Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Signatures of selection in embryonic transcriptomes of lizards adapting in parallel to cool climate

Feiner, Nathalie LU ; Rago, Alfredo LU ; While, Geoffrey M. and Uller, Tobias LU (2018) In Evolution 72(1). p.67-81
Abstract

Populations adapting independently to the same environment provide important insights into the repeatability of evolution at different levels of biological organization. In the 20th century, common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis) from southern and western Europe were introduced to England, north of their native range. Nonnative populations of both lineages have adapted to the shorter season and lower egg incubation temperature by increasing the absolute rate of embryonic development. Here, we tested if this adaptation is accompanied by signatures of directional selection in the transcriptomes of early embryos and, if so, if nonnative populations show adaptive convergence. Embryos from nonnative populations exhibited gene expression... (More)

Populations adapting independently to the same environment provide important insights into the repeatability of evolution at different levels of biological organization. In the 20th century, common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis) from southern and western Europe were introduced to England, north of their native range. Nonnative populations of both lineages have adapted to the shorter season and lower egg incubation temperature by increasing the absolute rate of embryonic development. Here, we tested if this adaptation is accompanied by signatures of directional selection in the transcriptomes of early embryos and, if so, if nonnative populations show adaptive convergence. Embryos from nonnative populations exhibited gene expression profiles consistent with directional selection following introduction, but different genes were affected in the two lineages. Despite this, the functional enrichment of genes that changed their expression following introduction showed substantial similarity between lineages, and was consistent with mechanisms that should promote developmental rate. Moreover, the divergence between nonnative and native populations was enriched for genes that were temperature-responsive in native populations. These results indicate that small populations are able to adapt to new climatic regimes, but the means by which they do so may largely be determined by founder effects and other sources of genetic drift.

(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Climate, convergent evolution, lizard, nonnative, thermal adaptation, transcriptomics
in
Evolution
volume
72
issue
1
pages
15 pages
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • pmid:29143964
  • scopus:85040108015
ISSN
0014-3820
DOI
10.1111/evo.13397
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
e433e17f-096d-4dc3-aa6f-d443eea65ac5
date added to LUP
2018-01-15 09:09:36
date last changed
2024-02-13 13:31:11
@article{e433e17f-096d-4dc3-aa6f-d443eea65ac5,
  abstract     = {{<p>Populations adapting independently to the same environment provide important insights into the repeatability of evolution at different levels of biological organization. In the 20th century, common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis) from southern and western Europe were introduced to England, north of their native range. Nonnative populations of both lineages have adapted to the shorter season and lower egg incubation temperature by increasing the absolute rate of embryonic development. Here, we tested if this adaptation is accompanied by signatures of directional selection in the transcriptomes of early embryos and, if so, if nonnative populations show adaptive convergence. Embryos from nonnative populations exhibited gene expression profiles consistent with directional selection following introduction, but different genes were affected in the two lineages. Despite this, the functional enrichment of genes that changed their expression following introduction showed substantial similarity between lineages, and was consistent with mechanisms that should promote developmental rate. Moreover, the divergence between nonnative and native populations was enriched for genes that were temperature-responsive in native populations. These results indicate that small populations are able to adapt to new climatic regimes, but the means by which they do so may largely be determined by founder effects and other sources of genetic drift.</p>}},
  author       = {{Feiner, Nathalie and Rago, Alfredo and While, Geoffrey M. and Uller, Tobias}},
  issn         = {{0014-3820}},
  keywords     = {{Climate; convergent evolution; lizard; nonnative; thermal adaptation; transcriptomics}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{01}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{67--81}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Evolution}},
  title        = {{Signatures of selection in embryonic transcriptomes of lizards adapting in parallel to cool climate}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/evo.13397}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/evo.13397}},
  volume       = {{72}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}