Gene expression divergence recapitulates the developmental hourglass model.

First Authors Alex T. Kalinka, Karolina M Varga
Authors Alex T. Kalinka, Karolina M Varga, Dave T. Gerrard, Stephan Preibisch, David L. Corcoran, Julia Jarrells, Uwe Ohler, Casey M. Bergman, Pavel Tomancak
Corresponding Authors
Last Authors Pavel Tomancak
Journal Name Nature (Nature)
Volume 468
Issue 7325
Page Range 811-814
Open Access false
Print Publication Date 2010-12-09
Online Publication Date
Abstract The observation that animal morphology tends to be conserved during the embryonic phylotypic period (a period of maximal similarity between the species within each animal phylum) led to the proposition that embryogenesis diverges more extensively early and late than in the middle, known as the hourglass model. This pattern of conservation is thought to reflect a major constraint on the evolution of animal body plans. Despite a wealth of morphological data confirming that there is often remarkable divergence in the early and late embryos of species from the same phylum, it is not yet known to what extent gene expression evolution, which has a central role in the elaboration of different animal forms, underpins the morphological hourglass pattern. Here we address this question using species-specific microarrays designed from six sequenced Drosophila species separated by up to 40 million years. We quantify divergence at different times during embryogenesis, and show that expression is maximally conserved during the arthropod phylotypic period. By fitting different evolutionary models to each gene, we show that at each time point more than 80% of genes fit best to models incorporating stabilizing selection, and that for genes whose evolutionarily optimal expression level is the same across all species, selective constraint is maximized during the phylotypic period. The genes that conform most to the hourglass pattern are involved in key developmental processes. These results indicate that natural selection acts to conserve patterns of gene expression during mid-embryogenesis, and provide a genome-wide insight into the molecular basis of the hourglass pattern of developmental evolution.
PDF Kalinka_2010_4240.pdf (622.3 kB)
Cover Image Nature_hourglass_Cover.pdf
Supplementary Data Supplementary Data
Affiliated With Microarray DNA Facility, Postdocs, Tomancak
Selected By Tomancak
Acknowledged Services
Publication Status Published
Edoc Link
Sfx Link
DOI 10.1038/nature09634
PubMed ID 21150996
WebOfScience Link
Alternative Full Text URL
Display Publisher Download Only false
Visible On MPI-CBG Website true
PDF Downloadable true
Created By thuem
Added Date 2010-11-18
Last Edited By thuem
Last Edited Date 2015-06-04 17:53:25.693
Library ID 4240
Document ID
Entry Complete true
eDoc Compliant true
Include in Edoc Report true
In Pure
Ready for eDoc Export
Author Affiliations Complete false
Project Name
Project URL
Grant ID
Funding Programme
Funding Organisation