RUI: Collaborative Research: Genomic and phenotypic analyses of color pattern divergence in a mimetic radiation of poison frogs

自然界中有大量的有机体呈现出鲜艳的颜色，但原因并不总是显而易见。一些动物进化为向潜在的捕食者宣传它们是有毒的(警示颜色)。不同的有毒物种可能会聚集在相同的颜色图案上，通过更有效地向捕食者投放广告，使两者都具有优势。这被称为缪勒模仿，这是一个有趣的焦点，因为它涉及多种现象，这些现象位于我们对进化过程的理解的核心。模仿的遗传基础特别令人感兴趣，因为它为了解这些关键的进化过程是如何展开的提供了一个窗口。这项研究将集中在一种毒蛙身上发现缪勒模仿的遗传基础，这种毒蛙经历了秘鲁不同地理区域的进化辐射。在每个地区，模仿毒蛙进化出不同的颜色模式(如条纹、条纹或斑点)，以模仿该地区的其他物种。这些新颜色模式的进化可能推动了模拟毒蛙种群之间的生殖隔离，导致物种形成和新的生物多样性的创造。该项目是三所大型公立大学的研究人员之间的合作努力，将有本科生和研究生以及一名博士后科学家广泛参与。该项目的成果将用于通过课堂演示、公开讲座和博物馆展示来加强K12教育。本项目专注于四个具体目标：1.通过研究不同发育阶段和颜色模式形态的差异基因表达，利用下一代测序为每个形态产生阶段特定的转录本，识别参与模拟毒蛙颜色模式发展的关键遗传因素，这些转录本将被组装起来分析差异基因表达模式。2.使用全基因组标记阵列(外显子组捕获序列)筛选过渡区样本(来自三个过渡区)，并使混合作图能够发现候选基因，从而识别导致不同形态之间颜色模式差异的原因基因(S)。3.利用多世代家系检验特定候选基因座与颜色模式的关联性。4.使用新的分析工具，测试关于过渡区以及模拟和模型之间的选择和人口统计过程的具体假设。这些互补、相辅相成的方法将共同阐明毒蛙模拟辐射中颜色模式进化和多样性的遗传基础和种群基因组学。

Nature abounds with organisms that display bright colors, yet it is not always obvious why. Some animals evolve to advertise to potential predators that they are poisonous (warning coloration). Different toxic species may converge on the same color pattern, giving both an advantage by more effectively advertising to predators. This is known as Müllerian mimicry, a focus of interest because it involves multiple phenomena that lie at the heart of our understanding of evolutionary processes. The genetic basis of mimicry is of special interest, because it provides a window into how these key evolutionary processes unfold. This research will focus on discovering the genetic underpinnings of Müllerian mimicry in a species of poison frog that has undergone an evolutionary radiation across different geographic regions of Peru. In each region, the mimic poison frog has evolved a different color pattern (such as stripes, bands, or spots), to resemble another species in that region. The evolution of these new color patterns may be driving reproductive isolation between populations of the mimic poison frog, leading to speciation and the creation of new biodiversity. The project is a collaborative endeavor between researchers at three large public universities and will involve broad participation by undergraduate and graduate students, and a postdoctoral scientist. The results of the project will be used to enhance K12 education through classroom presentations, public lectures and museum displays. This project focuses on four specific aims: 1. Identify key genetic factors involved in color pattern development in the mimic poison frog by investigating differential gene expression across developmental stages and color pattern morphs, using next generation sequencing to produce stage-specific transcriptomes for each morph, which will be assembled to analyze patterns of differential gene expression. 2. Identify the causal gene(s) underlying differences in color pattern between morphs using genome-wide marker arrays (exome capture sequences) to screen transition zone samples (from three transition zones) and enable admixture mapping to discover candidate genes. 3. Test the association of specific candidate loci with color pattern using multigenerational pedigrees. 4. Test specific hypotheses regarding selection and demographic processes in the transition zones and between mimics and models, using new analytical tools. Together these complementary, mutually reinforcing approaches will elucidate the genetic underpinnings and population genomics of color pattern evolution and diversity in this mimetic radiation of poison frogs.