Centre for Palaeogenetics, Svante Arrhenius väg 20C, Stockholm 10691, Sweden; Department of Bioinformatics and Genetics, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Box 50007, Stockholm 10405, Sweden; Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm 10691, Sweden.
Centre for Palaeogenetics, Svante Arrhenius väg 20C, Stockholm 10691, Sweden; Department of Bioinformatics and Genetics, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Box 50007, Stockholm 10405, Sweden; Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm 10691, Sweden.
Curr Biol. 2020 Oct 5;30(19):3871-3879.e7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.046. Epub 2020 Aug 13.
Ancient DNA has significantly improved our understanding of the evolution and population history of extinct megafauna. However, few studies have used complete ancient genomes to examine species responses to climate change prior to extinction. The woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis) was a cold-adapted megaherbivore widely distributed across northern Eurasia during the Late Pleistocene and became extinct approximately 14 thousand years before present (ka BP). While humans and climate change have been proposed as potential causes of extinction [1-3], knowledge is limited on how the woolly rhinoceros was impacted by human arrival and climatic fluctuations [2]. Here, we use one complete nuclear genome and 14 mitogenomes to investigate the demographic history of woolly rhinoceros leading up to its extinction. Unlike other northern megafauna, the effective population size of woolly rhinoceros likely increased at 29.7 ka BP and subsequently remained stable until close to the species' extinction. Analysis of the nuclear genome from a ∼18.5-ka-old specimen did not indicate any increased inbreeding or reduced genetic diversity, suggesting that the population size remained steady for more than 13 ka following the arrival of humans [4]. The population contraction leading to extinction of the woolly rhinoceros may have thus been sudden and mostly driven by rapid warming in the Bølling-Allerød interstadial. Furthermore, we identify woolly rhinoceros-specific adaptations to arctic climate, similar to those of the woolly mammoth. This study highlights how species respond differently to climatic fluctuations and further illustrates the potential of palaeogenomics to study the evolutionary history of extinct species.
古 DNA 极大地提高了我们对已灭绝巨型动物的进化和种群历史的理解。然而，很少有研究利用完整的古代基因组来研究物种在灭绝前对气候变化的反应。披毛犀（Coelodonta antiquitatis）是一种适应寒冷的大型草食动物，在更新世晚期广泛分布于北欧亚大陆，大约在 14000 年前灭绝。虽然人类和气候变化被认为是灭绝的潜在原因[1-3]，但关于披毛犀如何受到人类到来和气候波动的影响的知识有限[2]。在这里，我们使用一个完整的核基因组和 14 个线粒体基因组来研究披毛犀灭绝前的种群历史。与其他北方巨型动物不同，披毛犀的有效种群大小可能在 29700 年前增加，随后一直保持稳定，直到接近物种灭绝。对一个约 18500 年前的样本的核基因组分析表明，没有任何增加的近交或减少的遗传多样性，这表明在人类到来后的 13000 多年里，种群规模保持稳定[4]。因此，导致披毛犀灭绝的种群收缩可能是突然的，主要是由博林-阿勒罗德间冰期的快速变暖驱动的。此外，我们确定了披毛犀适应北极气候的特异性，类似于猛犸象的特异性。这项研究强调了物种对气候变化的反应不同，并进一步说明了古基因组学研究已灭绝物种进化历史的潜力。
