Comparative transcriptomics reveals that a novel form of phenotypic plasticity evolved via lineage-specific changes in gene expression.

ABSTRACT: Novel forms of phenotypic plasticity may evolve by lineage-specific changes or by co-opting mechanisms from more general forms of plasticity. Here, we evaluated whether a novel resource polyphenism in New World spadefoot toads (genus Spea) evolved by co-opting mechanisms from an ancestral form of plasticity common in anurans-accelerating larval development rate in response to pond drying. We compared overlap in differentially expressed genes between alternative trophic morphs constituting the polyphenism in Spea versus those found between tadpoles of Old World spadefoot toads (genus Pelobates) when experiencing different pond-drying regimes. Specifically, we (1) generated a de novo transcriptome and conducted differential gene expression analysis in Spea multiplicat

SUBMITTER: Isdaner AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10589077 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature