Untersuchungen am pelagischen Rotbarschbestand im Gebiet des Reykjanes-Rückens und der Irminger See im Frühjahr 1991

Seit den vierziger Jahren ist bekannt, dass in der Irminger See und nordwestlich vom Reykjanes-Rücken (ICES-Gebiet XIV b und teilweise XII) ein Rotbarschbestand anzutreffen ist, der wegen seiner pelagischen Lebensweise auch als "ozeanischer Bestand" bezeichnet wird

Cichlid biogeography: comment and review

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72313/1/j.1467-2979.2004.00148.x.pd

A Novel Role for Mc1r in the Parallel Evolution of Depigmentation in Independent Populations of the Cavefish Astyanax mexicanus

The evolution of degenerate characteristics remains a poorly understood phenomenon. Only recently has the identification of mutations underlying regressive phenotypes become accessible through the use of genetic analyses. Focusing on the Mexican cave tetra Astyanax mexicanus, we describe, here, an analysis of the brown mutation, which was first described in the literature nearly 40 years ago. This phenotype causes reduced melanin content, decreased melanophore number, and brownish eyes in convergent cave forms of A. mexicanus. Crosses demonstrate non-complementation of the brown phenotype in F2 individuals derived from two independent cave populations: Pachón and the linked Yerbaniz and Japonés caves, indicating the same locus is responsible for reduced pigmentation in these fish. While the brown mutant phenotype arose prior to the fixation of albinism in Pachón cave individuals, it is unclear whether the brown mutation arose before or after the fixation of albinism in the linked Yerbaniz/Japonés caves. Using a QTL approach combined with sequence and functional analyses, we have discovered that two distinct genetic alterations in the coding sequence of the gene Mc1r cause reduced pigmentation associated with the brown mutant phenotype in these caves. Our analysis identifies a novel role for Mc1r in the evolution of degenerative phenotypes in blind Mexican cavefish. Further, the brown phenotype has arisen independently in geographically separate caves, mediated through different mutations of the same gene. This example of parallelism indicates that certain genes are frequent targets of mutation in the repeated evolution of regressive phenotypes in cave-adapted species

cber die Ausbreitungswege sogenannter perimediterraner S\ufc fwasserfische

Volume: 24Start Page: 165End Page: 17