Drosophila wing modularity revisited through a quantitative genetic approach

To predict the response of complex morphological structures to selection it is necessary to know how the covariation among its different parts is organized. Two key features of covariation are modularity and integration. The Drosophila wing is currently considered a fully integrated structure. Here,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Evolution 2016-07, Vol.70 (7), p.1530-1541
Main Authors: Muñoz-Muñoz, Francesc, Carreira, Valeria Paula, Martínez-Abadías, Neus, Ortiz, Victoria, González-José, Rolando, Soto, Ignacio M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biological Evolution
Biomechanics
Body segments
Covariance
Drosophila
Drosophila melanogaster - genetics
Drosophila melanogaster - growth & development
Drosophila wing
Evolution
Female
Genetics
Insects
Integration
Male
Modularity
Modules
Morphogenesis
Morphology
Morphometry
Multilevel
multilevel approach
proximo-distal axis
Quantitative genetics
Wings
Wings, Animal - growth & development
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Summary:To predict the response of complex morphological structures to selection it is necessary to know how the covariation among its different parts is organized. Two key features of covariation are modularity and integration. The Drosophila wing is currently considered a fully integrated structure. Here, we study the patterns of integration of the Drosophila wing and test the hypothesis of the wing being divided into two modules along the proximo-distal axis, as suggested by developmental, biomechanical, and evolutionary evidence. To achieve these goals we perform a multilevel analysis of covariation combining the techniques of geometric morphometrics and quantitative genetics. Our results indicate that the Drosophila wing is indeed organized into two main modules, the wing base and the wing blade. The patterns of integration and modularity were highly concordant at the phenotypic, genetic, environmental, and developmental levels. Besides, we found that modularity at the developmental level was considerably higher than modularity at other levels, suggesting that in the Drosophila wing direct developmental interactions are major contributors to total phenotypic shape variation. We propose that the precise time at which covariance-generating developmental processes occur and/or the magnitude of variation that they produce favor proximo-distal, rather than anteriorposterior, modularity in the Drosophila wing.
ISSN:0014-3820
1558-5646
DOI:10.1111/evo.12975