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Molecular Evolution of the Tre Recombinase
Published on: May 29, 2008
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Convergent Evolution at the Pathway Level: Predictable Regulatory Changes during Flower Color Transitions.
Maximilian Larter1, Amy Dunbar-Wallis1, Andrea E Berardi1,2
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado-Boulder, Boulder, CO.
Molecular Biology and Evolution
|June 8, 2018
Summary
Evolutionary biology explores if evolution is predictable. This study shows floral pigment evolution follows predictable paths, driven by gene expression changes in biochemical pathways, indicating convergent evolution.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genetics
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Phenotypic convergence and evolutionary predictability are key questions in evolutionary biology.
- Floral pigmentation, specifically anthocyanins, offers a model system to study evolutionary trajectories due to its known genetic basis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate evolutionary convergence at the biochemical pathway level.
- To test the predictability of evolution in floral anthocyanin pigmentation.
- To understand macroevolutionary patterns of gene expression in relation to pigment evolution.
Main Methods:
- Phylogenetic reconstruction of floral anthocyanin evolution in 28 Iochrominae (Solanaceae) species.
- Analysis of gene expression for seven key anthocyanin pathway genes.
- Phylogenetic multivariate analysis of gene expression data.
Main Results:
- Convergent losses of the pigment delphinidin were associated with coordinated down-regulation of late anthocyanin pathway genes (F3'5'h, Dfr, Ans).
- Shifts in floral hue (e.g., blue to red) correlate with altered expression of branching genes (F3'h, F3'5'h).
- Early steps in the anthocyanin pathway exhibit conserved gene expression across species.
Conclusions:
- Macroevolution of floral pigmentation demonstrates predictable evolutionary trajectories toward convergent phenotypes.
- Regulatory changes in gene expression, constrained by pathway structure and pleiotropy, drive convergent evolution.
- The study supports the predictability of evolutionary pathways at the biochemical level.
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