Evolution of Threat Response-related Polymorphisms at the Locus in Callitrichid Primates

Overview

Journal Biol Lett

Specialty Biology

Date 2024 Jul 16

PMID 39013428

Authors

Hanlu Twyman

India Heywood

Marilia Barros

Jorge Zeredo

Nicholas I Mundy

Andrea M Santangelo

Affiliations

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Abstract

Variation in an upstream repetitive region at the locus, which encodes the serotonin transporter, is associated with anxiety-related behaviour in a few primate species, including humans and rhesus macaques, and has been suggested to be related to ecological adaptability among macaques. In this study, we investigate evolution of polymorphisms associated with anxiety-related behaviour in common marmosets (). Assaying variation in the repeat region across 14 species in eight genera of callitrichid primates (marmosets and tamarins), we find large interspecific variation in the number of repeats present (24-43). The black tufted-ear marmoset () has sequence polymorphisms similar to those found in the common marmoset, which is its sister species, and no other species has intraspecific variation at these sites. We conclude that, similar to humans and macaques, the functional polymorphism at in common marmosets has a recent evolutionary origin, and that the anxiety-related allele is evolutionarily derived. Common/black tufted-ear marmosets and rhesus/bonnet macaques share high ecological adaptability and behavioural flexibility that we propose may be related to the maintenance of the polymorphism.

Citing Articles

Evolution of threat response-related polymorphisms at the locus in callitrichid primates.

Twyman H, Heywood I, Barros M, Zeredo J, Mundy N, Santangelo A Biol Lett. 2024; 20(7):20240024.

PMID: 39013428 PMC: 11251774. DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0024.

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