Competition between cryptic species explains variations in rates of lineage evolution.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Alizon S
PROVIDER: S-EPMC2527920 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Interspecific territoriality occurs when individuals of different species fight over space, and may arise spontaneously when populations of closely related territorial species first come into contact. But defence of space is costly, and unless the benefits of excluding heterospecifics exceed the costs, natural selection should favour divergence in competitor recognition until the species no longer interact aggressively. Ordinarily males of different species do not compete for mates, but when males cannot distinguish females of sympatric species, females may effectively become a shared resource. We model how reproductive interference caused by undiscriminating males can prevent interspecific divergence, or even cause convergence, in traits used to recognize competitors. We then test the model in a genus of visually orienting insects and show that, as predicted by the model, differences between species pairs in the level of reproductive interference, which is causally related to species differences in female coloration, are strongly predictive of the current level of interspecific aggression. Interspecific reproductive interference is very common and we discuss how it may account for the persistence of interspecific aggression in many taxonomic groups.
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Project description:RationaleMinority drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis subpopulations can be associated with phenotypic resistance but are poorly detected by Sanger sequencing or commercial molecular diagnostic assays.ObjectivesTo determine the role of targeted next-generation sequencing in resolving these minor variant subpopulations.MethodsWe used single molecule overlapping reads (SMOR), a targeted next-generation sequencing approach that dramatically reduces sequencing error, to analyze primary cultured isolates phenotypically resistant to rifampin, fluoroquinolones, or aminoglycosides, but for which Sanger sequencing found no resistance-associated variants (RAVs) within respective resistance-determining regions (study group). Isolates also underwent single-colony selection on antibiotic-containing agar, blinded to sequencing results. As a positive control, isolates with multiple colocalizing chromatogram peaks were also analyzed (control group).Measurements and main resultsAmong 61 primary culture isolates (25 study group and 36 control group), SMOR described 66 (49%) and 45 (33%) of 135 total heteroresistant RAVs at frequencies less than 5% and less than 1% of the total mycobacterial population, respectively. In the study group, SMOR detected minor resistant variant subpopulations in 80% (n = 20/25) of isolates with no Sanger-identified RAVs (median subpopulation size, 1.0%; interquartile range, 0.2-3.9%). Single-colony selection on drug-containing media corroborated SMOR results for 90% (n = 18/20) of RAV-containing specimens, and the absence of RAVs in 60% (n = 3/5) of isolates. Overall, Sanger sequencing was concordant with SMOR for 77% (n = 53/69) of macroheteroresistant (5-95% total population), but only 5% of microheteroresistant (<5%) subpopulations (n = 3/66) across both groups.ConclusionsCryptic minor variant mycobacterial subpopulations exist below the resolving capability of current drug susceptibility testing methodologies, and may explain an important proportion of false-negative resistance determinations.
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Project description:Molecular genetic methods can distinguish divergent evolutionary lineages in what previously appeared to be single species, but it is not always clear what functional differences exist between such cryptic species. We used a metabolomic approach to profile biochemical phenotype (metabotype) differences between two putative cryptic species of the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus. There were no straightforward metabolite biomarkers of lineage, i.e. no metabolites that were always at higher concentration in one lineage. Multivariate methods, however, identified a small number of metabolites that together helped distinguish the lineages, including uncommon metabolites such as Nε-trimethyllysine, which is not usually found at high concentrations. This approach could be useful for characterizing functional trait differences, especially as it is applicable to essentially any species group, irrespective of its genome sequencing status.
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Project description:Trajectories of cellular ontogeny are tightly controlled and often involve feedback-regulated molecular antagonism. For example, sieve element differentiation along developing protophloem cell files of Arabidopsis roots requires two antagonistic regulators of auxin efflux. Paradoxically, loss-of-function in either regulator triggers similar, seemingly stochastic differentiation failures of individual sieve element precursors. Here we show that these patterning defects are distinct and non-random. They can be explained by auxin-dependent bistability that emerges from competition for auxin between neighboring cells. This bistability depends on the presence of an auxin influx facilitator, and can be triggered by either flux enhancement or repression. Our results uncover a hitherto overlooked aspect of auxin uptake, and highlight the contributions of local auxin influx, efflux and biosynthesis to protophloem formation. Moreover, the combined experimental-modeling approach suggests that without auxin efflux homeostasis, auxin influx interferes with coordinated differentiation.
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Project description:BackgroundReproductive character displacement (RCD) is a common and taxonomically widespread pattern. In marine broadcast spawning organisms, behavioral and mechanical isolation are absent and prezygotic barriers between species often operate only during the fertilization process. Such barriers are usually a consequence of differences in the way in which sperm and egg proteins interact, so RCD can be manifest as faster evolution of these proteins between species in sympatry than allopatry. Rapid evolution of these proteins often appears to be a consequence of positive (directional) selection. Here, we identify a set of candidate gamete recognition proteins (GRPs) in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis and showed that these GRPs evolve more rapidly than control proteins (those not involved in gamete recognition). Choosing a subset of these gamete recognition proteins that show evidence of positive selection (CIPRO37.40.1, CIPRO60.5.1, CIPRO100.7.1), we then directly test the RCD hypothesis by comparing divergence (omega) and polymorphism (McDonald-Kreitman, Tajima's D, Fu and Li's D and F, Fay and Wu's H) statistics in sympatric and allopatric populations of two distinct forms of C. intestinalis (Types A and B) between which there are strong post-zygotic barriers.ResultsCandidate gamete recognition proteins from two lineages of C. intestinalis (Type A and B) are evolving more rapidly than control proteins, consistent with patterns seen in insects and mammals. However, ω (dN/dS) is not significantly different between the sympatric and allopatric populations, and none of the polymorphism statistics show significant differences between sympatric and allopatric populations.ConclusionsEnhanced prezygotic isolation in sympatry has become a well-known feature of gamete recognition proteins in marine broadcast spawners. But in most cases the evolutionary process or processes responsible for this pattern have not been identified. Although gamete recognition proteins in C. intestinalis do appear to evolve more rapidly, on average, than proteins with other functions, rates of evolution are not different in allopatric and sympatric populations of the two reproductively isolated forms. That sympatry is probably human-mediated, and therefore recent, may explain the absence of RCD.
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