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Light environment change induces differential expression of guppy opsins in a multi-generational evolution experiment
journal contribution
posted on 2018-08-01, 00:00 authored by Alexandrea Kranz, Len ForganLen Forgan, Gemma Cole, John EndlerJohn EndlerLight environments critically impact species that rely on vision to survive and reproduce. Animal visual systems must accommodate changes in light that occur from minutes to years, yet the mechanistic basis of their response to spectral (color) changes is largely unknown. Here, we used a laboratory experiment where replicate guppy populations were kept under three different light environments for up to 8-12 generations to explore possible differences in the expression levels of nine guppy opsin genes. Previous evidence for opsin expression-light environment "tuning" has been either correlative or focused exclusively on the relationship between the light environment and opsin expression over one or two generations. In our multigeneration experiment, the relative expression levels of nine different guppy opsin genes responded differently to light environment changes: some did not respond, while others differed due to phenotypic plasticity. Moreover, for the LWS-1 opsin we found that, while we observed a wide range of plastic responses under different light conditions, common plastic responses (where the population replicates all followed the same trajectory) occurred only after multigenerational exposure to different light environments. Taken together this suggests that opsin expression plasticity plays an important role in light environment "tuning" in different light environments on different time scales, and, in turn, has important implications for both visual system function and evolution.
History
Journal
EvolutionVolume
72Issue
8Pagination
1656 - 1676Publisher
WileyLocation
London, Eng.Publisher DOI
Link to full text
eISSN
1558-5646Language
engPublication classification
C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journalCopyright notice
2018, The AuthorsUsage metrics
Keywords
Evolution experimentPoecilia reticulatagene expressionlight environmentopsinvisual systemScience & TechnologyLife Sciences & BiomedicineEcologyEvolutionary BiologyGenetics & HeredityEnvironmental Sciences & EcologyPoecilia reticulateGENE-EXPRESSIONCOLOR-VISIONPHENOTYPIC PLASTICITYSPECTRAL SENSITIVITYPOPULATION VARIATIONBLUEFIN KILLIFISHSEXUAL SELECTIONVISUAL PIGMENTSBEHAVIORPOLYMORPHISMEvolutionary BiologyEcology
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