| Title: | "Divergence of species-specific protein sex pheromone blends in two related, nonhybridizing newts (Salamandridae)" |
| Author(s): | Treer D; Maex M; Van Bocxlaer I; Proost P; Bossuyt F; |
| Address: | "Amphibian Evolution Lab, Biology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Brussels, Belgium. Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Rega Institute, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (K.U. Leuven), Leuven, Belgium" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1365-294X (Electronic) 0962-1083 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "In animals that use chemical communication during courtship and reproduction, speciation is often associated with divergence of their sex pheromones. In multicomponent pheromone systems, divergence can be obtained either by adding or deleting components, or by altering the relative contribution of individual components to the mixture. Protein pheromone systems can additionally evolve by amino acid sequence divergence to produce pheromones with a species-specific effect. The sodefrin precursor-like factor (SPF) pheromone system, a blend of proteins that essentially enhances receptivity in salamanders, has had a long and dynamic evolution of gene duplications, but the mechanisms that govern interspecific divergence and the role they play in reproductive isolation remain elusive. Here, we use transcriptomics and proteomics to characterize the SPF protein repertoire of the alpine newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris), and compare it to the previously identified repertoire of SPF proteins of the palmate newt (Lissotriton helveticus), a related but nonhybridizing species. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses indicate that, despite the availability of multiple SPF gene copies, both species predominantly express the same subset of orthologs. Our study demonstrates that species specificity in the SPF protein pheromone system can be established by gradual sequence divergence of the same set of proteins alone" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Evolution, Molecular Female Genetic Variation/*genetics Male *Phylogeny Proteins/genetics Salamandridae/*genetics/physiology Sex Attractants/*genetics Sexual Behavior, Animal Species Specificity chemical communication protein pheromone salamander;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineTreer, Dag Maex, Margo Van Bocxlaer, Ines Proost, Paul Bossuyt, Franky eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2017/11/01 Mol Ecol. 2018 Jan; 27(2):508-519. doi: 10.1111/mec.14398. Epub 2017 Nov 18" |
