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Genetic factors implied in melanin‐based coloration of the Italian wall lizard
Author(s) -
Fulgione D.,
Lega C.,
Trapanese M.,
Buglione M.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of zoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0952-8369
DOI - 10.1111/jzo.12242
Subject(s) - biology , melanocortin 1 receptor , melanism , melanin , lizard , gene , evolutionary biology , genetic variation , gene expression , genetics , zoology , phenotype
As largely demonstrated for a wide range of vertebrates, the melanin‐based coloration can be the effect of both mutations in the melanocortin‐1 receptor ( MC1R ) gene and of differential expression of the same gene. However, in lizards, this mechanism is poorly known and some populations exhibit a high variation of melanism. Some populations of P odarcis siculus show a gradual melanization, suggesting a case of a quantitative phenomenon rather than a qualitative one. Here, we objectively quantify the continuous colour variation by spectrophotometric analysis demonstrating that the changes in the skin reflectance are not associated to mutations in the coding region of the MC1R gene but seem to be related to a concomitant variation of expression for this gene.