Genetic Basis of Adaptive Morphological Radiation in Lake Malawi Cichlid Fishes

马拉维湖慈鲷鱼适应性形态辐射的遗传基础

• 批准号: 9905127
• 负责人: Thomas Kocher
• 金额: $ 29.5万
• 依托单位: University of New Hampshire
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1999
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1999-12-15 至 2003-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9905127&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Genetic; Basis; Adaptive; Morphological; Radiation

Kocher 9905127 Cichlid fishes have undergone an extraordinary adaptive radiation into more than one thousand species in the lakes of East Africa. Key to their success has been the diversification of their oral jaws, which allows them to adopt specialized modes of feeding. Little is known about the genetic basis for these differences in jaw morphology. How many genes control the differences in oral jaw shape? Are the same genes involved in different structures of the head? What kinds of genes control the shape of the jaw? The genetic factors controlling differences in jaw morphology will be studied in a hybrid cross between two Lake Malawi species with radically different jaws. The morphology of a large family of F2 animals will be characterized and each animal genotyped for 100 DNA markers distributed across the genome. By analyzing the effects of particular marker alleles on jaw shape it will be possible to estimate the number, mode of action (additive or dominant inheritance) and chromosomal position of genes contributing to each aspect of morphology. This knowledge will contribute to the understanding of morphological diversification and its role in these remarkable vertebrate radiations. In addition, many of the genes involved in jaw development in this model system are likely to be involved in the development of jaws in other vertebrates, including humans.

Kocher 9905127慈鲷鱼经历了一个非凡的适应辐射到超过一千种在东非的湖泊。 它们成功的关键是它们口颚的多样化，这使它们能够采用专门的进食模式。 关于这些颌骨形态差异的遗传基础知之甚少。 有多少个基因控制着下颌形状的差异？ 头部的不同结构是否涉及相同的基因？ 什么样的基因控制着下巴的形状？ 控制颌骨形态差异的遗传因素将在两个马拉维湖物种之间的杂交从根本上不同的颌骨进行研究。 将对F2动物大家族的形态进行表征，并对每只动物的100个分布在基因组中的DNA标记物进行基因分型。 通过分析特定标记等位基因对颌骨形状的影响，将有可能估计有助于形态学每个方面的基因的数量、作用模式（加性或显性遗传）和染色体位置。 这些知识将有助于了解形态多样化及其在这些显着的脊椎动物辐射的作用。 此外，该模型系统中涉及颌骨发育的许多基因可能也涉及其他脊椎动物（包括人类）的颌骨发育。