2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Elucidation of convergent evolution of genome and metagenome of primates and non-primate mammals in terms of feeding adaptation
| Project/Area Number |
19K16241
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Review Section |
Basic Section 45050:Physical anthropology-related
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| Research Institution | Hokkaido University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
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| Keywords | 採食 / 霊長類 / 有袋類 / 単孔類 / 味覚受容体 / 腸内細菌 / ゲノミクス / 収斂進化 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Animals have extreme diverse diet characteristics. In addition to carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores as classical understanding, there are species-specific adaptations to a variety of feeding resources, such as folivores, frugivores, Exudivores, and nectarivores. Among the various animal taxa, primates, with around 500 species, have species with all of these diet types and are an important model of adaptive radiation in terms of feeding traits. Genomic and metagenomic adaptations were analyzed in primates and non-primate mammals with similar feeding traits under the convergent evolution, such as the exudivorous gut bacterial microbiome of slow loris (primates) vs opossum (marsupials) and taste receptor genes in the folivorous colobines (primats) vs. koala (marsupial). We found that there are evolutionary mechanisms shared between primates and non-primate mammals.
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| Free Research Field |
分子生態学
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
哺乳類の味覚や腸内細菌は、その種が消化・吸収・代謝できる食物に適している必要があり、実際そのように適応進化させてきた。各大陸に存在する森や草原や海で、異なる哺乳類が食性を収斂させている。味覚や腸内細菌は、それぞれゲノムやメタゲノムという形で分析することができ、今回、分子レベルでの収斂メカニズムを発見した。いまや4分の1の哺乳類種が絶滅の危機に瀕している中、ただ個体を保護するだけではなく、適応したゲノムやメタゲノムに基づいて、適応している森や草原といった生息地を保全する必要がある。そうした新しい形の「保全ゲノミクス」の実践を提供する上でも意義が高い研究となった。
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