Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Tabitha Blackwell, Antonia G. P. Ford, Adam G. Ciezarek, Stephanie J. Bradbeer, Carlos A. Gracida Juarez, Alan M. Smith, Benjamin P. Ngatunga, Asilatu Shechonge, Rashid Tamatamah, Graham Etherington, Wilfried Haerty, Federica Di Palma, George F. Turner, Martin J. Genner
Summary: In this study, newly discovered evolutionarily significant populations of Korogwe tilapia from southern Tanzania are threatened by hybridization with invasive Nile tilapia. Genetic analysis shows distinct differences between southern and northern populations of O. korogwe, with evidence of hybrids in southern lakes. This highlights the need for conservation interventions to protect these unique genetic resources.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Michelle C. Gilbert, Sofia N. Piggott, R. Craig Albertson
Summary: This study explored the response capabilities of a Geophagini cichlid to changes by exposing it to different substrate types. Significant differences were found in shape and disparity, except for the epibranchial lobe which exhibited more modular variation. This research offers insights into how Geophagini cichlids may respond to environmental change and further contributes to our understanding of the functional morphology of winnowing foraging behaviors.
Article
Biology
Leah DeLorenzo, Victoria DeBrock, Aldo Carmona Baez, Patrick J. Ciccotto, Erin N. Peterson, Clare Stull, Natalie B. Roberts, Reade B. Roberts, Kara E. Powder
Summary: This study investigates the importance of skull and jaw shape in animal feeding and explores the genetic basis of facial variation. The researchers found that changes in craniofacial structure, especially in the lower jaw and throat region, impact how animals perform suction feeding and biting. They also identified genetic regions that regulate these facial shapes, suggesting the involvement of sensory evolution in facial evolution. Despite facial shapes being controlled by distinct genetic regions, cichlids with similar feeding methods exhibit similar facial shapes, indicating that jaw movement function imposes limits on facial evolution in these fishes.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Jessica Arbour, Faith Rumpp, Hernan Lopez-Fernandez
Summary: This study investigates the impact of overall organismal form on the evolution of shape and function in complex lever systems. The authors find that head shape constrains the shape of four-bar linkages and plays a role in the form-function mapping of these systems, leading to stronger correlations between shape and function and higher rates of evolution in biomechanically important features.
ANATOMICAL RECORD-ADVANCES IN INTEGRATIVE ANATOMY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Raul Araya-Donoso, Esteban San Juan, Italo Tamburrino, Madeleine Lamborot, Claudio Veloso, David Veliz
Summary: The study investigated the genomic, physiological, and morphological variations of the lizard Liolaemus fuscus to detect adaptations to the Atacama Desert. Results showed strong genetic divergence, physiological differences in evaporative water loss, and morphological variations between desert and forest populations. The study suggests incipient speciation between desert and forest populations, with water and resource availability, and changes in habitat structure, as the main challenges for desert reptiles.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Michaela Kerschbaumer, Lisbeth Postl, Christian Sturmbauer
Summary: This study compared the shape of viscerocranial bones among different Tropheus populations and found significant morphological differences between sympatric and non-sympatric populations, as well as extensive variation within and among species. Sexual dimorphism was also evident in the viscerocranial bones analyzed. The study suggests that differences in ecologically relevant traits, such as bones of the preorbital region, play an important role in the process of niche separation and cichlid fishes diversification.
Article
Ecology
Pascal O. Title, Donald L. Swiderski, Miriam L. Zelditch
Summary: Spatial patterns of species richness, phylogenetic and morphological diversity are important in ecology and evolution. This article introduces an r package called EcoPhyloMapper that integrates geographical range and shape data to generate geographic maps reflecting diversity metrics. The package is useful in exploring species assemblage structures and macroecological research.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Entomology
Abdessamad Aglagane, Adam Tofilski, Omar Er-Rguibi, El-Mustapha Laghzaoui, Latifa Kimdil, El Hassan El Mouden, Stefan Fuchs, Andrzej Oleksa, Ahmed Aamiri, Mohamed Aourir
Summary: This study investigates the conservation status and geographic variation of four populations of Apis mellifera sahariensis in south-eastern Morocco using geometric morphometrics. The study finds significant differences between the studied populations and the reference subspecies, likely due to hybridization. The study also identifies significant differences in wing shape among the four populations, attributed to the fragmented distribution of the study area. These findings can inform future conservation strategies for the Saharan honey bee in Morocco.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Katrien Dierickx, Tarek Oueslati, Antonio Profico
Summary: Flatfish vertebrae are difficult to identify to species due to lack of diagnostic features. This study introduces a new approach using 2D landmark-based geometric morphometrics for species identification of flatfish vertebrae. Limited distinction between taxa was found using principal component analysis (PCA), but the classification showed high accuracies, indicating the feasibility of using geometric morphometrics for species identification. The technique had limited applicability for archaeological fish bone samples, but could be valuable for modern and non-fragmented samples.
JOURNAL OF ANATOMY
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Xiaoming Yu, Vera F. M. F. Sousa, Beatriz M. Oliveira, Francisco A. Guardiola, Francisca Silva-Brito, Rodrigo O. A. Ozorio, Luisa M. P. Valente, Leonardo J. Magnoni
Summary: This study investigated the effects of induced sustained swimming on various factors in juvenile gilthead seabream, including growth performance, metabolic parameters, external morphology, skeletal muscle fiber characteristics, and immune and metabolic markers. The results showed that induced swimming changed the body shape of seabream, increased the oxygen-carrying capacity and plasma lactate levels, but had no significant effect on growth performance and metabolic rates.
Article
Biology
Fatemeh Tabatabaei Yazdi, Sarina Dousti
Summary: This study focuses on the taxonomical issues of jirds belonging to the genus Meriones and their conservation status. By investigating the morphological variables of ten valid Meriones species, it was found that they exhibit differences in cranial shape and size. Some species show overlap in morpho-space, yet they are morphologically distinct in certain views. The study also identifies the existence of at least two major groups among the species.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Paula N. Gonzalez, Mariana Vallejo-Azar, Leandro Aristide, Ricardo Lopes, Sergio F. dos Reis, S. Ivan Perez
Summary: The study found that the pattern and magnitude of brain morphology asymmetry in different New World monkey species are influenced by group and home range sizes, while brain size is significantly correlated with inter-hemispheric differences.
BRAIN STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Cesar E. Fuentes-Montejo, Windsor Aguirre, Diego J. Elias, Christian Barrientos, Caleb D. McMahan
Summary: This study explores the ecological and morphological variation of two closely related species, R. spinosissima and R. octofasciata, in the Río Dulce basin. It finds differences in habitat, environmental characteristics, and body shape between the two species.
ECOLOGY OF FRESHWATER FISH
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yuichi Takeuchi, Yuna Higuchi, Koki Ikeya, Masataka Tagami, Yoichi Oda
Summary: This study examined the effect of behavioral experience on the acquisition of lateralized predation in scale-eating cichlid fish. The results showed that juvenile fish learned lateralized attacks by modifying their mouth morphology and improving body flexion, while young fish developed attack side preference and speed through predation experience. However, naive adults lost the inherent laterality and did not improve their predation skills.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Jose Miguel Cerda, Pamela Palacios-Fuentes, Mariana Diaz-Santana-Iturrios, F. Patricio Ojeda
Summary: The study evaluated the discriminant power of sagittae otoliths for distinguishing between Auchenionchus crinitus and Auchenionchus microcirrhis, finding that shape indices were not effective in differentiating the two species. Geometric morphometric analysis, on the other hand, showed distinct differences in sagittae otolith shape between the two species.
JOURNAL OF SEA RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Nicolas S. M. Robert, Fatih Sarigol, Bob Zimmermann, Axel Meyer, Christian R. Voolstra, Oleg Simakov
Summary: This study analyzed 49 animal genomes and discovered the largest gains of synteny in the last common ancestor of bilaterians and cnidarians. Depending on their node of emergence, the novel syntenic blocks exhibit distinct functional compositions and gene density properties. These findings provide insights into the regulatory properties of microsyntenic blocks in animal genomes.
Review
Genetics & Heredity
Giorgio Bertorelle, Francesca Raffini, Mirte Bosse, Chiara Bortoluzzi, Alessio Iannucci, Emiliano Trucchi, Hernan E. Morales, Cock van Oosterhout
Summary: Genetic variation, generated by mutation, recombination, and gene flow, can reduce the average fitness of a population. This genetic load can be estimated using various approaches, such as genome sequencing and computational techniques. Splitting the genetic load into realized load and masked load can improve our understanding of deleterious mutations in population genetics.
NATURE REVIEWS GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Mark D. Scherz, Paul Masonick, Axel Meyer, C. Darrin Hulsey
Summary: Whole genome sequences provide important evidence for our understanding of phylogenetic relationships, but they may not be able to resolve the evolutionary history of rapidly radiating lineages. Integrating results from different methods and using phylogenomic approaches can help overcome these challenges.
SYSTEMATIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Claudius F. Kratochwil, Andreas F. Kautt, Alexander Nater, Andreas Harer, Yipeng Liang, Frederico Henning, Axel Meyer
Summary: This study uncovers the genetic basis of the gold/dark polymorphism in Midas cichlid fish by identifying a transposon insertion in the gene goldentouch.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Sabine Urban, Jan Gerwin, C. Darrin Hulsey, Axel Meyer, Claudius F. Kratochwil
Summary: Color patterns are linked to the behavioral and morphological characteristics of animals, and play an important role in antipredatory strategies. This study finds a strong correlation between stripe patterns and body elongation in cichlid fish, indicating that the effectiveness of the stripes as an antipredatory strategy depends on body shape. However, genetic analyses show that stripes and body elongation segregate independently, suggesting that their correlation is maintained by correlational selection rather than genetic linkage. Furthermore, mate preference tests indicate that females do not differentiate between striped and nonstriped males, suggesting that stripes might be less important for species recognition and mate choice.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Paul Masonick, Axel Meyer, Christopher Darrin Hulsey
Summary: By analyzing the genomes of Lake Malawi cichlid species, this study found that protein-coding single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can provide enough phylogenetic information to study the inter- and intra-specific relationships of hypertrophied lip cichlids, although noncoding SNPs provide better support. The study also revealed that hypertrophied lip cichlids have likely evolved independently at least twice in Lake Malawi.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Camila L. Nacif, Claudius F. Kratochwil, Andreas F. Kautt, Alexander Nater, Gonzalo Machado-Schiaffino, Axel Meyer, Frederico Henning
Summary: The evolution and differentiation of sex chromosomes is a significant event in genome evolution, and the repeated evolution and variability of sex-determination mechanisms in fishes make them a suitable model for studying general patterns in evolution. This study used forward-genetics, long-read sequencing, and optical mapping to determine that sex in Midas cichlids is determined by an XY system and identified and assembled the sex-determining region. The study also found that the male-specific region on chromosome 4 contains transposable elements and a Y-specific duplicate of the anti-Mullerian receptor 2 gene, which has evolved as a master sex-determining gene. The duplication of anti-Mullerian genes is a common mechanism for establishing new sex determiners, highlighting the importance of molecular parallelism in the evolution of sex determination.
Article
Biology
Julian Torres-Dowdall, Sina J. Rometsch, Jacobo Reyes Velasco, Gaston Aguilera, Andreas F. Kautt, Guillermo Goyenola, Ana C. Petry, Gabriel C. Depra, Weferson J. da Graca, Axel Meyer
Summary: Phylogenetic comparative studies suggest that the deviation from bilateral symmetry might evolve through genetic assimilation, but the changes in its inheritance are largely unknown. Research on the evolution of genital asymmetry in Anablepidae fish reveals that the bias towards left-sided males has likely evolved independently three times. Breeding experiments show that regardless of their own sidedness, male fish sire more left-sided offspring. This suggests that sidedness may be inherited as a threshold trait with different thresholds across species.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Claudius F. Kratochwil, Andreas F. Kautt, Sina J. Rometsch, Axel Meyer
Summary: High-throughput DNA sequencing technologies have made it easier to sequence entire genomes. Whole-genome resequencing can help identify and describe species that are difficult to discern, but it can be costly and time-consuming. Species-specific markers can be designed based on whole-genome resequencing data, enabling rapid and reliable species identification at a lower cost.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Claudius F. Kratochwil, Yipeng Liang, Jan Gerwin, Paolo Franchini, Axel Meyer
Summary: This study investigates the differences between striped and nonstriped cichlid fishes in different lineages of Lake Victoria and Lake Malawi. The gene agrp2 is found to be associated with stripe pattern divergence. The study also examines the development of stripe patterns and vertical bar patterns, and suggests that the stripe phenotype may be caused by a combination of subtle transcriptomic differences or cellular changes.
EVOLUTION & DEVELOPMENT
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Paul Masonick, Axel Meyer, Christopher Darrin Hulsey
Summary: The genomic loci underlying variation in vertebrate structures like lips are surprisingly predictable. Both adaptive and maladaptive variation in traits such as jaws and teeth can be structured by the same genes in evolutionarily disparate organisms like teleost fishes and mammals. The recurrence of hypertrophied lips in cichlid fish lineages suggests the presence of shared genetic bases and potential insights into the genetic factors influencing human craniofacial anomalies.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Pamela Imperadore, Stefano Cagnin, Vittoria Allegretti, Caterina Millino, Francesca Raffini, Graziano Fiorito, Giovanna Ponte
Summary: The study selected 77 candidate reference genes, evaluated their expression stabilities in different tissues, and identified Ov-RNF7, Ov-RIOK2, Ov-EIF2A, and Ov-CUL1 as stable reference genes for various tissues. The expression profiles of nine target genes in different areas of the octopus nervous system were validated using these reference genes.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Carlo Pecoraro, Chiara Papetti, Carmelo Fruciano
Summary: The widespread occurrence of hybridisation in fishes has important implications for understanding biological principles and practical applications in management and conservation. However, the phenomenon of hybridisation in fish is not uniformly studied across species and environments, particularly when it comes to natural hybridisation in pelagic and deep-sea fish. This study highlights the need to reassess the underestimation of hybridisation and proposes strategies to improve the management and conservation of these important species.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Paolo Franchini, Carmelo Fruciano, Thomas J. Wood, Vivaswat Shastry, Dave Goulson, William O. H. Hughes, Julia C. Jones
Summary: Insect pollination is crucial for natural ecosystems and agriculture. The bumblebee species Bombus terrestris is widely used for commercial crop pollination due to its effectiveness and ease of mass rearing. However, the introduction of commercial non-native bumblebees poses a risk for global conservation and biological diversity. This study investigated the impact of utilizing commercial bumblebee subspecies in the UK using genomic data from wild populations and commercial populations. The results showed low levels of introgression between commercial and wild bees, with higher admixture near farms. Genomic regions associated with local and global adaptation were identified, with genes related to taste receptor activity, oxidoreductase activity, fatty acid, and lipid biosynthetic processes enriched in locally adaptive regions. Overall, the genetic integrity of local B. terrestris populations in the UK has been minimally affected, but even limited introgression may have negative effects on locally adapted populations.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ralf F. Schneider, Helen M. Gunter, Inken Salewski, Joost M. Woltering, Axel Meyer
Summary: Evolutionary novelties can promote ecological specialization and adaptive radiations. Belonoid fishes, such as flying fishes, halfbeaks, and needlefishes, have highly diversified elongated jaw phenotypes. In this study, the development of elongated jaws in a halfbeak and a needlefish was investigated, revealing that these jaws consist of distinct base and extension portions. The growth dynamics of both bases and extensions were described, and the molecular mechanisms underlying the extension outgrowth were deduced.
