Leonard, C. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2018

Rampant cryptic sex chromosome drive in Drosophila

Theory predicts that selfish genetic elements that increase their transmission are prone to originate on sex chromosomes but create strong selective pressure to evolve suppressors due to reduced fertility and distorted population sex ratios. Here we show that recurrent genetic conflict over sex chromosome transmission appears to be an important evolutionary force that has shaped gene content evolution of sex chromosomes in Drosophila. We demonstrate that convergent acquisition and amplification of spermatid expressed gene families are common on Drosophila sex chromosomes, and especially on recently formed ones, and harbor characteristics typical of meiotic drivers. We carefully characterize one putative novel cryptic sex chromosome distortion system that arose independently several times in members of the Drosophila obscura group. Co-amplification of the S-Lap1/GAPsec gene pair on both the X and the Y chromosome occurred independently several times in members of the D. obscura group, where this normally autosomal gene pair is sex-linked due to a sex chromosome - autosome fusion. Investigation of gene expression and short RNA profiles at the S-Lap1/GAPsec system suggest that meiotic drive and suppression likely involves RNAi mechanisms. Our finding suggests that recurrent conflict over sex chromosome transmission has shaped widespread genomic and evolutionary patterns, including the epigenetic regulation of sex chromosomes, the distribution of sex-biased genes, and the evolution of hybrid sterility.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2017

The role of chromosomal inversions in speciation

The chromosomal inversions of D. persimilis and D. pseudoobscura have deeply influenced our understanding of the evolutionary forces that shape natural variation, speciation, and selfish chromosome dynamics. Here, we perform a comprehensive reconstruction of the evolutionary histories of the chromosomal inversions in these species. We provide a solution to the puzzling origins of the selfish Sex-Ratio chromosome in D. persimilis and show that this Sex-Ratio chromosome directly descends from an ancestrally-arranged chromosome. Our results further show that all fixed inversions between D. persimilis and D. pseudoobscura were segregating in the ancestral population long before speciation, and that the genes contributing to reproductive barriers between these species must have evolved within them afterwards. We propose a new model for the role of chromosomal inversions in speciation and suggest that higher levels of divergence and an association with hybrid incompatibilities are emergent properties of ancestrally segregating inversions. These findings force a reconsideration of the role of chromosomal inversions in speciation, not as protectors of existing hybrid incompatibility alleles, but as fertile grounds for their formation.

evolutionary biology↗