Independent Origins (independent + origins)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Distribution within Life Sciences


Selected Abstracts


DYNAMICS OF POLYPLOID FORMATION IN TRAGOPOGON (ASTERACEAE): RECURRENT FORMATION, GENE FLOW, AND POPULATION STRUCTURE

EVOLUTION, Issue 7 2010
V. Vaughan Symonds
Polyploidy is a major feature of angiosperm evolution and diversification. Most polyploid species have formed multiple times, yet we know little about the genetic consequences of recurrent formations. Among the clearest examples of recurrent polyploidy are Tragopogon mirus and T. miscellus (Asteraceae), each of which has formed repeatedly in the last ,80 years from known diploid progenitors in western North America. Here, we apply progenitor-specific microsatellite markers to examine the genetic contributions to each tetraploid species and to assess gene flow among populations of independent formation. These data provide fine-scale resolution of independent origins for both polyploid species. Importantly, multiple origins have resulted in considerable genetic variation within both polyploid species; however, the patterns of variation detected in the polyploids contrast with those observed in extant populations of the diploid progenitors. The genotypes detected in the two polyploid species appear to represent a snapshot of historical population structure in the diploid progenitors, rather than modern diploid genotypes. Our data also indicate a lack of gene flow among polyploid plants of independent origin, even when they co-occur, suggesting potential reproductive barriers among separate lineages in both polyploid species. [source]


INDEPENDENT EVOLUTION OF COMPLEX LIFE HISTORY ADAPTATIONS IN TWO FAMILIES OF FISHES, LIVE-BEARING HALFBEAKS (ZENARCHOPTERIDAE, BELONIFORMES) AND POECILIIDAE (CYPRINODONTIFORMES)

EVOLUTION, Issue 11 2007
David Reznick
We have previously documented multiple, independent origins of placentas in the fish family Poeciliidae. Here we summarize similar analyses of fishes in the family Zenarchopteridae. This family includes three live-bearing genera. Earlier studies documented the presence of superfetation, or the ability to carry multiple litters of young in different stages of development in the same ovary, in some species in all three genera. There is also one earlier report of matrotrophy, or extensive postfertilization maternal provisioning, in two of these genera. We present detailed life-history data for approximately half of the species in all three genera and combine them with the best available phylogeny to make inferences about the pattern of life-history evolution within this family. Three species of Hemirhamphodon have superfetation but lack matrotrophy. Most species in Nomorhamphus and Dermogenys either lack superfetation and matrotrophy or have both superfetation and matrotrophy. Our phylogenetic analysis shows that matrotrophy may have evolved independently in each genus. In Dermogenys, matrotrophic species produce fewer, larger offspring than nonmatrotrophic species. In Nomorhamphus; matrotrophic species instead produce more and smaller offspring than lecithotrophic species. However, the matrotrophic species in both genera have significantly smaller masses of reproductive tissue relative to their body sizes. All aspects of these results are duplicated in the fish family Poeciliidae. We discuss the possible adaptive significance of matrotrophy in the light of these new results. The two families together present a remarkable opportunity to study the evolution of a complex trait because they contain multiple, independent origins of the trait that often include close relatives that vary in either the presence or absence of the matrotrophy or in the degree to which matrotrophy is developed. These are the raw materials that are required for either an analysis of the adaptive significance of the trait or for studies of the genetic mechanisms that underlie the evolution of the trait. [source]


WHEN ONTOGENY REVEALS WHAT PHYLOGENY HIDES: GAIN AND LOSS OF HORNS DURING DEVELOPMENT AND EVOLUTION OF HORNED BEETLES

EVOLUTION, Issue 11 2006
Armin P. Moczek
Abstract How ecological, developmental and genetic mechanisms interact in the genesis and subsequent diversification of morphological novelties is unknown for the vast majority of traits and organisms. Here we explore the ecological, developmental, and genetic underpinnings of a class of traits that is both novel and highly diverse: beetle horns. Specifically, we focus on the origin and diversification of a particular horn type, those protruding from the pronotum, in the genus Onthophagus, a particularly speciose and morphologically diverse genus of horned beetles. We begin by documenting immature development of nine Onthophagus species and show that all of these species express pronotal horns in a developmentally transient fashion in at least one or both sexes. Similar to species that retain their horns to adulthood, transient horns grow during late larval development and are clearly visible in pupae. However, unlike species that express horns as adults, transient horns are resorbed during pupal development. In a large number of species this mechanisms allows fully horned pupae to molt into entirely hornless adults. Consequently, far more Onthophagus species appear to possess the ability to develop pronotal horns than is indicated by their adult phenotypes. We use our data to expand a recent phylogeny of the genus Onthophagus to explore how the widespread existence of developmentally transient horns alters our understanding of the origin and dynamics of morphological innovation and diversification in this genus. We find that including transient horn development into the phylogeny dramatically reduces the number of independent origins required to explain extant diversity patters and suggest that pronotal horns may have originated only a few times, or possibly only once, during early Onthophagus evolution. We then propose a new and previously undescribed function for pronotal horns during immature development. We provide histological as well as experimental data that illustrate that pronotal horns are crucial for successful ecdysis of the larval head capsule during the larval-to-pupal molt, and that this molting function appears to be unique to the genus Onthophagus and absent in the other scarabaeine genera. We discuss how this additional function may help explain the existence and maintenance of developmentally transient horns, and how at least some horn types of adult beetles may have evolved as exaptations from pupal structures originally evolved to perform an unrelated function. [source]


The origin of the cactus-yeast community

FEMS YEAST RESEARCH, Issue 4 2003
William T Starmer
Abstract The yeast community found in decaying cactus stems and cladodes is stable in terms of species membership and is similar in composition over space and time. The ecological origins of the three core and four common species in the assemblage were inferred by mapping yeast habitats onto a phylogeny of yeasts reconstructed from rDNA sequences. The members of the community belong to distinct clades and consequently have independent origins. The inferred evolutionary pathways of the taxa originate in either tree-flux or decaying fruit habitats and lead to decaying Opuntia cladode and columnar stem habitats. The reasons for the polyphyletic origins of the cactus-yeast community could be due to unique aspects of cactus chemistry, environmental extremes, vector association and interactions among the members. [source]


An early lesion in hepatic carcinogenesis: Loss of heterozygosity in human cirrhotic livers and dysplastic nodules at the 1p36-p34 region

HEPATOLOGY, Issue 6 2001
Min Sun
Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of chromosome 1 has been suggested, by karyotyping, to be an initial episode in human hepatocarcinogenesis. However, this alteration has not yet been investigated in cirrhotic nodules (CNs) or dysplastic nodules (DNs). In an initial study from explanted or resected cirrhotic livers, LOH in 1p36-p32 was examined in 31 hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs), 25 low-grade dysplastic nodules (LGDNs), and 24 high-grade dysplastic nodules (HGDNs). In HCCs, LOH was detected most frequently at loci D1S2843 (1p36.1) (28.6%), D1S513 (1p34.3) (29.2%), and MYCL1 (1p34.1) (28.6%). In HGDN and LGDN, LOH incidences at D1S513 were 11.1% and 13.6%, respectively. To further refine those results and to determine sequential relationships among CN, DN, and HCC, LOH was next studied in an additional 53 HCCs, 56 HGDNs, 30 LGDNs, and 215 CNs from 11 explanted human cirrhotic livers, including 30 "nodule-in-nodule" lesions. Seven markers between D1S2843 (1p36.12) and MYCL1 (1p34.1), and 1 each at D1S484 (1q24.1), IGF2R-3 (6q26), and TP53 (17p13.1) were used. LOH at D1S2843 and D1S513 was detected in HCCs (20.4% and 23.5%, respectively), HGDNs (7.7% and 18.5%), LGDNs (13.6% and 6.9%), and CNs surrounding either HCCs or DNs (7.4% and 8.3%). These results demonstrate that LOH at D1S2843 and D1S513 are early events in human liver carcinogenesis. Data from CN surrounding either HCCs or DN, and also nodule-in-nodule lesions, provide evidence supporting a CN,DN,HCC progression. Different deletion patterns from multiple HCCs and DNs suggest independent origins for carcinogenesis in the same individual. [source]


The evolution of reproductive and genomic diversity in ray-finned fishes: insights from phylogeny and comparative analysis

JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 1 2006
J. E. Mank
Collectively, ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii) display far more diversity in many reproductive and genomic features than any other major vertebrate group. Recent large-scale comparative phylogenetic analyses have begun to reveal the evolutionary patterns and putative causes for much of this diversity. Several such recent studies have offered clues to how different reproductive syndromes evolved in these fishes, as well as possible physiological and genomic triggers. In many cases, repeated independent origins of complex reproductive strategies have been uncovered, probably reflecting convergent selection operating on common suites of underlying genes and hormonal controls. For example, phylogenetic analyses have uncovered multiple origins and predominant transitional pathways in the evolution of alternative male reproductive tactics, modes of parental care and mechanisms of sex determination. They have also shown that sexual selection in these fishes is repeatedly associated with particular reproductive strategies. Collectively, studies on reproductive and genomic diversity across the Actinopterygii illustrate both the strengths and the limitations of comparative phylogenetic approaches on large taxonomic scales. [source]


Homology versus analogy: possible evolutionary relationship of immunoglobulins, cupredoxins, and Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase

JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR RECOGNITION, Issue 1 2008
Fred J. Stevens
Abstract The ,immunoglobulin-like' fold is one of most common structural motifs observed in proteins. This topology is found in more than 80 superfamilies of proteins, including Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) and cupredoxin. Evolutionary relationships have not been identified, but may exist. The challenge remains, therefore, of resolving the issue of whether the diverse distribution of the fold is accounted for by divergent evolution of function or convergent evolution of structure following multiple independent origins of function. Since the early studies that revealed conformational similarity of immunoglobulins and other proteins, the number of primary structures available for comparison has dramatically increased and new computational approaches for analysis of sequences have been developed. It now appears that a hypothesis of a common evolutionary origin for cupredoxins, Cu,Zn-SOD, and immunoglobulins may be credible. The distinction between protein homology and protein analogy is fundamental. The immunoglobulin-like fold may represent a robust system within which to examine again the issue of protein homology versus analogy. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Polyploidy, phylogeography and Pleistocene refugia of the rockfern Asplenium ceterach: evidence from chloroplast DNA

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 10 2002
S. A. Trewick
Abstract Chloroplast DNA sequences were obtained from 331 Asplenium ceterach plants representing 143 populations from throughout the range of the complex in Europe, plus outlying sites in North Africa and the near East. We identified nine distinct haplotypes from a 900 bp fragment of trnL-trnF gene. Tetraploid populations were encountered throughout Europe and further afield, whereas diploid populations were scarcer and predominated in the Pannonian-Balkan region. Hexaploids were encountered only in southern Mediterranean populations. Four haplotypes were found among diploid populations of the Pannonian-Balkans indicating that this region formed a northern Pleistocene refugium. A separate polyploid complex centred on Greece, comprises diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid populations with two endemic haplotypes and suggests long-term persistence of populations in the southern Mediterranean. Three chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) haplotypes were common among tetraploids in Spain and Italy, with diversity reducing northwards suggesting expansion from the south after the Pleistocene. Our cpDNA and ploidy data indicate at least six independent origins of polyploids. [source]


Likely multiple origins of a diploid hybrid sunflower species

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 9 2002
A. E. Schwarzbach
Abstract The recurrent origin of diploid hybrid species is theoretically improbable because of the enormous diversity of hybrid genotypes generated by recombination. Recent greenhouse experiments, however, indicate that the genomic composition of hybrid lineages is shaped in part by deterministic forces, and that recurrent diploid hybrid speciation may be more feasible than previously believed. Here we use patterns of variation from chloroplast DNA (cpDNA), nuclear microsatellite loci, cross-viability and chromosome structure to assess whether a well-characterized diploid hybrid sunflower species, Helianthus anomalus, was derived on multiple occasions from its parental species, H. annuus and H. petiolaris. Chloroplast DNA and crossability data were most consistent with a scenario in which H. anomalus arose three times: three different H. anomalus fertility groups were discovered, each with a unique cpDNA haplotype. In contrast, there was no clear signature of multiple, independent origins from the microsatellite loci. Given the age of H. anomalus (> 100 000 years bp), it may be that microsatellite evidence for recurrent speciation has been eroded by mutation and gene flow through pollen. [source]


Self-compatibility in Brassica napus is caused by independent mutations in S -locus genes

THE PLANT JOURNAL, Issue 3 2007
Shunsuke Okamoto
Summary Brassica napus is an amphidiploid species with the A genome from Brassica rapa and the C genome from Brassica oleracea. Although B. rapa, B. oleracea and artificially synthesized amphidiploids with the AC genome are self-incompatible, B. napus is self-compatible. Six S genotypes were identified in B. napus, five of which had class I S haplotypes from one species and a class II S haplotype from the other species, and mutations causing self-compatibility were identified in three of these S genotypes. The most predominant S genotype (BnS-1;BnS-6), which is that of cv. ,Westar', had a class I S haplotype similar to B. rapa S-47 (BrS-47) and a class II S haplotype similar to B. oleracea S-15 (BoS-15). The stigmas of ,Westar' rejected the pollen grains of both BrS-47 and BoS-15, while reciprocal crossings were compatible. Insertion of a DNA fragment of about 3.6 kb was found in the promoter region of the SP11/SCR allele of BnS-1, and transcripts of SP11/SCR were not detected in ,Westar'. The nucleotide sequence of the SP11 genomic DNA of BnS-6 was 100% identical to that of SP11 of BoS-15. Class I SP11 alleles from one species showed dominance over class II SP11 alleles from the other species in artificially synthesized B. napus lines, suggesting that the non-functional dominant SP11 allele suppressed the expression of the recessive SP11 allele in ,Westar'. Two other S genotypes in B. napus also had non-functional class I S haplotypes together with recessive BnS-6. These observations suggest independent origins of self-compatibility in B. napus. [source]


Parallel evolution of termite-egg mimicry by sclerotium-forming fungi in distant termite groups

BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 3 2010
KENJI MATSUURA
Among the great diversity of insect,fungus associations, fungal mimicry of termite eggs is a particularly fascinating consequence of evolution. Along with their eggs, Reticulitermes termites often harbour sclerotia of the fungus Fibularhizoctonia sp., called ,termite balls', giving the fungus competitor-free habitat within termite nests. The fungus has evolved sophisticated morphological and chemical camouflage to mimic termite eggs. To date, this striking insect,fungus association has been found in eight temperate termite species, but is restricted to the lower termite genera Reticulitermes and Coptotermes. Here, we report the discovery of a novel type of termite ball (,Z-type') in the subtropical termite, Nasutitermes takasagoensis. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the Z-type termite ball is an undescribed Trechisporoid fungus, Trechispora sp., that is phylogenetically distant from Fibularhizoctonia, indicating two independent origins of termite-egg mimicry in sclerotium-forming fungi. Egg protection bioassays using dummy eggs revealed that Reticulitermes speratus and N. takasagoensis differ in egg-size preference. A comparative study of termite ball size and egg-size preference of host termites showed that both fungi evolved a termite ball size that optimized the acceptance of termite balls as a unit investment. Termite-egg mimicry by these fungi offers a model case of parallel evolution. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 100, 531,537. [source]


The evolution of social inbreeding mating systems in spiders: limited male mating dispersal and lack of pre-copulatory inbreeding avoidance in a subsocial predecessor

BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 4 2009
JASMIN RUCH
Cooperation and group living are extremely rare in spiders and only few species are known to be permanently social. Inbreeding is a key characteristic of social spiders, resulting in high degrees of within-colony relatedness that may foster kin-selected benefits of cooperation. Accordingly, philopatry and regular inbreeding are suggested to play a major role in the repeated independent origins of sociality in spiders. We conducted field observations and laboratory experiments to investigate the mating system of the subsocial spider Stegodyphus tentoriicola. The species is suggested to resemble the ,missing link' in the transition from subsociality to permanent sociality in Stegodyphus spiders because its social period is prolonged in comparison to other subsocial species. Individuals in our two study populations were spatially clustered around maternal nests, indicating that clusters consist of family groups as found in the subsocial congener Stegodyphus lineatus. Male mating dispersal was limited and we found no obvious pre-copulatory inbreeding avoidance, suggesting a high likelihood of mating with close kin. Rates of polygamy were low, a pattern ensuring high relatedness within broods. In combination with ecological constraints, such as high costs of dispersal, our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that the extended social period in S. tentoriicola is accompanied with adaptations that facilitate the transition towards permanent sociality. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 98, 851,859. [source]


Tracking island colonization history and phenotypic shifts in Indian Ocean bulbuls (Hypsipetes: Pycnonotidae)

BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 3 2005
BEN H. WARREN
Molecular phylogenies of island organisms provide useful systems for testing hypotheses of convergent or parallel evolution, since selectively neutral molecular characters are likely to be independent of phenotype, and the existence of similar environments on multiple isolated islands provides numerous opportunities for populations to evolve independently under the same constraints. Here we construct a phylogenetic hypothesis for Hypsipetes bulbuls of the western Indian Ocean, and use this to test hypotheses of colonization pattern and phenotypic change among islands of the region. Mitochondrial sequence data were collected from all extant taxa of the region, combined with sequence data from relevant lineages in Asia. Data are consistent with a single Hypsipetes colonization of the western Indian Ocean from Asia within the last 2.6 Myr. The expansion of Hypsipetes appears to have occurred rapidly, with descendants found across the breadth of its western Indian Ocean range. The data suggest that a more recent expansion of Hypsipetes madagascariensis from Madagascar led to the colonization of Aldabra and a secondary colonization of the Comoros. Groupings of western Indian Ocean Hypsipetes according to phenotypic similarities do not correspond to mtDNA lineages, suggesting that these similarities have evolved by convergence or parallelism. The direction of phenotypic change cannot be inferred with confidence, since the primary expansion occurred rapidly relative to the rate of mtDNA substitution, and the colonization sequence remains uncertain. However, evidence from biogeography and comparison of independent colonization events are consistent with the persistence of a small grey continental bulbul in India and Madagascar, and multiple independent origins of large size and green plumage in insular island populations of the Comoros, Mascarenes and Seychelles. © 2005 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2005, 85, 271,287. [source]


Higher-level phylogenetics of linyphiid spiders (Araneae, Linyphiidae) based on morphological and molecular evidence

CLADISTICS, Issue 3 2009
Miquel A. Arnedo
This study infers the higher-level cladistic relationships of linyphiid spiders from five genes (mitochondrial CO1, 16S; nuclear 28S, 18S, histone H3) and morphological data. In total, the character matrix includes 47 taxa: 35 linyphiids representing the currently used subfamilies of Linyphiidae (Stemonyphantinae, Mynogleninae, Erigoninae, and Linyphiinae (Micronetini plus Linyphiini)) and 12 outgroup species representing nine araneoid families (Pimoidae, Theridiidae, Nesticidae, Synotaxidae, Cyatholipidae, Mysmenidae, Theridiosomatidae, Tetragnathidae, and Araneidae). The morphological characters include those used in recent studies of linyphiid phylogenetics, covering both genitalic and somatic morphology. Different sequence alignments and analytical methods produce different cladistic hypotheses. Lack of congruence among different analyses is, in part, due to the shifting placement of Labulla, Pityohyphantes, Notholepthyphantes, and Pocobletus. Almost all combined analyses agree on the monophyly of linyphioids, Pimoidae, Linyphiidae, Erigoninae, Mynogleninae, as well as Stemonyphantes as a basal lineage within Linyphiidae. Our results suggest independent origins of the desmitracheate tracheal system in micronetines and erigonines, and that erigonines were primitively haplotracheate. Cephalothoracic glandular specializations of erigonines and mynoglenines apparently evolved independently. Subocular sulci of mynoglenines and lateral sulci (e.g. Bathyphantes) evolved independently but glandular pores in the prosoma proliferated once. The contribution of different character partitions and their sensitivity to changes in traditional analytical parameters is explored and quantified. ,© The Willi Hennig Society 2009. [source]