title: The butterfly plant arms-race escalated by gene and genome duplications.
abstract: Coevolutionary interactions are thought to have spurred the evolution of key innovations and driven the diversification of much of life on Earth. However, the genetic and evolutionary basis of the innovations that facilitate such interactions remains poorly understood. We examined the coevolutionary interactions between plants (Brassicales) and butterflies (Pieridae), and uncovered evidence for an escalating evolutionary arms-race. Although gradual changes in trait complexity appear to have been facilitated by allelic turnover, key innovations are associated with gene and genome duplications. Furthermore, we show that the origins of both chemical defenses and of molecular counter adaptations were associated with shifts in diversification rates during the arms-race. These findings provide an important connection between the origins of biodiversity, coevolution, and the role of gene and genome duplications as a substrate for novel traits.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721; Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720;
authors.forename: Patrick P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Edger
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, 07745 Jena, Germany;
authors.forename: Hanna M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Heidel-Fischer
authors.affiliation: Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, Scotland, United Kingdom;
authors.forename: Michaël
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bekaert
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, Finland;
authors.forename: Jadranka
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rota
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Age Research, Fritz Lipmann Institute, 07745 Jena, Germany; Institute for Biochemistry I, University of Cologne, 50931 Koeln, Germany;
authors.forename: Gernot
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Glöckner
authors.affiliation: McGill Centre for Bioinformatics, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 0E9;
authors.forename: Adrian E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Platts
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, 07745 Jena, Germany;
authors.forename: David G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Heckel
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16803; Department of Biological Science, California State University Fullerton, Fullerton, CA 92831;
authors.forename: Joshua P
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9668-2525
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Der
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16803;
authors.forename: Eric K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Wafula
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211;
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Biosystematics Group, Plant Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen 6700 AA, The Netherlands;
authors.forename: Johannes A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hofberger
authors.affiliation: School of Plant Biology, The University of Western Australia, West Perth, WA 6005 Australia; Science Directorate, Kings Park and Botanic Gardens, West Perth, WA 6005, Australia;
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smithson
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada T6G 2E9;
authors.forename: Jocelyn C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.affiliation: McGill Centre for Bioinformatics, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 0E9;
authors.forename: Matthieu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blanchette
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A1B1;
authors.forename: Thomas E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Bureau
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada M5S 3B2;
authors.forename: Stephen I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16803;
authors.forename: Claude W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: dePamphilis
authors.affiliation: Biosystematics Group, Plant Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen 6700 AA, The Netherlands;
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eric Schranz
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721;
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Barker
authors.affiliation: Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211; Informatics Institute, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211;
authors.forename: Gavin C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Conant
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, Finland;
authors.forename: Niklas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wahlberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, 07745 Jena, Germany;
authors.forename: Heiko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vogel
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211; Informatics Institute, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211; chris.wheat@zoologi.su.se piresjc@missouri.edu.
authors.forename: J Chris
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9682-2639
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Pires
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden chris.wheat@zoologi.su.se piresjc@missouri.edu.
authors.forename: Christopher W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Wheat
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D044822:Biodiversity; D019607:Brassicaceae / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000469:parasitology; D002080:Butterflies / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D020440:Gene Duplication; D015870:Gene Expression; D017344:Genes, Insect / Q000235:genetics; D017343:Genes, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D014644:Genetic Variation; D049750:Genome, Insect / Q000235:genetics*; D018745:Genome, Plant / Q000235:genetics*; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions / Q000235:genetics; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D019476:Insect Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins
keywords: chemical defenses; coevolution; diversification; evolutionary novelty; phylogenomics