Journal article
Genomic hotspots for adaptation: The population genetics of Müllerian mimicry in the Heliconius melpomene clade
SW Baxter, NJ Nadeau, LS Maroja, P Wilkinson, BA Counterman, A Dawson, M Beltran, S Perez-Espona, N Chamberlain, L Ferguson, R Clark, C Davidson, R Glithero, J Mallet, OM McMillan, M Kronforst, M Joron, RH Ffrench-Constant, CD Jiggins
Plos Genetics | PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE | Published : 2010
Open access
Abstract
Wing patterning in Heliconius butterflies is a longstanding example of both Müllerian mimicry and phenotypic radiation under strong natural selection. The loci controlling such patterns are "hotspots" for adaptive evolution with great allelic diversity across different species in the genus. We characterise nucleotide variation, genotype-by-phenotype associations, linkage disequilibrium, and candidate gene expression at two loci and across multiple hybrid zones in Heliconius melpomene and relatives. Alleles at HmB control the presence or absence of the red forewing band, while alleles at HmYb control the yellow hindwing bar. Across HmYb two regions, separated by ∼100 kb, show significant geno..
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Awarded by Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Funding Acknowledgements
This work was principally funded by a BBSRC grant (011845) to CDJ and RHf- C, and also supported by a Leverhulme Trust award (F/09364/E), a NERC grant (D00114/2), and a Royal Society Fellowship to CDJ. Funding for the H. erato BAC sequencing was provided by National Science Foundation grants to WOM (DEB-0715096 and IBN-0344705). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.