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The shape of things to come in the study of the origin of species?
Author(s) -
Rogers Sean M.,
Jamniczky Heather A.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
molecular ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.619
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1365-294X
pISSN - 0962-1083
DOI - 10.1111/mec.12695
Subject(s) - biology , sympatric speciation , reproductive isolation , genetic algorithm , ecological speciation , evolutionary biology , gene flow , natural selection , incipient speciation , sympatry , parapatric speciation , allopatric speciation , adaptation (eye) , genetic architecture , genetics , selection (genetic algorithm) , gene , quantitative trait locus , genetic variation , population , demography , artificial intelligence , sociology , neuroscience , computer science
Perhaps Darwin would agree that speciation is no longer the mystery of mysteries that it used to be. It is now generally accepted that evolution by natural selection can contribute to ecological adaptation, resulting in the evolution of reproductive barriers and, hence, to the evolution of new species (Schluter & Conte [Schluter D, 2009]; Meyer [Meyer A, 2011]; Nosil [Nosil P, 2012]). From genes that encode silencing proteins that cause infertility in hybrid mice (Mihola et al . [Mihola O, 2009]), to segregation distorters linked to speciation in fruit flies (Phadnis & Orr [Phadnis N, 2009]), or pollinator‐mediated selection on flower colour alleles driving reinforcement in Texan wildflowers (Hopkins & Rausher [Hopkins R, 2012]), characterization of the genes that drive speciation is providing clues to the origin of species (Nosil & Schluter [Nosil P, 2011]). It is becoming apparent that, while recent work continues to overturn historical ideas about sympatric speciation (e.g. Barluenga et al . [Barluenga M, 2006]), ecological circumstances strongly influence patterns of genomic divergence, and ultimately the establishment of reproductive isolation when gene flow is present (Elmer & Meyer [Elmer KR, 2011]). Less clear, however, are the genetic mechanisms that cause speciation, particularly when ongoing gene flow is occurring. Now, in this issue, Franchini et al . ([Franchini P, 2014]) employ a classic genetic mapping approach augmented with new genomic tools to elucidate the genomic architecture of ecologically divergent body shapes in a pair of sympatric crater lake cichlid fishes. From over 450 segregating SNPs in an F2 cross, 72 SNPs were linked to 11 QTL associated with external morphology measured by means of traditional and geometric morphometrics. Annotation of two highly supported QTL further pointed to genes that might contribute to ecological divergence in body shape in Midas cichlids, overall supporting the hypothesis that genomic regions of large phenotypic effect may be contributing to early‐stage divergence in Midas cichlids.