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Contrasting genetic paths to morphological and physiological evolution.

ABSTRACT: The relative importance of protein function change and gene expression change in phenotypic evolution is a contentious, yet central topic in evolutionary biology. Analyzing 5,199 mouse genes with recorded mutant phenotypes, we find that genes exclusively affecting morphological traits when mutated (dubbed "morphogenes") are grossly enriched with transcriptional regulators, whereas those exclusively affecting physiological traits (dubbed "physiogenes") are enriched with channels, transporters, receptors, and enzymes. Compared to physiogenes, morphogenes are more likely to be essential and pleiotropic and less likely to be tissue specific. Morphogenes evolve faster in expression profile, but slower in protein sequence and gene gain/loss than physiogenes. Thus, morphological and physiological changes have a differential molecular basis; separating them helps discern the genetic mechanisms of phenotypic evolution.

SUBMITTER: Liao BY

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2867737 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Contrasting genetic paths to morphological and physiological evolution.

Liao Ben-Yang BY Weng Meng-Pin MP Zhang Jianzhi J

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20100405 16

The relative importance of protein function change and gene expression change in phenotypic evolution is a contentious, yet central topic in evolutionary biology. Analyzing 5,199 mouse genes with recorded mutant phenotypes, we find that genes exclusively affecting morphological traits when mutated (dubbed "morphogenes") are grossly enriched with transcriptional regulators, whereas those exclusively affecting physiological traits (dubbed "physiogenes") are enriched with channels, transporters, re ...[more]

PMID: 20368429

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Project description:BackgroundNitrogen (N) is one of the main factors limiting the wood yield in poplar cultivation. Understanding the molecular mechanism of N utilization could play a guiding role in improving the nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) of poplar.ResultsIn this study, three N-efficient genotypes (A1-A3) and three N-inefficient genotypes (C1-C3) of Populus deltoides were cultured under low N stress (5 μM NH4NO3) and normal N supply (750 μM NH4NO3). The dry matter mass, leaf morphology, and chlorophyll content of both genotypes decreased under N starvation. The low nitrogen adaptation coefficients of the leaves and stems biomass of group A were significantly higher than those of group C (p < 0.05). Interestingly, N starvation induced fine root growth in group A, but not in group C. Next, a detailed time-course analysis of enzyme activities and gene expression in leaves identified 2062 specifically differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in group A and 1118 in group C. Moreover, the sensitivity to N starvation of group A was weak, and DEGs related to hormone signal transduction and stimulus response played an important role in the low N response this group. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis identified genes related to membranes, catalytic activity, enzymatic activity, and response to stresses that might be critical for poplar's adaption to N starvation and these genes participated in the negative regulation of various biological processes. Finally, ten influential hub genes and twelve transcription factors were identified in the response to N starvation. Among them, four hub genes were related to programmed cell death and the defense response, and PodelWRKY18, with high connectivity, was involved in plant signal transduction. The expression of hub genes increased gradually with the extension of low N stress time, and the expression changes in group A were more obvious than those in group C.ConclusionsUnder N starvation, group A showed stronger adaptability and better NUE than group C in terms of morphology and physiology. The discovery of hub genes and transcription factors might provide new information for the analysis of the molecular mechanism of NUE and its improvement in poplar.

Project description:The establishment of stress resilient sugar beets (Beta vulgaris spp. vulgaris) is an important breeding goal since this cash crop is susceptible to drought and salinity. The genetic diversity in cultivated sugar beets is low and the beet wild relatives are useful genetic resources for tolerance traits. Three wild beet populations (Beta vulgaris spp. maritima) from contrasting environments, Vaiamonte (VMT, dry inland hill), Comporta (CMP, marsh) and Oeiras (OEI, coastland), and one commercial sugar beet (Isella variety, SB), are compared. At the genetic level, the use of six microsatellite allowed to detect a total of seventy six alleles. It was observed that CMP population has the highest value concerning the effective number of alleles and of expected heterozygosity. By contrast, sugar beet has the lowest values for all the parameters considered. Loci analysis with STRUCTURE allows defining three genetic clusters, the sea beet (OEI and CMP), the inland ruderal beet (VMT) and the sugar beet (SB). A screening test for progressive drought and salinity effects demonstrated that: all populations were able to recover from severe stress; drought impact was higher than that from salinity; the impact on biomass (total, shoot, root) was population specific. The distinct strategies were also visible at physiological level. We evaluated the physiological responses of the populations under drought and salt stress, namely at initial stress stages, late stress stages, and early stress recovery. Multivariate analysis showed that the physiological performance can be used to discriminate between genotypes, with a strong contribution of leaf temperature and leaf osmotic adjustment. However, the separation achieved and the groups formed are dependent on the stress type, stress intensity and duration. Each of the wild beet populations evaluated is very rich in genetic terms (allelic richness) and exhibited physiological plasticity, i.e., the capacity to physiologically adjust to changing environments. These characteristics emphasize the importance of the wild beet ecotypes for beet improvement programs. Two striking ecotypes are VMT, which is the best to cope with drought and salinity, and CMP which has the highest root to shoot ratio. These genotypes can supply breeding programs with distinct goals.

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Contrasting genetic paths to morphological and physiological evolution.

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Contrasting genetic paths to morphological and physiological evolution.

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