1. A towering genome: Experimentally validated adaptations to high blood pressure and extreme stature in the giraffe
- Author
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Huazhe Si, Dan Cai, Rasmus Heller, Xinxin Cui, Yuan Yuan, Chenglong Zhu, Mingliang Hu, Wen Wang, Zhipeng Li, Chenzhou Zhang, Yaolei Zhang, Lei Chen, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Liangwei Mei, Qingjie Li, Qiang Qiu, Zeshan Lin, Botong Zhou, Guangyu Li, Yuan Yin, Yicheng Xu, Huang Jinghui, Zihe Li, Lan Zhao, Kun Wang, Chang Liu, Wenjie Xu, Tao Qin, and Jianbo Gao
- Subjects
Bone growth ,Evolutionary Biology ,0303 health sciences ,Genome ,Multidisciplinary ,Acclimatization ,SciAdv r-articles ,Life Sciences ,Giraffes ,Biology ,Adaptation, Physiological ,Mice ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Evolutionary biology ,Hypertension ,Molecular mechanism ,FGFRL1 gene ,Animals ,Research Articles ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery ,Research Article ,030304 developmental biology - Abstract
A chromosome-level giraffe genome assembly and gene-edited mice reveal molecular mechanisms underpinning its high stature., The suite of adaptations associated with the extreme stature of the giraffe has long interested biologists and physiologists. By generating a high-quality chromosome-level giraffe genome and a comprehensive comparison with other ruminant genomes, we identified a robust catalog of giraffe-specific mutations. These are primarily related to cardiovascular, bone growth, vision, hearing, and circadian functions. Among them, the giraffe FGFRL1 gene is an outlier with seven unique amino acid substitutions not found in any other ruminant. Gene-edited mice with the giraffe-type FGFRL1 show exceptional hypertension resistance and higher bone mineral density, both of which are tightly connected with giraffe adaptations to high stature. Our results facilitate a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanism underpinning distinct giraffe traits, and may provide insights into the study of hypertension in humans.
- Published
- 2021
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