title: Comparative population genetics of the immunity gene, Relish: is adaptive evolution idiosyncratic?
abstract: The frequency of adaptive evolution acting on common loci in distant lineages remains an outstanding question in evolutionary biology. We asked whether the immunity factor, Relish, a gene with a history of directional selection in Drosophila simulans, shows evidence of a similar selective history in other Drosophila species. We found only weak evidence of recurrent adaptive protein evolution at the Relish locus in three sister species pairs, suggesting that this key component of the insect immune system has an idiosyncratic evolutionary history in Drosophila.
authors.affiliation: Center for Population Biology, University of California at Davis, Davis, California, United States of America. mialevine@ucdavis.edu
authors.forename: Mia T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Begun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D004330:Drosophila / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005828:Genetics, Population; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D029721:Drosophila Proteins; C101626:Rel protein, Drosophila; D014157:Transcription Factors