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Review
. 2023 Mar 12;13(6):1033.
doi: 10.3390/ani13061033.

Evolutionary and Genomic Diversity of True Polyploidy in Tetrapods

Marcello Mezzasalma  1 , Elvira Brunelli  1 , Gaetano Odierna  2 , Fabio Maria Guarino  2
Affiliations
Review

Evolutionary and Genomic Diversity of True Polyploidy in Tetrapods

Marcello Mezzasalma et al. Animals (Basel). .

Abstract

True polyploid organisms have more than two chromosome sets in their somatic and germline cells. Polyploidy is a major evolutionary force and has played a significant role in the early genomic evolution of plants, different invertebrate taxa, chordates, and teleosts. However, the contribution of polyploidy to the generation of new genomic, ecological, and species diversity in tetrapods has traditionally been underestimated. Indeed, polyploidy represents an important pathway of genomic evolution, occurring in most higher-taxa tetrapods and displaying a variety of different forms, genomic configurations, and biological implications. Herein, we report and discuss the available information on the different origins and evolutionary and ecological significance of true polyploidy in tetrapods. Among the main tetrapod lineages, modern amphibians have an unparalleled diversity of polyploids and, until recently, they were considered to be the only vertebrates with closely related diploid and polyploid bisexual species or populations. In reptiles, polyploidy was thought to be restricted to squamates and associated with parthenogenesis. In birds and mammals, true polyploidy has generally been considered absent (non-tolerated). These views are being changed due to an accumulation of new data, and the impact as well as the different evolutionary and ecological implications of polyploidy in tetrapods, deserve a broader evaluation.

Keywords: chromosomes; evolution; genome; reproduction; vertebrates.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of autopolyploidy and allopolyploidy.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Phylogenetic distribution of polyploidy in Amphibia. Phylogenetic relationships redrawn from [34] and based on different datasets [35,36,37,38,39].
Figure 3
Figure 3
Phylogenetic distribution of polyploidy in squamates. Phylogenetic relationships redrawn from [67]. Dashed lines represent phylogenetic relationships determined by * Gamble et al. [68], ** Vidal and Hedges [69], and *** Hernández-Morales [70].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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