Dataset Information

A novel terpene synthase controls differences in anti-aphrodisiac pheromone production between closely related Heliconius butterflies.

ABSTRACT: Plants and insects often use the same compounds for chemical communication, but not much is known about the genetics of convergent evolution of chemical signals. The terpene (E)-?-ocimene is a common component of floral scent and is also used by the butterfly Heliconius melpomene as an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone. While the biosynthesis of terpenes has been described in plants and microorganisms, few terpene synthases (TPSs) have been identified in insects. Here, we study the recent divergence of 2 species, H. melpomene and Heliconius cydno, which differ in the presence of (E)-?-ocimene; combining linkage mapping, gene expression, and functional analyses, we identify 2 novel TPSs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that one, HmelOS, is able to synthesise (E)-?-ocimene in vitro. We find no evidence for TPS activity in HcydOS (HmelOS ortholog of H. cydno), suggesting that the loss of (E)-?-ocimene in this species is the result of coding, not regulatory, differences. The TPS enzymes we discovered are unrelated to previously described plant and insect TPSs, demonstrating that chemical convergence has independent evolutionary origins.

SUBMITTER: Darragh K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7815096 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

A novel terpene synthase controls differences in anti-aphrodisiac pheromone production between closely related Heliconius butterflies.

Darragh Kathy K Orteu Anna A Black Daniella D Byers Kelsey J R P KJRP Szczerbowski Daiane D Warren Ian A IA Rastas Pasi P Pinharanda Ana A Davey John W JW Fernanda Garza Sylvia S Abondano Almeida Diana D Merrill Richard M RM McMillan W Owen WO Schulz Stefan S Jiggins Chris D CD

PLoS biology 20210119 1

Plants and insects often use the same compounds for chemical communication, but not much is known about the genetics of convergent evolution of chemical signals. The terpene (E)-β-ocimene is a common component of floral scent and is also used by the butterfly Heliconius melpomene as an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone. While the biosynthesis of terpenes has been described in plants and microorganisms, few terpene synthases (TPSs) have been identified in insects. Here, we study the recent divergence of ...[more]

PMID: 33465061

Similar Datasets

Project description:The unpalatable and warning-patterned butterflies Heliconius erato and Heliconius melpomene provide the best studied example of mutualistic Müllerian mimicry, thought-but rarely demonstrated-to promote coevolution. Some of the strongest available evidence for coevolution comes from phylogenetic codivergence, the parallel divergence of ecologically associated lineages. Early evolutionary reconstructions suggested codivergence between mimetic populations of H. erato and H. melpomene, and this was initially hailed as one of the most striking known cases of coevolution. However, subsequent molecular phylogenetic analyses found discrepancies in phylogenetic branching patterns and timing (topological and temporal incongruence) that argued against codivergence. We present the first explicit cophylogenetic test of codivergence between mimetic populations of H. erato and H. melpomene, and re-examine the timing of these radiations. We find statistically significant topological congruence between multilocus coalescent population phylogenies of H. erato and H. melpomene. Cophylogenetic historical reconstructions support repeated codivergence of mimetic populations, from the base of the sampled radiations. Pairwise distance correlation tests, based on our coalescent analyses plus recently published AFLP and wing colour pattern gene data, also suggest that the phylogenies of H. erato and H. melpomene show significant topological congruence. Divergence time estimates, based on a Bayesian coalescent model, suggest that the evolutionary radiations of H. erato and H. melpomene occurred over the same time period, and are compatible with a series of temporally congruent codivergence events. Our results suggest that differences in within-species genetic divergence are the result of a greater overall effective population size for H. erato relative to H. melpomene and do not imply incongruence in the timing of their phylogenetic radiations. Repeated codivergence between Müllerian co-mimics, predicted to exert mutual selection pressures, strongly suggests coevolution. Our results therefore support a history of reciprocal coevolution between Müllerian co-mimics characterised by phylogenetic codivergence and parallel phenotypic change.

Dataset Information

A novel terpene synthase controls differences in anti-aphrodisiac pheromone production between closely related Heliconius butterflies.

Publications

A novel terpene synthase controls differences in anti-aphrodisiac pheromone production between closely related Heliconius butterflies.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets