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Comment
. 2019 Jun 11;116(24):11570-11572.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.1906803116. Epub 2019 May 29.

On the origin and evolution of germline chromosomes in songbirds

Bengt Hansson  1
Affiliations
Comment

On the origin and evolution of germline chromosomes in songbirds

Bengt Hansson. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The author declares no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
(A) Schematic outline of the life cycle of a GRC that is transmitted via oocytes and eliminated from somatic cells and spermatids (–10). (B) A phylogeny of birds indicating the GRC of songbirds (oscine passerines) (11). (C) A possible scenario for the evolutionary dynamics of B chromosomes in general and of the songbird GRC in particular (3, 4, 11). (i) Formation of a proto-B chromosome, i.e., a harmful selfish genetic element that possesses a meiotic-drive mechanism. (ii) The B chromosome increases in frequency in the population due to the drive. (iii-a and iv-a) Selection favors the evolution of B chromosome-drive suppressors that neutralize the B chromosome (iii-a), and the B chromosome is eventually lost from the population by genetic drift (iv-a). (iii-b and vi-b) The B chromosome gains genes that are beneficial for the host (genes involved in germ-cell development) (iii-b) and increases further in frequency and eventually becomes fixed (iv-b).
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Comment on

  • Germline-restricted chromosome (GRC) is widespread among songbirds.
    Torgasheva AA, Malinovskaya LP, Zadesenets KS, Karamysheva TV, Kizilova EA, Akberdina EA, Pristyazhnyuk IE, Shnaider EP, Volodkina VA, Saifitdinova AF, Galkina SA, Larkin DM, Rubtsov NB, Borodin PM. Torgasheva AA, et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2019 Jun 11;116(24):11845-11850. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1817373116. Epub 2019 Apr 29. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2019. PMID: 31036668 Free PMC article.

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