the relaxed evolution of Hba-T1 is temporally coupled with the emergence of a chimeric pseudogene (Hba-T2/Hbq-ps) that contributed to the tandemly linked Hba-T1 of stem sirenians via interparalog gene conversion. Functional tests on recombinant Hb proteins from extant and ancestral sirenians further revealed that the molecular remodeling of Hba-T1 coincided with increased Hb–O2 affinity in early sirenians. Available evidence suggests that this trait evolved to maximize O2 extraction from finite lung stores and suppress tissue O2 offloading, thereby facilitating the low metabolic intensities of extant sirenians. In contrast, the derived reduction in Hb–O2 affinity in (sub)Arctic Steller’s sea cows is consistent with fueling increased thermogenesis by these once colossal marine herbivores.
KW  - ancient DNA
KW  - aquatic adaptation
KW  - gene conversion
KW  - hemoglobin
KW  - oxygen affinity
KW  - molecular evolution
KW  - myoglobin
KW  - neuroglobin
KW  - cytoglobin
KW  - pseudogene
Y1  - 2019
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msz044
SN  - 0737-4038
SN  - 1537-1719
VL  - 36
IS  - 6
SP  - 1134
EP  - 1147
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Autenrieth, Marijke
A1  - Hartmann, Stefanie
A1  - Lah, Ljerka
A1  - Roos, Anna
A1  - Dennis, Alice B.
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - High-quality whole-genome sequence of an abundant Holarctic odontocete, the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena)
JF  - Molecular ecology resources
N2  - The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is a highly mobile cetacean found across the Northern hemisphere. It occurs in coastal waters and inhabits basins that vary broadly in salinity, temperature and food availability. These diverse habitats could drive subtle differentiation among populations, but examination of this would be best conducted with a robust reference genome. Here, we report the first harbour porpoise genome, assembled de novo from an individual originating in the Kattegat Sea (Sweden). The genome is one of the most complete cetacean genomes currently available, with a total size of 2.39 Gb and 50% of the total length found in just 34 scaffolds. Using 122 of the longest scaffolds, we were able to show high levels of synteny with the genome of the domestic cattle (Bos taurus). Our draft annotation comprises 22,154 predicted genes, which we further annotated through matches to the NCBI nucleotide database, GO categorization and motif prediction. Within the predicted genes, we have confirmed the presence of >20 genes or gene families that have been associated with adaptive evolution in other cetaceans. Overall, this genome assembly and draft annotation represent a crucial addition to the genomic resources currently available for the study of porpoises and Phocoenidae evolution, phylogeny and conservation.
KW  - cetaceans
KW  - genomics/proteomics
KW  - mammals
KW  - molecular evolution
Y1  - 2018
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/1755-0998.12932
SN  - 1755-098X
SN  - 1755-0998
VL  - 18
IS  - 6
SP  - 1469
EP  - 1481
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - GEN
A1  - Zancolli, Giulia
A1  - Baker, Timothy G.
A1  - Barlow, Axel
A1  - Bradley, Rebecca K.
A1  - Calvete, Juan J.
A1  - Carter, Kimberley C.
A1  - de Jager, Kaylah
A1  - Owens, John Benjamin
A1  - Price, Jenny Forrester
A1  - Sanz, Libia
A1  - Scholes-Higham, Amy
A1  - Shier, Liam
A1  - Wood, Liam
A1  - Wüster, Catharine E.
A1  - Wüster, Wolfgang
T1  - Is hybridization a source of adaptive venom variation in rattlesnakes?
BT  - a test, using a crotalus scutulatus × viridis hybrid zone in southwestern New Mexico
T2  - Toxins
N2  - Venomous snakes often display extensive variation in venom composition both between and within species. However, the mechanisms underlying the distribution of different toxins and venom types among populations and taxa remain insufficiently known. Rattlesnakes (Crotalus, Sistrurus) display extreme inter-and intraspecific variation in venom composition, centered particularly on the presence or absence of presynaptically neurotoxic phospholipases A2 such as Mojave toxin (MTX). Interspecific hybridization has been invoked as a mechanism to explain the distribution of these toxins across rattlesnakes, with the implicit assumption that they are adaptively advantageous. Here, we test the potential of adaptive hybridization as a mechanism for venom evolution by assessing the distribution of genes encoding the acidic and basic subunits of Mojave toxin across a hybrid zone between MTX-positive Crotalus scutulatus and MTX-negative C. viridis in southwestern New Mexico, USA. Analyses of morphology, mitochondrial and single copy-nuclear genes document extensive admixture within a narrow hybrid zone. The genes encoding the two MTX subunits are strictly linked, and found in most hybrids and backcrossed individuals, but not in C. viridis away from the hybrid zone. Presence of the genes is invariably associated with presence of the corresponding toxin in the venom. We conclude that introgression of highly lethal neurotoxins through hybridization is not necessarily favored by natural selection in rattlesnakes, and that even extensive hybridization may not lead to introgression of these genes into another species.
T3  - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 443 
KW  - adaptation
KW  - Crotalus
KW  - evolution
KW  - hybridization
KW  - introgression
KW  - Mojave toxin
KW  - molecular evolution
KW  - venom
Y1  - 2018
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-407595
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Zancolli, Giulia
A1  - Baker, Timothy G.
A1  - Barlow, Axel
A1  - Bradley, Rebecca K.
A1  - Calvete, Juan J.
A1  - Carter, Kimberley C.
A1  - de Jager, Kaylah
A1  - Owens, John Benjamin
A1  - Price, Jenny Forrester
A1  - Sanz, Libia
A1  - Scholes-Higham, Amy
A1  - Shier, Liam
A1  - Wood, Liam
A1  - Wüster, Catharine E.
A1  - Wüster, Wolfgang
T1  - Is Hybridization a Source of Adaptive Venom Variation in Rattlesnakes? A Test, Using a Crotalus scutulatus x viridis Hybrid Zone in Southwestern New Mexico
JF  - Toxins
N2  - Venomous snakes often display extensive variation in venom composition both between and within species. However, the mechanisms underlying the distribution of different toxins and venom types among populations and taxa remain insufficiently known. Rattlesnakes (Crotalus, Sistrurus) display extreme inter-and intraspecific variation in venom composition, centered particularly on the presence or absence of presynaptically neurotoxic phospholipases A2 such as Mojave toxin (MTX). Interspecific hybridization has been invoked as a mechanism to explain the distribution of these toxins across rattlesnakes, with the implicit assumption that they are adaptively advantageous. Here, we test the potential of adaptive hybridization as a mechanism for venom evolution by assessing the distribution of genes encoding the acidic and basic subunits of Mojave toxin across a hybrid zone between MTX-positive Crotalus scutulatus and MTX-negative C. viridis in southwestern New Mexico, USA. Analyses of morphology, mitochondrial and single copy-nuclear genes document extensive admixture within a narrow hybrid zone. The genes encoding the two MTX subunits are strictly linked, and found in most hybrids and backcrossed individuals, but not in C. viridis away from the hybrid zone. Presence of the genes is invariably associated with presence of the corresponding toxin in the venom. We conclude that introgression of highly lethal neurotoxins through hybridization is not necessarily favored by natural selection in rattlesnakes, and that even extensive hybridization may not lead to introgression of these genes into another species.
KW  - adaptation
KW  - Crotalus
KW  - evolution
KW  - hybridization
KW  - introgression
KW  - Mojave toxin
KW  - molecular evolution
KW  - venom
Y1  - 2016
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins8060188
SN  - 2072-6651
VL  - 8
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  -