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PMID: 19229325 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Turnover of sex chromosomes in the stickleback fishes (gasterosteidae).

PLoS genetics ·Vol. 5 ·No. 2 ·2009-02-00 ·Pages e1000391

Ross JA, Urton JR, Boland J, Shapiro MD, Peichel CL

Abstract

Diverse sex-chromosome systems are found in vertebrates, particularly in teleost fishes, where different systems can be found in closely related species. Several mechanisms have been proposed for the rapid turnover of sex chromosomes, including the transposition of an existing sex-determination gene, the appearance of a new sex-determination gene on an autosome, and fusions between sex chromosomes and autosomes. To better understand these evolutionary transitions, a detailed comparison of sex chromosomes between closely related species is essential. Here, we used genetic mapping and molecular cytogenetics to characterize the sex-chromosome systems of multiple stickleback species (Gasterosteidae). Previously, we demonstrated that male threespine stickleback fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus) have a heteromorphic XY pair corresponding to linkage group (LG) 19. In this study, we found that the ninespine stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) has a heteromorphic XY pair corresponding to LG12. In black-spotted stickleback (G. wheatlandi) males, one copy of LG12 has fused to the LG19-derived Y chromosome, giving rise to an X(1)X(2)Y sex-determination system. In contrast, neither LG12 nor LG19 is linked to sex in two other species: the brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) and the fourspine stickleback (Apeltes quadracus). However, we confirmed the existence of a previously reported heteromorphic ZW sex-chromosome pair in the fourspine stickleback. The sex-chromosome diversity that we have uncovered in sticklebacks provides a rich comparative resource for understanding the mechanisms that underlie the rapid turnover of sex-chromosome systems.

MeSH Terms
Animals Crosses, Genetic Evolution, Molecular Female Genetic Linkage Male Phylogeny Sex Chromosomes/genetics Smegmamorpha/classification,genetics
Authors & Affiliations
5 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Ross Joseph A
Division of Human Biology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.
Urton James R
Boland Jessica
Shapiro Michael D
Peichel Catherine L
Conflict of Interest

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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Article Info
Journal
PLoS genetics
Abbr.
PLoS Genet
ISSN
1553-7404
DOI
10.1371/journal.pgen.1000391
Published
2009-02-00
Epub
2009-00-20
Pages
e1000391
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
101239074
PMCID
PMC2638011
Subset
IM
Grants
NIGMS NIH HHS · T32 GM07270 · United States
NHGRI NIH HHS · T32 HG000035 · United States
NIGMS NIH HHS · T32 GM007270 · United States
NHGRI NIH HHS · P50 HG02568 · United States
NIGMS NIH HHS · R01 GM071854 · United States
NHGRI NIH HHS · T32 HG00035 · United States
NHGRI NIH HHS · P50 HG002568 · United States
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1000391 PMC Full Text View journal details
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