A genetic mechanism for female-limited Batesian mimicry in Papilio butterfly.
In Batesian mimicry, animals avoid predation by resembling distasteful models. In the swallowtail butterfly Papilio polytes, only mimetic-form females resemble the unpalatable butterfly Pachliopta aristolochiae. A recent report showed that a single gene, doublesex (dsx), controls this mimicry; however, the detailed molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here we determined two whole-genome sequences of P. polytes and a related species, Papilio xuthus, identifying a single ∼130-kb autosomal inversion, including dsx, between mimetic (H-type) and non-mimetic (h-type) chromosomes in P. polytes. This inversion is associated with the mimicry-related locus H, as identified by linkage mapping. Knockdown experiments demonstrated that female-specific dsx isoforms expressed from the inverted H allele (dsx(H)) induce mimetic coloration patterns and simultaneously repress non-mimetic patterns. In contrast, dsx(h) does not alter mimetic patterns. We propose that dsx(H) switches the coloration of predetermined wing patterns and that female-limited polymorphism is tightly maintained by chromosomal inversion.
Department of Integrated Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Hideki
H
Nishikawa
Department of Integrated Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Takuro
T
Iijima
Department of Biological Information, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro-ku, Japan.
Rei
R
Kajitani
Department of Integrated Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Junichi
J
Yamaguchi
1] Department of Integrated Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan. [2] Laboratory for Morphogenetic Signaling, RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, Kobe, Japan.
Toshiya
0000000345588904
T
Ando
Department of Computational Biology, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Yutaka
Y
Suzuki
Department of Medical Genome Sciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Sumio
S
Sugano
1] Center for Information Biology, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan. [2] Principle of Informatics, National Institute of Informatics, Chiyoda-ku, Japan.
Asao
A
Fujiyama
Kazusa DNA Research Institute, Kisarazu, Japan.
Shunichi
S
Kosugi
Kazusa DNA Research Institute, Kisarazu, Japan.
Hideki
H
Hirakawa
Kazusa DNA Research Institute, Kisarazu, Japan.
Satoshi
S
Tabata
JT Biohistory Research Hall, Takatsuki, Japan.
Katsuhisa
K
Ozaki
Department of Biological Information, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro-ku, Japan.
Hiroya
H
Morimoto
Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan.
Kunio
K
Ihara
Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan.
Madoka
M
Obara
Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan.
Hiroshi
H
Hori
Department of Biological Information, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro-ku, Japan.
Takehiko
T
Itoh
Department of Integrated Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan.
Haruhiko
H
Fujiwara
D000220:Adaptation, Biological / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002080:Butterflies / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000235:genetics*; D004924:Escape Reaction; D005260:Female; D020387:Food Chain; D049750:Genome, Insect; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012737:Sex Factors; D014921:Wings, Animal / Q000033:anatomy & histology*