No Signs of Adaptations for High Flight Intensity in the Mitochondrial Genome of Birds.

ABSTRACT: Mitochondrial genomes are expected to show adaptations for optimizing aerobic respiration in birds that make intense use of flight. However, there is limited empirical evidence of such a relationship. We here examine correlates of several mitochondrial genome characteristics and flight use across a diverse sample of 597 bird species. We developed an index of flight use intensity that ranged from 0 in flightless species to 9 in migratory hummingbirds and examined its association with nucleobase composition, amino acid class composition, and amino acid site allelic variation using phylogenetic comparative methods. We found no evidence of mitochondrial genome adaptations to flight intensity. Neither nucleotide composition nor amino acid properties showed consistent patterns related to flight

SUBMITTER: Claramunt S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10563790 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature