GEPHE SUMMARY
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Gephebase Gene
Entry Status
Published
GepheID
GP00002440
Main curator
Courtier
PHENOTYPIC CHANGE
Trait Category
Trait
Trait State in Taxon A
White throated sparrow - tan-striped (TS) morph - less aggressive - homozygous for the standard arrangement ZAL2
Trait State in Taxon B
White throated sparrow - white-striped morphs - more aggressive - both sexes are heterozygous and carry one copy of ZAL2m (inverted region) and one copy of ZAL2
Ancestral State
Taxon A
Taxonomic Status
Taxon A
Latin Name
Common Name
white-throated sparrow
Synonyms
white-throated sparrow; Zonotrichia albicollis (Gmelin, 1789)
Rank
species
Lineage
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Dipnotetrapodomorpha; Tetrapoda; Amniota; Sauropsida; Sauria; Archelosauria; Archosauria; Dinosauria; Saurischia; Theropoda; Coelurosauria; Aves; Neognathae; Passeriformes; Passerellidae; Zonotrichia
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon A an Infraspecies?
No
Taxon B
Latin Name
Common Name
white-throated sparrow
Synonyms
white-throated sparrow; Zonotrichia albicollis (Gmelin, 1789)
Rank
species
Lineage
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Dipnotetrapodomorpha; Tetrapoda; Amniota; Sauropsida; Sauria; Archelosauria; Archosauria; Dinosauria; Saurischia; Theropoda; Coelurosauria; Aves; Neognathae; Passeriformes; Passerellidae; Zonotrichia
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon B an Infraspecies?
No
GENOTYPIC CHANGE
Generic Gene Name
Esr1
Synonyms
ESR; ER; ERa; Estr; Estra; Nr3a1; ERalpha; ER-alpha; Esr
String
Sequence Similarities
Belongs to the nuclear hormone receptor family. NR3 subfamily.
GO - Molecular Function
GO:0042802 : identical protein binding
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GO - Biological Process
GO - Cellular Component
GO:0005886 : plasma membrane
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UniProtKB
Mus musculus
Mus musculus
Presumptive Null
Molecular Type
Aberration Type
Molecular Details of the Mutation
Increase in expression of the gene in the white-striped morph. Differential allelic expression in heterozygotes.
Experimental Evidence
Main Reference
Authors
Merritt JR; Grogan KE; Zinzow-Kramer WM; Sun D; Ortlund EA; Yi SV; Maney DL
Abstract
Behavioral evolution relies on genetic changes, yet few behaviors can be traced to specific genetic sequences in vertebrates. Here we provide experimental evidence showing that differentiation of a single gene has contributed to the evolution of divergent behavioral phenotypes in the white-throated sparrow, a common backyard songbird. In this species, a series of chromosomal inversions has formed a supergene that segregates with an aggressive phenotype. The supergene has captured ESR1, the gene that encodes estrogen receptor α (ERα); as a result, this gene is accumulating changes that now distinguish the supergene allele from the standard allele. Our results show that in birds of the more aggressive phenotype, ERα knockdown caused a phenotypic change to that of the less aggressive phenotype. We next showed that in a free-living population, aggression is predicted by allelic imbalance favoring the supergene allele. Finally, we identified cis-regulatory features, both genetic and epigenetic, that explain the allelic imbalance. This work provides a rare illustration of how genotypic divergence has led to behavioral phenotypic divergence in a vertebrate.
Additional References
RELATED GEPHE
Related Genes
No matches found.
Related Haplotypes
No matches found.
EXTERNAL LINKS
COMMENTS
@SuperGene @Inversion @Epimutation - cis-regulation that is attributable to both genetic and epigenetic factors
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