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Microinjection for Transgenesis and Genome Editing in Threespine Sticklebacks
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Developmental timing differences underlie armor loss across threespine stickleback populations.

Mark C Currey1, Susan Bassham1, Stephen Perry1

  • 1Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon.

Evolution & Development
|November 9, 2017
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Differences in stickleback armor develop from delayed or abolished trait initiation, not overall timing shifts. This developmental timing variation impacts evolvability and differentiates populations.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Developmental biology
  • Evo-Devo (Evolutionary Developmental Biology)

Background:

  • Understanding evolutionary mechanisms requires comparing ontogenetic patterns within known evolutionary contexts.
  • Selection acts on phenotypes throughout ontogeny, making developmental variation crucial for evolvability.
  • Threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) serve as a model species for studying adaptive change due to their evolutionary plasticity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the ontogenetic order and timing of locomotion and defensive traits in three stickleback populations with divergent adult forms.
  • To identify deviations in chondrogenesis and osteogenesis in derived populations compared to their ancestors.
  • To investigate the developmental basis of adaptive morphological differences in stickleback.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of ontogenetic patterns in locomotion and defensive traits.
  • Examination of chondrogenesis and osteogenesis timing in derived stickleback populations.
  • Analysis of developmental timing variations in relation to adult morphology.

Main Results:

  • Differences in adult defensive morphologies result from abolished or delayed trait initiation, not generalized heterochronic shifts.
  • Intra-population ontogenetic variation increases for certain derived traits.
  • Altered developmental timing of armor differentiates derived populations, even with similar adult lateral plate phenotypes.
  • Changes in pelvic armor ossification correlate with delayed/incomplete pelvic cartilage development.

Conclusions:

  • Adaptive evolution in stickleback involves altered developmental timing, particularly delayed or abolished trait initiation.
  • Developmental timing variations, especially in pelvic armor, contribute to the diversity of derived stickleback populations.
  • Understanding these developmental mechanisms enhances knowledge of adaptive change in model organisms.