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Barua, A.* ; Srivastava, M.* ; Beinsteiner, B. ; Laudet, V.* ; Robinson-Rechavi, M.*

Estimates of molecular convergence reveal multiple genes with adaptive variation across teleost fish.

Mol. Biol. Evol. 43:msag015 (2026)
Verlagsversion Forschungsdaten DOI PMC
Open Access Gold
Creative Commons Lizenzvertrag
Molecular convergence, where specific nonsynonymous changes in protein-coding genes lead to identical amino acid substitutions across multiple lineages, provides strong evidence of adaptive evolution. Detecting this signal across diverse taxa can reveal adaptive variation that may not be apparent when studying individual lineages. In this study, we search for convergent substitutions in the most speciose group of vertebrates, teleost fishes. Using an unsupervised approach, we detected convergence in 89 protein-coding gene families across 143 chromosomal-level genomes. To assess their functional implications, we integrate data on protein properties, gene expression across species and tissues, single-cell RNA sequencing of zebrafish embryonic development, and gene perturbation experiments in zebrafish. We found that, on average, the convergent genes had more gene copies as compared to background sets of genes. The convergent genes were associated with diverse processes including embryonic development, tissue morphogenesis, metabolism, and heat stress response. We found evidence that convergent substitutions were more radical than nonconvergent substitutions. When analyzing the expression of the convergent genes, we found that only one-third of them were tissue-specific, while the majority were expressed across multiple tissues and cell types. Genetic perturbation data further showed that the convergent genes can affect multiple structures across diverse tissues. These results highlight the important functional roles of the convergent genes, their potential pleiotropic nature, and suggest that they may underlie the evolution of lineage-specific adaptations in teleost fishes.
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Publikationstyp Artikel: Journalartikel
Dokumenttyp Wissenschaftlicher Artikel
Schlagwörter Molecular Convergence ; Protein Evolution ; Teleost Fishes; Semantic Similarity; Evolution; Adaptation; Hsp90; Capacitor; Family; Acid; Substitutions; Pleiotropy; Genetics
ISSN (print) / ISBN 0737-4038
e-ISSN 1537-1719
Zeitschrift Molecular Biology and Evolution
Quellenangaben Band: 43, Heft: 1, Seiten: , Artikelnummer: msag015 Supplement: ,
Verlag Oxford University Press
Verlagsort Great Clarendon St, Oxford Ox2 6dp, England
Begutachtungsstatus Peer reviewed
Institut(e) Helmholtz Pioneer Campus (HPC)
Förderungen Human Frontier Science Programme Organisation