Evidence for positive selection in the gene fruitless in Anastrepha fruit flies.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Many genes involved in the sex determining cascade have indicated signals of positive selection and rapid evolution across different species. Even though fruitless is an important gene involved mostly in several aspects of male courtship behavior, the few studies so far have explained its high rates of evolution by relaxed selective constraints. This would indicate that a large portion of this gene has evolved neutrally, contrary to what has been observed for other genes in the sex cascade.

Results

Here we test whether the fruitless gene has evolved neutrally or under positive selection in species of Anastrepha (Tephritidae: Diptera) using two different approaches, a long-term evolutionary analysis and a populational genetic data analysis. The first analysis was p

SUBMITTER: Sobrinho IS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2958917 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature