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Related Concept Videos

Fixed Action Patterns01:06

Fixed Action Patterns

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Microinjection for Transgenesis and Genome Editing in Threespine Sticklebacks
08:51

Microinjection for Transgenesis and Genome Editing in Threespine Sticklebacks

Published on: May 13, 2016

Reverse evolution of armor plates in the threespine stickleback.

Jun Kitano1, Daniel I Bolnick2, David A Beauchamp3

  • 1Division of Human Biology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington 98109.

Current Biology : CB
|May 20, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Threespine stickleback fish in Lake Washington show "reverse evolution," with a rise in plated individuals. This rapid adaptation is linked to increased trout predation and genetic variation in the Ectodysplasin gene.

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 5, 2026

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Published on: May 13, 2016

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Published on: May 7, 2016

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Characterization Of Multi-layered Fish Scales (Atractosteus spatula) Using Nanoindentation, X-ray CT, FTIR, and SEM

Published on: July 10, 2014

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Ecology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Animals must adapt to environmental changes or face extinction.
  • Understanding rapid adaptation is key to natural and human-induced evolutionary change.
  • Freshwater sticklebacks typically show reduced armor plating.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mechanisms behind rapid evolutionary change in threespine stickleback fish.
  • To explain the observed increase in completely plated sticklebacks in Lake Washington.
  • To identify the selective pressures and genetic factors driving this 'reverse evolution'.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of fish populations in Lake Washington over the last 40 years.
  • Genetic studies focusing on the Ectodysplasin (Eda) gene.
  • Simulations to model evolutionary trajectories and selective pressures.

Main Results:

  • A significant increase in the frequency of completely plated threespine stickleback fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus) was observed in Lake Washington.
  • This 'reverse evolution' contrasts with the typical trend of armor-plate reduction in freshwater sticklebacks.
  • Genetic studies suggest standing allelic variation in the Ectodysplasin (Eda) gene facilitated rapid evolution.

Conclusions:

  • Increased trout predation, likely due to enhanced water transparency in the 1970s, is proposed as the selective pressure.
  • The study provides a novel example of reverse evolution driven by changes in allele frequency at the major plate locus.
  • Rapid adaptation in sticklebacks highlights the role of standing genetic variation in response to environmental shifts.