1. Analysis of Polycerate Mutants Reveals the Evolutionary Co-option of HOXD1 to Determine the Number and Topology of Horns in Bovidae
- Author
-
Louisa Gidney, Nathalie Hirter, Aurélie Allais-Bonnet, Tracy Hadfield, Coralie M. Reich, Olivier Putelat, Ashleigh Haruda, Marina Naval-Sanchez, Rachel Rupp, Ben J. Hayes, Noelle E. Cockett, Renate Schafberg, van Marle-Koster E, Cord Drögemüller, Philippe Bardou, Marie-Dominique Wandhammer, Cécile Grohs, Coralie Danchin-Burge, Denis Duboule, Fiona Menzi, Amandine Blin, Raphaël Cornette, Isabelle Palhiere, Abdelhak Boukadiri, Marie-Christine Deloche, Johannes A. Lenstra, Rose-Marie Arbogast, Daniele Bigi, Ben Jemaa S, Eric Pailhoux, Stache M, Julia M. Paris, J. Zakany, Aurélie Hintermann, Julie Rivière, Cécile Donnadieu, Aurélien Capitan, Diane Esquerre, Joséphine Lesur, Ivica Medugorac, Alain Pinton, Ockert Greyvenstein, Gjoko Bunevski, Hedges J, David G. Riley, James Kijas, Gwenola Tosser-Klopp, and Claude Guintard
- Subjects
biology ,Evolutionary biology ,Mutant ,Locus (genetics) ,Bovidae ,Morphogenetic field ,Allele ,biology.organism_classification ,Haploinsufficiency ,Gene ,Bilateria - Abstract
In the course of evolution, pecorans (i.e. higher ruminants) developed a remarkable diversity of osseous cranial appendages, collectively referred to as ‘headgear’, which likely share the same origin and genetic basis. However, the nature and function of the genetic determinants underlying their number and position remain elusive. Jacob and other rare populations of sheep and goats, are characterized by polyceraty, the presence of more than two horns. Here, we characterize distinct POLYCERATE alleles in each species, both associated with defective HOXD1 function. We show that haploinsufficiency at this locus results in the splitting of horn bud primordia, likely following the abnormal extension of an initial morphogenetic field. These results highlight the key role played by this gene in headgear patterning and illustrate the evolutionary co-option of a gene involved in the early development of bilateria to properly fix the position and number of these distinctive organs of Bovidae.
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF