engleski

The loss of pigmentation in cave-dwelling animals

One of the hallmarks of adaptations to caves is the loss of pigmentation. However, molecular and evolutionary mechanisms involved are largely unknown and a matter of contentious debate. We have developed tools that shed light on mechanisms of the complete loss of melanin pigmentation in diverse cave adapted organisms. In addition, we tested several hypotheses aiming to explain causes of pigmentation loss in the cave environment using the model system, Mexican tetra Astyanax mexicanus. Our results show a broad convergence of albinism at the molecular level where organisms from diverse phyla: vertebrates, arthropods, annelids and mollusks have a lesion in the first step of melanin synthesis pathway. We have also obtained evidence that the loss of melanin synthesis i) can contribute to energy conservation ; ii) can have pleiotropic effect on behaviors which are useful for survival in inhospitable subterranean realm and iii) is not complete in cave albino Arthropods which can still synthesize melanin as a response to an immune challenge.

albinism ; pigmentation ; pleiotrophy ; cave-adapted animal

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