The diversity of body plans of mammals accelerates the innovation of lifestyles and the extensive adaptation to different habitats,including terrestrial,aerial and aquatic habitats.However,the genetic basis of those p...The diversity of body plans of mammals accelerates the innovation of lifestyles and the extensive adaptation to different habitats,including terrestrial,aerial and aquatic habitats.However,the genetic basis of those phenotypic modifications,which have occurred during mammalian evolution,remains poorly explored.In the present study,we synthetically surveyed the evolutionary pattern of Hox clusters that played a powerful role in the morphogenesis along the head-tail axis of animal embryos and the main regulatory factors(Mll,Bmi1 and E2f6)that control the expression of Hox genes.A deflected density of repetitive elements and lineage-specific radical mutations of Mll have been determined in marine mammals with morphological changes,suggesting that evolutionary changes may alter Hox gene expression in these lineages,leading to the morphological modification of these lineages.Although no positive selection was detected at certain ancestor nodes of lineages,the increasedωvalues of Hox genes implied the relaxation of functional constraints of these genes during the mammalian evolutionary process.More importantly,49 positively-selected sites were identified in mammalian lineages with phenotypic modifications,indicating adaptive evolution acting on Hox genes and regulatory factors.In addition,3 parallel amino acid substitutions in some Hox genes were examined in marine mammals,which might be responsible for their streamlined body.展开更多
Chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes)are one of humans'closest living relatives,making them the most directly relevant comparison point for understanding human brain evolution.Zeroing in on the differences in brain connect...Chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes)are one of humans'closest living relatives,making them the most directly relevant comparison point for understanding human brain evolution.Zeroing in on the differences in brain connectivity between humans and chimpanzees can provide key insights into the specific evolutionary changes that might have occurred along the human lineage.However,such comparisons are hindered by the absence of cross-species brain atlases established within the same framework.To address this gap,we developed the Chimpanzee Brainnetome Atlas(ChimpBNA)using a connectivity-based parcellation framework.Leveraging this new resource,we found substantial divergence in connectivity patterns between the two species across most association cortices,notably in the lateral temporal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.These differences deviate sharply from the pattern of cortical expansion observed when comparing humans to chimpanzees,highlighting more complex and nuanced connectivity changes in brain evolution than previously recognized.Additionally,we identified regions displaying connectional asymmetries that differed between species,likely resulting from evolutionary divergence.Genes highly expressed in regions of divergent connectivities were enriched in cell types crucial for cortical projection circuits and synapse formation,whose pronounced differences in expression patterns hint at genetic influences on neural circuit development,function,and evolution.Our study provides a fine-scale chimpanzee brain atlas and highlights the chimpanzee-human connectivity divergence in a rigorous and comparative manner.In addition,these results suggest potential gene expression correlates for species-specific differences by linking neuroimaging and genetic data,offering insights into the evolution of human-unique cognitive capabilities.展开更多
Research into the long-recognized‘Cambrian Explosion’of animal life(e.g.,Lipps and Signor,1992;Briggs,2015)has,in recent decades,increasingly sought to resolve the interplay between evolutionary,geochemical and envi...Research into the long-recognized‘Cambrian Explosion’of animal life(e.g.,Lipps and Signor,1992;Briggs,2015)has,in recent decades,increasingly sought to resolve the interplay between evolutionary,geochemical and environmental changes that occurred over an extended Ediacaran to Cambrian transitional interval.This wider interval encompasses several significant geological events,including large-scale glaciations,supercontinental reorganization,global marine transgression,and perturbations in oxygen levels,other isotope proxies,and UV-B radiation(summarised in Narbonne et al.,2012;Meert et al.,2016).These events occurred contemporaneously with evolutionary developments including the radiation of macroscopic eukaryotes,the appearance of the extant animal phyla,the onset of burrowing and biological sediment processing,and the evolution of biomineralization(e.g.,Kouchinsky et al.,2012;Mangano and Buatois,2016;Cunningham et al.,2017).Biological and geological phenomena are widely considered to have been linked during the Ediacaran to Cambrian transition(e.g.,Canfield et al.,2007;Sperling et al.,2013;Boyle et al.,2014;Herringshaw et al.,2017;Shields,2017),and their interaction across this interval is an area of considerable scientific interest.Stratigraphic correlation and subdivision of Ediacaran and Cambrian sections worldwide has been identified as a key objective in order to better understand the co-evolution of the Earth and life systems,and in recent years there have been substantial advances in discussions relating to this challenge(Narbonne et al.,2012;Peng et al.,2012;Landing et al.,2013b;Babcock et al.,2014;Xiao et al.,2016).展开更多
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Funds for Distinguished Young Scholars to G.Y.(grant number 31325025)the State Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC)(grant number 31630071)+2 种基金the NSFC(grant numbers 31570379 to S.X.,31370401 to W.R.)the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions to G.Y.and S.X.the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province of China(grant number BK20141449)to S.X.
文摘The diversity of body plans of mammals accelerates the innovation of lifestyles and the extensive adaptation to different habitats,including terrestrial,aerial and aquatic habitats.However,the genetic basis of those phenotypic modifications,which have occurred during mammalian evolution,remains poorly explored.In the present study,we synthetically surveyed the evolutionary pattern of Hox clusters that played a powerful role in the morphogenesis along the head-tail axis of animal embryos and the main regulatory factors(Mll,Bmi1 and E2f6)that control the expression of Hox genes.A deflected density of repetitive elements and lineage-specific radical mutations of Mll have been determined in marine mammals with morphological changes,suggesting that evolutionary changes may alter Hox gene expression in these lineages,leading to the morphological modification of these lineages.Although no positive selection was detected at certain ancestor nodes of lineages,the increasedωvalues of Hox genes implied the relaxation of functional constraints of these genes during the mammalian evolutionary process.More importantly,49 positively-selected sites were identified in mammalian lineages with phenotypic modifications,indicating adaptive evolution acting on Hox genes and regulatory factors.In addition,3 parallel amino acid substitutions in some Hox genes were examined in marine mammals,which might be responsible for their streamlined body.
基金supported by ST12030-Major Projects(grant na 2021ZD0200203)the Natural Science Foundation of China(grant nos.82072099,82202253,and 62250058)the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(2022M722915)+1 种基金the Guangxi Science and Technology Base and Talent Special Project(grant no AD22035125)Chongqing Science and Health Joint Medical Research Key Project(2025GGXM005).
文摘Chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes)are one of humans'closest living relatives,making them the most directly relevant comparison point for understanding human brain evolution.Zeroing in on the differences in brain connectivity between humans and chimpanzees can provide key insights into the specific evolutionary changes that might have occurred along the human lineage.However,such comparisons are hindered by the absence of cross-species brain atlases established within the same framework.To address this gap,we developed the Chimpanzee Brainnetome Atlas(ChimpBNA)using a connectivity-based parcellation framework.Leveraging this new resource,we found substantial divergence in connectivity patterns between the two species across most association cortices,notably in the lateral temporal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.These differences deviate sharply from the pattern of cortical expansion observed when comparing humans to chimpanzees,highlighting more complex and nuanced connectivity changes in brain evolution than previously recognized.Additionally,we identified regions displaying connectional asymmetries that differed between species,likely resulting from evolutionary divergence.Genes highly expressed in regions of divergent connectivities were enriched in cell types crucial for cortical projection circuits and synapse formation,whose pronounced differences in expression patterns hint at genetic influences on neural circuit development,function,and evolution.Our study provides a fine-scale chimpanzee brain atlas and highlights the chimpanzee-human connectivity divergence in a rigorous and comparative manner.In addition,these results suggest potential gene expression correlates for species-specific differences by linking neuroimaging and genetic data,offering insights into the evolution of human-unique cognitive capabilities.
文摘Research into the long-recognized‘Cambrian Explosion’of animal life(e.g.,Lipps and Signor,1992;Briggs,2015)has,in recent decades,increasingly sought to resolve the interplay between evolutionary,geochemical and environmental changes that occurred over an extended Ediacaran to Cambrian transitional interval.This wider interval encompasses several significant geological events,including large-scale glaciations,supercontinental reorganization,global marine transgression,and perturbations in oxygen levels,other isotope proxies,and UV-B radiation(summarised in Narbonne et al.,2012;Meert et al.,2016).These events occurred contemporaneously with evolutionary developments including the radiation of macroscopic eukaryotes,the appearance of the extant animal phyla,the onset of burrowing and biological sediment processing,and the evolution of biomineralization(e.g.,Kouchinsky et al.,2012;Mangano and Buatois,2016;Cunningham et al.,2017).Biological and geological phenomena are widely considered to have been linked during the Ediacaran to Cambrian transition(e.g.,Canfield et al.,2007;Sperling et al.,2013;Boyle et al.,2014;Herringshaw et al.,2017;Shields,2017),and their interaction across this interval is an area of considerable scientific interest.Stratigraphic correlation and subdivision of Ediacaran and Cambrian sections worldwide has been identified as a key objective in order to better understand the co-evolution of the Earth and life systems,and in recent years there have been substantial advances in discussions relating to this challenge(Narbonne et al.,2012;Peng et al.,2012;Landing et al.,2013b;Babcock et al.,2014;Xiao et al.,2016).
