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Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys

Platyrrhine (New World) monkeys possess highly polymorphic color vision owing to allelic variation of the single-locus L/M opsin gene on the X chromosome. Most species consist of female trichromats and female and male dichromats. Howlers (genus Alouatta) are an exception; they are considered to be r...

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Autores principales: Matsushita, Yuka, Oota, Hiroki, Welker, Barbara J., Pavelka, Mary S., Kawamura, Shoji
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Springer US 2013
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Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3915081/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24523565
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10764-013-9705-9
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author Matsushita, Yuka
Oota, Hiroki
Welker, Barbara J.
Pavelka, Mary S.
Kawamura, Shoji
author_facet Matsushita, Yuka
Oota, Hiroki
Welker, Barbara J.
Pavelka, Mary S.
Kawamura, Shoji
author_sort Matsushita, Yuka
collection PubMed
description Platyrrhine (New World) monkeys possess highly polymorphic color vision owing to allelic variation of the single-locus L/M opsin gene on the X chromosome. Most species consist of female trichromats and female and male dichromats. Howlers (genus Alouatta) are an exception; they are considered to be routinely trichromatic with L and M opsin genes juxtaposed on the X chromosome, as seen in catarrhine primates (Old World monkeys, apes, and humans). Yet it is not known whether trichromacy is invariable in howlers. We examined L/M opsin variation in wild howler populations in Costa Rica and Nicaragua (Alouatta palliata) and Belize (A. pigra), using fecal DNA. We surveyed exon 5 sequences (containing the diagnostic 277th and 285th residues for λ(max)) for 8 and 18 X chromosomes from Alouatta palliata and A. pigra, respectively. The wavelengths of maximal absorption (λ(max)) of the reconstituted L and M opsin photopigments were 564 nm and 532 nm, respectively, in both species. We found one M–L hybrid sequence with a recombinant 277/285 haplotype in Alouatta palliata and two L–M hybrid sequences in A. pigra. The λ(max) values of the reconstituted hybrid photopigments were in the range of 546~554 nm, which should result in trichromat phenotypes comparable to those found in other New World monkey species. Our finding of color vision variation due to high frequencies of L/M hybrid opsin genes in howlers challenges the current view that howlers are routine and uniform trichromats. These results deepen our understanding of the evolutionary significance of color vision polymorphisms and routine trichromacy and emphasize the need for further assessment of opsin gene variation as well as behavioral differences among subtypes of trichromacy. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10764-013-9705-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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spelling pubmed-39150812014-02-10 Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys Matsushita, Yuka Oota, Hiroki Welker, Barbara J. Pavelka, Mary S. Kawamura, Shoji Int J Primatol Article Platyrrhine (New World) monkeys possess highly polymorphic color vision owing to allelic variation of the single-locus L/M opsin gene on the X chromosome. Most species consist of female trichromats and female and male dichromats. Howlers (genus Alouatta) are an exception; they are considered to be routinely trichromatic with L and M opsin genes juxtaposed on the X chromosome, as seen in catarrhine primates (Old World monkeys, apes, and humans). Yet it is not known whether trichromacy is invariable in howlers. We examined L/M opsin variation in wild howler populations in Costa Rica and Nicaragua (Alouatta palliata) and Belize (A. pigra), using fecal DNA. We surveyed exon 5 sequences (containing the diagnostic 277th and 285th residues for λ(max)) for 8 and 18 X chromosomes from Alouatta palliata and A. pigra, respectively. The wavelengths of maximal absorption (λ(max)) of the reconstituted L and M opsin photopigments were 564 nm and 532 nm, respectively, in both species. We found one M–L hybrid sequence with a recombinant 277/285 haplotype in Alouatta palliata and two L–M hybrid sequences in A. pigra. The λ(max) values of the reconstituted hybrid photopigments were in the range of 546~554 nm, which should result in trichromat phenotypes comparable to those found in other New World monkey species. Our finding of color vision variation due to high frequencies of L/M hybrid opsin genes in howlers challenges the current view that howlers are routine and uniform trichromats. These results deepen our understanding of the evolutionary significance of color vision polymorphisms and routine trichromacy and emphasize the need for further assessment of opsin gene variation as well as behavioral differences among subtypes of trichromacy. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10764-013-9705-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Springer US 2013-08-23 2014 /pmc/articles/PMC3915081/ /pubmed/24523565 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10764-013-9705-9 Text en © The Author(s) 2013 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/ Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited.
spellingShingle Article
Matsushita, Yuka
Oota, Hiroki
Welker, Barbara J.
Pavelka, Mary S.
Kawamura, Shoji
Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title_full Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title_fullStr Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title_full_unstemmed Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title_short Color Vision Variation as Evidenced by Hybrid L/M Opsin Genes in Wild Populations of Trichromatic Alouatta New World Monkeys
title_sort color vision variation as evidenced by hybrid l/m opsin genes in wild populations of trichromatic alouatta new world monkeys
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3915081/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24523565
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10764-013-9705-9
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