Mundy Nicholas I
Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK.
Proc Biol Sci. 2005 Aug 22;272(1573):1633-40. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2005.3107.
Melanins are a ubiquitous component of plumage colouration in birds and serve a wide variety of functions. Although the genetic control of melanism has been studied in chickens and other domestic species, little was known about the molecular genetics of melanin distribution in wild birds until recently. Studies have now revealed that a single locus, the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) locus, is responsible for melanic polymorphisms in at least three unrelated species: the bananaquit, the snow goose and the arctic skua. Results show that melanism was a derived trait and allow other evolutionary inferences about the history of melanism to be made. The role of MC1R in plumage patterning is surprisingly diverse among different species. The conserved molecular basis for the evolution of melanism in birds and several other vertebrates is probably related to low pleiotropic effects at the MC1R.
黑色素是鸟类羽毛颜色中普遍存在的成分，具有多种功能。虽然在鸡和其他家养物种中已经对黑化的遗传控制进行了研究，但直到最近，人们对野生鸟类黑色素分布的分子遗传学仍知之甚少。现在的研究表明，一个单一基因座，即促黑素细胞激素-1受体（MC1R）基因座，至少在三个不相关的物种中负责黑化多态性：香蕉雀、雪雁和北极贼鸥。结果表明，黑化是一种衍生性状，并允许对黑化历史进行其他进化推断。MC1R在羽毛图案形成中的作用在不同物种之间惊人地多样。鸟类和其他几种脊椎动物黑化进化的保守分子基础可能与MC1R处的低多效性效应有关。
