Skip to main content
bioRxiv
  • Home
  • About
  • Submit
  • ALERTS / RSS
Advanced Search
New Results

The gene cortex controls scale colour identity in Heliconius

View ORCID ProfileLuca Livraghi, View ORCID ProfileJoseph J. Hanly, Ling Sheng Loh, View ORCID ProfileAnna Ren, Ian A. Warren, Carolina Concha, Charlotte Wright, Jonah M. Walker, Jessica Foley, Henry Arenas-Castro, Lucas Rene Brenes, View ORCID ProfileArnaud Martin, View ORCID ProfileW. Owen McMillan, View ORCID ProfileChris D. Jiggins
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.26.116533
Luca Livraghi
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Luca Livraghi
  • For correspondence: ll566@cam.ac.uk
Joseph J. Hanly
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
3The George Washington University Department of Biological Sciences, Science and Engineering Hall 6000, 800 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052, USA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Joseph J. Hanly
Ling Sheng Loh
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Anna Ren
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Anna Ren
Ian A. Warren
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Carolina Concha
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Charlotte Wright
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Jonah M. Walker
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Jessica Foley
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Henry Arenas-Castro
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Lucas Rene Brenes
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Arnaud Martin
3The George Washington University Department of Biological Sciences, Science and Engineering Hall 6000, 800 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052, USA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Arnaud Martin
W. Owen McMillan
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for W. Owen McMillan
Chris D. Jiggins
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
2Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Chris D. Jiggins
  • Abstract
  • Full Text
  • Info/History
  • Metrics
  • Supplementary material
  • Preview PDF
Loading

Abstract

The wing patterns of butterflies are an excellent system with which to study phenotypic evolution. The incredibly diverse patterns are generated from an array of pigmented scales on a largely two-dimensional surface, resulting in a visibly tractable system for studying the evolution of pigmentation. In Heliconius butterflies, much of this diversity is controlled by a few genes of large effect that regulate pattern switches between races and species across a large mimetic radiation. One of these genes – cortex - has been repeatedly mapped in association with colour pattern evolution in both Heliconius and other Lepidoptera, but we lack functional data supporting its role in modulating wing patterns. Here we carried out CRISPR knock-outs in multiple Heliconius species and show that cortex is a major determinant of scale cell identity. Mutant wing clones lacking cortex showed shifts in colour identity, with melanic and red scales acquiring a yellow or white state. These homeotic transformations include changes in both pigmentation and scale ultrastructure, suggesting that cortex acts during early stages of scale cell fate specification rather than during the deployment of effector genes. In addition, mutant clones were observed across the entire wing surface, contrasting with other known Heliconius mimicry loci that act in specific patterns. Cortex is known as a cell-cycle regulator that modulates mitotic entry in Drosophila, and we found the Cortex protein to accumulate in the nuclei of the polyploid scale building cells of the butterfly wing epithelium, speculatively suggesting a connection between scale cell endocycling and colour identity. In summary, and while its molecular mode of action remains mysterious, we conclude that cortex played key roles in the diversification of lepidopteran wing patterns in part due to its switch-like effects in scale identity across the entire wing surface.

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

Footnotes

  • Funding: This work was funded by a grant from the BBSRC to CJ and supported LL (BB/R007500/1); the National Science Foundation awards IOS-1656553 and IOS-1755329 to AM; a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship awarded to JJH, a Smithsonian Institution grant to WOM and a Balfour-Browne Trust studentship to J.M.W.

  • Ammended an error to Figure 2a where a hindwing was incorrectly labelled as Forewing and Hindwing. Ammended author contributions as these were incorrect in the first version. Ammended a line in the introduction (lines 86 to 89 in previous version) pertaining to dome/wash link to B. anynana. While the locus has been linked in this species, there is as of yet no published results linking specific genes.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC 4.0 International license.
Back to top
PreviousNext
Posted June 01, 2020.
Download PDF

Supplementary Material

Email

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about bioRxiv.

NOTE: Your email address is requested solely to identify you as the sender of this article.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
The gene cortex controls scale colour identity in Heliconius
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from bioRxiv
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from the bioRxiv website.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Share
The gene cortex controls scale colour identity in Heliconius
Luca Livraghi, Joseph J. Hanly, Ling Sheng Loh, Anna Ren, Ian A. Warren, Carolina Concha, Charlotte Wright, Jonah M. Walker, Jessica Foley, Henry Arenas-Castro, Lucas Rene Brenes, Arnaud Martin, W. Owen McMillan, Chris D. Jiggins
bioRxiv 2020.05.26.116533; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.26.116533
Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Google logo LinkedIn logo Mendeley logo
Citation Tools
The gene cortex controls scale colour identity in Heliconius
Luca Livraghi, Joseph J. Hanly, Ling Sheng Loh, Anna Ren, Ian A. Warren, Carolina Concha, Charlotte Wright, Jonah M. Walker, Jessica Foley, Henry Arenas-Castro, Lucas Rene Brenes, Arnaud Martin, W. Owen McMillan, Chris D. Jiggins
bioRxiv 2020.05.26.116533; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.26.116533

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Subject Area

  • Evolutionary Biology
Subject Areas
All Articles
  • Animal Behavior and Cognition (3609)
  • Biochemistry (7585)
  • Bioengineering (5533)
  • Bioinformatics (20825)
  • Biophysics (10344)
  • Cancer Biology (7995)
  • Cell Biology (11653)
  • Clinical Trials (138)
  • Developmental Biology (6617)
  • Ecology (10224)
  • Epidemiology (2065)
  • Evolutionary Biology (13639)
  • Genetics (9557)
  • Genomics (12856)
  • Immunology (7930)
  • Microbiology (19568)
  • Molecular Biology (7675)
  • Neuroscience (42182)
  • Paleontology (308)
  • Pathology (1259)
  • Pharmacology and Toxicology (2208)
  • Physiology (3271)
  • Plant Biology (7058)
  • Scientific Communication and Education (1295)
  • Synthetic Biology (1953)
  • Systems Biology (5433)
  • Zoology (1119)