Swaminathan Amruta, Kenzior Alexander, Price Andrew, Li Hua, McCoin Colin, Hintermann Aurélie, Weaver Kyle, Morris NatiCia, Keene Alex C, Rohner Nicolas
Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA.
Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS 66160, USA.
iScience. 2025 Jun 12;28(7):112874. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2025.112874. eCollection 2025 Jul 18.
Independent lineages showing similar phenotypic traits can use different genetic paths to achieve the same phenotypic outcome. Instances of such convergence at the genotypic level, however, remain underexplored. In this study, we generated and used a homozygous knock-in mouse model to characterize a previously identified mutation, CRY1 R263Q, that has repeatedly evolved in a highly conserved protein domain across lineages adapted to caves and subterranean environments. Indirect calorimetry experiments revealed that the mutation alters circadian patterns of energy expenditure, locomotor activity, and feeding behaviors in the dark phase, but no further metabolic phenotypes. We also found that the mutation causes the aberrant expression of canonical circadian and metabolic genes in the liver, consistent with circadian clock and metabolic dysregulation reported in subterranean dwellers, which may be adaptive in such environments. Our work highlights the capacity for selection to drive repeated phenotypic evolution through repetitions of the same underlying genetic change.
表现出相似表型特征的独立谱系可以通过不同的遗传路径实现相同的表型结果。然而,这种在基因型水平上的趋同实例仍未得到充分研究。在本研究中,我们构建并使用了一种纯合敲入小鼠模型,以表征先前鉴定出的一种突变CRY1 R263Q,该突变在适应洞穴和地下环境的多个谱系中,于一个高度保守的蛋白质结构域中反复进化。间接量热法实验表明,该突变改变了能量消耗、运动活动以及黑暗阶段进食行为的昼夜节律模式,但未发现进一步的代谢表型。我们还发现,该突变导致肝脏中经典昼夜节律和代谢基因的异常表达,这与地下生物中报道的昼夜节律钟和代谢失调一致,这种失调在这样的环境中可能具有适应性。我们的工作突出了选择通过相同潜在遗传变化的重复来驱动重复表型进化的能力。