Developmental mechanisms of stripe patterns in rodents

Ricardo Mallarino, Corneliu Henegar, Mercedes Mirasierra, Marie Manceau, Carsten Schradin, Mario Vallejo, Slobodan Beronja, Gregory S. Barsh and Hopi E. Hoekstra ()
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Ricardo Mallarino: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University
Corneliu Henegar: HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology
Mercedes Mirasierra: Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Alberto Sols (CSIC/UAM) and Ciber de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (Ciberdem)
Marie Manceau: Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Biology, Collège de France
Carsten Schradin: Université de Strasbourg
Mario Vallejo: Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Alberto Sols (CSIC/UAM) and Ciber de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (Ciberdem)
Slobodan Beronja: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Gregory S. Barsh: HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology
Hopi E. Hoekstra: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University

Nature, 2016, vol. 539, issue 7630, 518-523

Abstract: Abstract Mammalian colour patterns are among the most recognizable characteristics found in nature and can have a profound impact on fitness. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the formation and subsequent evolution of these patterns. Here we show that, in the African striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio), periodic dorsal stripes result from underlying differences in melanocyte maturation, which give rise to spatial variation in hair colour. We identify the transcription factor ALX3 as a regulator of this process. In embryonic dorsal skin, patterned expression of Alx3 precedes pigment stripes and acts to directly repress Mitf, a master regulator of melanocyte differentiation, thereby giving rise to light-coloured hair. Moreover, Alx3 is upregulated in the light stripes of chipmunks, which have independently evolved a similar dorsal pattern. Our results show a previously undescribed mechanism for modulating spatial variation in hair colour and provide insights into how phenotypic novelty evolves.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1038/nature20109

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