Research
Molecular basis of the evolution of coat colour in primates
Primates show the greatest range of coat colour
variation of any mammalian order. In addition to differences between
species, coloration frequently varies across the body, between the sexes,
and during an individual's growth and maturation. As a start among this
bewildering array of variation, we are concentrating on closely related
species or subspecies which have gross differences in the amount of
red (phaeomelanin) and black (eumelanin) pigment, and which have little
sexual dimorphism in colour. These include the lion tamarins (Leontopithecus
- golden lion tamarin is illustrated left), howler monkeys (Alouatta),
and certain langurs (Trachypithecus).
We are using a candidate gene approach to identify genes controlling the coloration differences. One such gene is the melanocortin-1-receptor (MC1R) gene, which controls the relative amount of eumelanin and phaeomelanin deposited in developing hairs. Results show that the MC1R does not have a general role in generating red-black pigmentation differences in closely related primates. However, the MC1R is under an unusual pattern of natural selection in lion tamarins and has probably played a role in their coat colour evolution. In particular, the relatively dark coat of the golden-headed lion tamarin may well be attributable to an unusual 8 amino acid deletion in the MC1R, which has been associated with melanism in a cat species, the jaguarundi.
References
Bradley, B. J., Pedersen, A. and N. I. Mundy (2009) Blue eyes in lemurs and humans: same phenotype, different genetic mechanism. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 139, 269-273.
Bradley, B. J. and N. I. Mundy (2008) The primate palette: the evolution of primate coloration. Evolutionary Anthropology. 17, 97-111.
Haitina, T., Ringholm, A., Kelly, J., Mundy, N. I. and H. B. Schiöth (2007) High diversity in functional properties of melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) in divergent primate species is more strongly associated with phylogeny than coat colour. Molecular Biology and Evolution 24, 2001-2008.
Mundy, N. I. and J. Kelly. (2006) Investigation of the role of the agouti signaling protein gene (ASIP) in coat color evolution in primates. Mammalian Genome 17,1205-1213.
Bradley B. J., Pastorini J., and N. I. Mundy. (2005) Successful retrieval of mRNA from hair follicles stored at room temperature: implications for studying gene expression in wild mammals. Molecular Ecology Notes 5, 961-964.
Majerus, M. J. and N. I. Mundy. (2003) Mammalian melanism: natural selection in black and white. Trends in Genetics 19, 585 – 588.
Mundy, N. I., Kelly, J., Theron, E. and K. Hawkins. (2003) Molecular evolutionary genetics of the melanocortin-1 receptor in vertebrates. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 994, 307-312.
Mundy, N. I. and J. Kelly. (2003) Evolution of a pigmentation gene, the melanocortin-1 receptor, in primates. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 121, 67-80.
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