Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Fontaine, Michael C.
• Pease, James B.
• Steele, Aaron
• Waterhouse, Robert M.
• Neafsey, Daniel E.
• Sharakhov, Igor V.
• Jiang, Xiaofang
• Hall, Andrew B.
• Catteruccia, Flaminia
• Kakani, Evdoxia
• Mitchell, Sara N.
• Wu, Yi-Chieh
• Smith, Hilary A.
• Love, R. Rebecca
• Lawniczak, Mara K.
• Slotman, Michel A.
• Emrich, Scott J.
• Hahn, Matthew W.
• Besansky, Nora J.

Titel

Extensive introgression in a malaria vector species complex revealed by phylogenomics

Ist Teil von

• Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 2015-01, Vol.347 (6217), p.42-42

Ort / Verlag

Washington: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Erscheinungsjahr

2015

Quelle

Science Online_科学在线

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Introgressive hybridization is now recognized as a widespread phenomenon, but its role in evolution remains contested. Here, we use newly available reference genome assemblies to investigate phylogenetic relationships and introgression in a medically important group of Afrotropical mosquito sibling species. We have identified the correct species branching order to resolve a contentious phylogeny and show that lineages leading to the principal vectors of human malaria were among the first to split. Pervasive autosomal introgression between these malaria vectors means that only a small fraction of the genome, mainly on the X chromosome, has not crossed species boundaries. Our results suggest that traits enhancing vectorial capacity may be gained through interspecific gene flow, including between nonsister species. Mosquito adaptability across genomesVirtually everyone has first-hand experience with mosquitoes. Few recognize the subtle biological distinctions among these bloodsucking flies that render some bites mere nuisances and others the initiation of a potentially life-threatening infection. By sequencing the genomes of several mosquitoes in depth, Neafsey et al. and Fontaine et al. reveal clues that explain the mystery of why only some species of one genus of mosquitoes are capable of transmitting human malaria (see the Perspective by Clark and Messer).Science, this issue 10.1126/science.1258524 and 10.1126/science.1258522; see also p. 27