Pampoulie Christophe, Skirnisdottir Sigurlaug, Star Bastiaan, Jentoft Sissel, Jónsdóttir Ingibjörg G, Hjörleifsson Einar, Thorsteinsson Vilhjálmur, Pálsson Ólafur K, Berg Paul R, Andersen Øivind, Magnusdottir Steinunn, Helyar Sarah J, Daníelsdóttir Anna K
Marine Research Institute, Skúlagata 4, 101, Reykjavík, Iceland,
Behav Genet. 2015 Mar;45(2):236-44. doi: 10.1007/s10519-014-9701-7. Epub 2015 Jan 11.
The spectral sensitivity of visual pigments in vertebrate eyes is optimized for specific light conditions. One of such pigments, rhodopsin (RH1), mediates dim-light vision. Amino acid replacements at tuning sites may alter spectral sensitivity, providing a mechanism to adapt to ambient light conditions and depth of habitat in fish. Here we present a first investigation of RH1 gene polymorphism among two ecotypes of Atlantic cod in Icelandic waters, which experience divergent light environments throughout the year due to alternative foraging behaviour. We identified one synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the RH1 protein coding region and one in the 3' untranslated region (3'-UTR) that are strongly divergent between these two ecotypes. Moreover, these polymorphisms coincided with the well-known panthophysin (Pan I) polymorphism that differentiates coastal and frontal (migratory) populations of Atlantic cod. While the RH1 SNPs do not provide direct inference for a specific molecular mechanism, their association with this dim-sensitive pigment indicates the involvement of the visual system in local adaptation of Atlantic cod.
脊椎动物眼睛中视觉色素的光谱敏感性针对特定光照条件进行了优化。其中一种色素，视紫红质（RH1），介导暗光视觉。调节位点的氨基酸替换可能会改变光谱敏感性，为鱼类适应环境光照条件和栖息地深度提供了一种机制。在此，我们首次对冰岛水域两种生态型大西洋鳕鱼的RH1基因多态性进行了研究，这两种生态型由于觅食行为不同，全年经历不同的光照环境。我们在RH1蛋白编码区鉴定出一个同义单核苷酸多态性（SNP），在3'非翻译区（3'-UTR）鉴定出一个，这两个生态型之间差异很大。此外，这些多态性与区分大西洋鳕鱼沿海和前沿（洄游）种群的著名泛ophysin（Pan I）多态性一致。虽然RH1 SNPs不能直接推断出特定的分子机制，但它们与这种对暗光敏感的色素的关联表明视觉系统参与了大西洋鳕鱼的局部适应。
