Caecilians maintain a functional long-wavelength-sensitive cone opsin gene despite signatures of relaxed selection and more than 200 million years of fossoriality

bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: Feb. 8, 2025

ABSTRACT Visual systems are tuned to animals’ ecologies, evolving in response specific light environments and visual needs. Ecological transitions fossorial lifestyles impose strong selective pressures favoring morphological adaptations for underground life, such as increased skull ossification reduced eye protrusion. Fossoriality may simultaneously relax constraints on other aspects of vision leading diminished capabilities. Caecilians (Gymnophiona)— specialized, amphibians—possess eyes covered by skin or bone. For years, these traits, along with the presence a single photoreceptor expressing one functional opsin gene, have been interpreted evidence limited capabilities, including an inability focus perceive color. Our results challenge assumptions: we identified long-wavelength-sensitive ( LWS ) gene 11 species caecilians spanning 8 10 recognized families. Molecular indicates that is intact transcribed at least Caecilia orientalis ). Anatomical observations from five caecilian families indicate highly organized retinae even vestigial eyes. While cone cells our study remains uncertain, putatively suggests capabilities role perception their ecology be underestimated.

Language: Английский

Dietary carotenoids enhance SWS1 expression in female western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) but do not impair their likelihood of pregnancy in the presence of male guppy

Journal of Comparative Physiology A, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: April 29, 2025

Language: Английский

Special issue: Seeing colors in nature

Vision Research, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 224, P. 108476 - 108476

Published: Sept. 3, 2024

Language: Английский