Phylogenetics, biogeography, and evolution of fishes

鱼类的系统发育学、生物地理学和进化

• 批准号: 238506-2011
• 负责人: Lovejoy, Nathan
• 金额: $ 2.33万
• 依托单位: University of Toronto
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=570436
• 关键词: Phylogenetics; biogeography; evolution; fishes

This research uses DNA sequences to reconstruct evolutionary history, with the aim of understanding how species diversify in the natural world. We focus on a group of fishes from South America, the gymnotiform knifefishes, that can produce and detect minute electrical fields using highly specialized electric organs and electroreceptors. These electric fields are used for both navigation and communication, and electric knifefishes can operate quite normally in total darkness. Also, different species of knifefishes have different electric signals, suggesting that species recognize each other using their signals. To understand how the 200 species of gymnotiform knifefishes have evolved, we are building evolutionary trees using nuclear and mitochondrial gene sequences. These evolutionary trees will be used to understand the role of geography in promoting speciation, as well as how electric signals evolve when speciation occurs. The results of this study have relevance for evolutionary biology and ecology, as well as for neurobiology, where gymnotiform knifefishes are important model organisms. By studying the biodiversity of fishes, we provide valuable data for conservation biology.

该研究使用DNA序列重建进化史，目的是了解物种如何在自然世界中多样化。我们专注于来自南美的一组鱼类，即体操刀鱼，它们可以使用高度专业的电器和电受体来生产和检测微小的电场。这些电场用于导航和通信，电刀鱼可以在完全黑暗中运行。同样，不同种类的刀鱼具有不同的电信号，这表明物种使用其信号互相识别。为了了解200种体操刀鱼如何进化，我们正在使用核和线粒体基因序列建造进化树。这些进化树将用于了解地理在促进物种形成中的作用，以及在物种物种发生时的电信号如何发展。这项研究的结果与进化生物学和生态学以及神经生物学有相关性，在该生物学中，体操刀鱼是重要的模型生物。通过研究鱼类的生物多样性，我们为保护生物学提供了宝贵的数据。