The growth factor BMP11 is required for the development and evolution of a male exaggerated weapon and its associated fighting behavior in a water strider.

ABSTRACT: Exaggerated sexually selected traits, often carried by males, are characterized by the evolution of hyperallometry, resulting in their disproportionate growth relative to the rest of the body among individuals of the same population. While the evolution of allometry has attracted much attention for centuries, our understanding of the developmental genetic mechanisms underlying its emergence remains fragmented. Here we conduct comparative transcriptomics of the legs followed by an RNA interference (RNAi) screen to identify genes that play a role in the hyperallometric growth of the third legs in the males of the water strider Microvelia longipes. We demonstrate that a broadly expressed growth factor, Bone Morphogenetic Protein 11 (BMP11, also known as Growth Differentiation Factor 11), regu

SUBMITTER: Toubiana W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8112723 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature