Phosphorus limitation does not drive loss of bony lateral plates in freshwater stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus).

ABSTRACT: Connecting the selective forces that drive the evolution of phenotypes to their underlying genotypes is key to understanding adaptation, but such connections are rarely tested experimentally. Threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) are a powerful model for such tests because genotypes that underlie putatively adaptive traits have been identified. For example, a regulatory mutation in the Ectodysplasin (Eda) gene causes a reduction in the number of bony armor plates, which occurs rapidly and repeatedly when marine sticklebacks invade freshwater. However, the source of selection on plate loss in freshwater is unknown. Here, we tested whether dietary reduction of phosphorus can account for selection on plate loss due to a growth advantage of low-plated fish in freshwater. We crossed m

SUBMITTER: Archambeault SL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7773418 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature