Large inversions in Lake Malawi cichlids are associated with habitat preference, lineage, and sex determination.

ABSTRACT: Chromosomal inversions are an important class of genetic variation that link multiple alleles together into a single inherited block that can have important effects on fitness. To study the role of large inversions in the massive evolutionary radiation of Lake Malawi cichlids, we used long-read technologies to identify four single and two tandem inversions that span half of each respective chromosome, and which together encompass over 10% of the genome. Each inversion is fixed in one of the two states within the seven major ecogroups, suggesting they played a role in the separation of the major lake lineages into specific lake habitats. One exception is within the benthic sub-radiation, where both inverted and non-inverted alleles continue to segregate within the group. The evolutio

SUBMITTER: Kumar NM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11565711 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature