The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

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The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. / Qu, Yanhua; Chen, Chunhai; Chen, Xiumin; Hao, Yan; She, Huishang; Wang, Mengxia; Ericson, Per G. P.; Lin, Haiyan; Cai, Tianlong; Song, Gang; Jia, Chenxi; Chen, Chunyan; Zhang, Hailin; Li, Jiang; Liang, Liping; Wu, Tianyu; Zhao, Jinyang; Gao, Qiang; Zhang, Guojie; Zhai, Weiwei; Zhang, Chi; Zhang, Yong E.; Lei, Fumin.

In: PNAS, Vol. 118, No. 13, e2012398118, 2021.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Harvard

Qu, Y, Chen, C, Chen, X, Hao, Y, She, H, Wang, M, Ericson, PGP, Lin, H, Cai, T, Song, G, Jia, C, Chen, C, Zhang, H, Li, J, Liang, L, Wu, T, Zhao, J, Gao, Q, Zhang, G, Zhai, W, Zhang, C, Zhang, YE & Lei, F 2021, 'The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau', PNAS, vol. 118, no. 13, e2012398118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2012398118

APA

Qu, Y., Chen, C., Chen, X., Hao, Y., She, H., Wang, M., Ericson, P. G. P., Lin, H., Cai, T., Song, G., Jia, C., Chen, C., Zhang, H., Li, J., Liang, L., Wu, T., Zhao, J., Gao, Q., Zhang, G., ... Lei, F. (2021). The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. PNAS, 118(13), [e2012398118]. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2012398118

Vancouver

Qu Y, Chen C, Chen X, Hao Y, She H, Wang M et al. The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. PNAS. 2021;118(13). e2012398118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2012398118

Author

Qu, Yanhua ; Chen, Chunhai ; Chen, Xiumin ; Hao, Yan ; She, Huishang ; Wang, Mengxia ; Ericson, Per G. P. ; Lin, Haiyan ; Cai, Tianlong ; Song, Gang ; Jia, Chenxi ; Chen, Chunyan ; Zhang, Hailin ; Li, Jiang ; Liang, Liping ; Wu, Tianyu ; Zhao, Jinyang ; Gao, Qiang ; Zhang, Guojie ; Zhai, Weiwei ; Zhang, Chi ; Zhang, Yong E. ; Lei, Fumin. / The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. In: PNAS. 2021 ; Vol. 118, No. 13.

Bibtex

@article{a67693725ce4407e9317403a186a3bad,
title = "The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau",
abstract = "Species in a shared environment tend to evolve similar adaptations under the influence of their phylogenetic context. Using snowfinches, a monophyletic group of passerine birds (Passeridae), we study the relative roles of ancestral and species-specific adaptations to an extreme high-elevation environment, the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. Our ancestral trait reconstruction shows that the ancestral snowfinch occupied high elevations and had a larger body mass than most nonsnowfinches in Passeridae. Subsequently, this phenotypic adaptation diversified in the descendant species. By comparing high-quality genomes from representatives of the three phylogenetic lineages, we find that about 95% of genes under positive selection in the descendant species are different from those in the ancestor. Consistently, the biological functions enriched for these species differ from those of their ancestor to various degrees (semantic similarity values ranging from 0.27 to 0.5), suggesting that the three descendant species have evolved divergently from the initial adaptation in their common ancestor. Using a functional assay to a highly selective gene, DTL, we demonstrate that the nonsynonymous substitutions in the ancestor and descendant species have improved the repair capacity of ultraviolet-induced DNA damage. The repair kinetics of the DTL gene shows a twofold to fourfold variation across the ancestor and the descendants. Collectively, this study reveals an exceptional case of adaptive evolution to high-elevation environments, an evolutionary process with an initial adaptation in the common ancestor followed by adaptive diversification of the descendant species.",
keywords = "Common ancestry, Comparative genomics, DTL, High-elevation adaptations, Snowfinches",
author = "Yanhua Qu and Chunhai Chen and Xiumin Chen and Yan Hao and Huishang She and Mengxia Wang and Ericson, {Per G. P.} and Haiyan Lin and Tianlong Cai and Gang Song and Chenxi Jia and Chunyan Chen and Hailin Zhang and Jiang Li and Liping Liang and Tianyu Wu and Jinyang Zhao and Qiang Gao and Guojie Zhang and Weiwei Zhai and Chi Zhang and Zhang, {Yong E.} and Fumin Lei",
year = "2021",
doi = "10.1073/pnas.2012398118",
language = "English",
volume = "118",
journal = "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America",
issn = "0027-8424",
publisher = "The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America",
number = "13",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - The evolution of ancestral and species-specific adaptations in snowfinches at the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

AU - Qu, Yanhua

AU - Chen, Chunhai

AU - Chen, Xiumin

AU - Hao, Yan

AU - She, Huishang

AU - Wang, Mengxia

AU - Ericson, Per G. P.

AU - Lin, Haiyan

AU - Cai, Tianlong

AU - Song, Gang

AU - Jia, Chenxi

AU - Chen, Chunyan

AU - Zhang, Hailin

AU - Li, Jiang

AU - Liang, Liping

AU - Wu, Tianyu

AU - Zhao, Jinyang

AU - Gao, Qiang

AU - Zhang, Guojie

AU - Zhai, Weiwei

AU - Zhang, Chi

AU - Zhang, Yong E.

AU - Lei, Fumin

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - Species in a shared environment tend to evolve similar adaptations under the influence of their phylogenetic context. Using snowfinches, a monophyletic group of passerine birds (Passeridae), we study the relative roles of ancestral and species-specific adaptations to an extreme high-elevation environment, the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. Our ancestral trait reconstruction shows that the ancestral snowfinch occupied high elevations and had a larger body mass than most nonsnowfinches in Passeridae. Subsequently, this phenotypic adaptation diversified in the descendant species. By comparing high-quality genomes from representatives of the three phylogenetic lineages, we find that about 95% of genes under positive selection in the descendant species are different from those in the ancestor. Consistently, the biological functions enriched for these species differ from those of their ancestor to various degrees (semantic similarity values ranging from 0.27 to 0.5), suggesting that the three descendant species have evolved divergently from the initial adaptation in their common ancestor. Using a functional assay to a highly selective gene, DTL, we demonstrate that the nonsynonymous substitutions in the ancestor and descendant species have improved the repair capacity of ultraviolet-induced DNA damage. The repair kinetics of the DTL gene shows a twofold to fourfold variation across the ancestor and the descendants. Collectively, this study reveals an exceptional case of adaptive evolution to high-elevation environments, an evolutionary process with an initial adaptation in the common ancestor followed by adaptive diversification of the descendant species.

AB - Species in a shared environment tend to evolve similar adaptations under the influence of their phylogenetic context. Using snowfinches, a monophyletic group of passerine birds (Passeridae), we study the relative roles of ancestral and species-specific adaptations to an extreme high-elevation environment, the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. Our ancestral trait reconstruction shows that the ancestral snowfinch occupied high elevations and had a larger body mass than most nonsnowfinches in Passeridae. Subsequently, this phenotypic adaptation diversified in the descendant species. By comparing high-quality genomes from representatives of the three phylogenetic lineages, we find that about 95% of genes under positive selection in the descendant species are different from those in the ancestor. Consistently, the biological functions enriched for these species differ from those of their ancestor to various degrees (semantic similarity values ranging from 0.27 to 0.5), suggesting that the three descendant species have evolved divergently from the initial adaptation in their common ancestor. Using a functional assay to a highly selective gene, DTL, we demonstrate that the nonsynonymous substitutions in the ancestor and descendant species have improved the repair capacity of ultraviolet-induced DNA damage. The repair kinetics of the DTL gene shows a twofold to fourfold variation across the ancestor and the descendants. Collectively, this study reveals an exceptional case of adaptive evolution to high-elevation environments, an evolutionary process with an initial adaptation in the common ancestor followed by adaptive diversification of the descendant species.

KW - Common ancestry

KW - Comparative genomics

KW - DTL

KW - High-elevation adaptations

KW - Snowfinches

U2 - 10.1073/pnas.2012398118

DO - 10.1073/pnas.2012398118

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 33753478

AN - SCOPUS:85102976000

VL - 118

JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

SN - 0027-8424

IS - 13

M1 - e2012398118

ER -

ID: 260749724