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Primate jumping genes elucidate strepsirrhine phylogeny
Christian Roos1, Jürgen Schmitz, Hans Zischler
1Primate Genetics, Gene Bank of Primates, German Primate Center, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
Summary
Transposable elements, specifically short interspersed elements (SINEs), reveal strepsirrhine evolutionary history. This study clarifies primate phylogeny, suggesting an African origin and distinct colonization events for Madagascar and Asia.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Primate Phylogenetics
- Molecular Evolution
Background:
- Transposable elements, such as short interspersed elements (SINEs), serve as valuable markers for tracing evolutionary lineages.
- Strepsirrhine phylogeny, particularly the relationships among Malagasy and continental primates, remains a subject of debate.
- Previous phylogenetic analyses have yielded conflicting results, necessitating further investigation into strepsirrhine evolutionary history.
Purpose of the Study:
- To resolve controversial aspects of strepsirrhine phylogeny using a novel molecular marker approach.
- To reconstruct the evolutionary relationships among major strepsirrhine groups, including Malagasy lemurs and lorises.
- To investigate the biogeographic history of strepsirrhines, including their origin and dispersal routes.
Main Methods:
- Characterization of 61 short interspersed element (SINE) loci across a representative panel of strepsirrhine primates.
- Determination of SINE presence-absence patterns at orthologous loci to establish phylogenetic markers.
- Phylogenetic tree reconstruction using complete mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences and SINE data.
Main Results:
- Evidence supports a sister group relationship between Malagasy Chiromyiformes (daubentoniids) and Lemuriformes.
- Lorisidae is identified as a monophyletic sister clade to Galagidae, indicating common ancestry for African and Asian lorisids.
- A single SINE integration links the Lemuridae and Indriidae families, suggesting a shared origin of diurnal/cathemeral activity with a later reversal in Avahi.
Conclusions:
- Strepsirrhine primates originated in Africa, with subsequent single dispersal events colonizing Madagascar and Asia.
- The molecular data suggest rafting across the Mozambique Channel (late Cretaceous–middle Eocene) and a continental route to Asia (early Eocene–middle Oligocene).
- The findings provide a robust phylogenetic framework for understanding strepsirrhine evolution, biogeography, and behavioral diversification.