title: Signatures of functional constraint at Fgfr1a Genes in schizothoracine fishes (Pisces: Cypriniformes): The dermal skeleton variation adapted to high-altitude environments.
abstract: Fishes harbor a huge resource of phenotypic diversity and are useful for understanding the genetic basis of morphological variation. However, it is difficult to transfer classical genetic mapping to most non-model species. In this study, we performed a comparative sequence analysis of Fgfr1a to first interpret the evolution of this candidate scale-loss gene in 15 schizothoracine fishes with various scale phenotypes. While considerable amino acid (AA) substitutions were observed, molecular evolution analysis indicates that the overall coding regions were subject to functional constraint. We also identified extra copies of Fgfr1a in 4 scale-loss fishes and detected accelerated evolution in one AA substitution specific to these duplicates. We speculate that Fgfr1a had accumulated mutations in the ancestral lineage of scale-loss schizothoracine fishes before experiencing duplication events, which was further followed by the diversification of species. In silico mutation analysis predicted deleterious effects of the mutations while no disruptive molecular mechanism was detected. Collectively, our results highlight the important role of Fgfr1a gene in the adaptive evolution of schizothoracine fishes during their radiation in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xinyi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.affiliation: Qinghai University for Nationalities, Xining, China.
authors.forename: Xuze
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.
authors.forename: Yinfa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pang
authors.affiliation: Qinghai Normal University, Xining, China.
authors.forename: Yongtao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Animal Science Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry College, Qinghai University, Xining, China.
authors.forename: Delin
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: Key laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, CAS, Xining, China.
authors.forename: Songchang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guo
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000235:genetics*; D000531:Altitude; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002681:China; D003531:Cypriniformes / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D020440:Gene Duplication; D010802:Phylogeny; D012867:Skin / Q000033:anatomy & histology*
keywords: Fgfr1a; Schizothoracine; adaptive evolution; scale loss