Genetic study of suggests extreme matrotrophy evolved only once in 24 August 2016, by Bob Yirka

an ability evolved more than once in different species, or are all such skinks related to a common ancestor? That is what the researchers wanted to know. To find out, they collected multiple samples representing multiple different species, took them back to their lab and set about reconstructing their evolutionary history via genetic study (using multilocus DNA data). They then compared their results with species obtained from other sites in and the Neotropics.

The team reports that testing suggests one likely evolutionary moment that led to matrotrophy in Africa—though they could not rule out the possibility of a second. The data also indicated that there may have been another unassociated moment in the Neotropics. Taken together, the evidence indicates Common Blue-tongued (Tiliqua s. scincoides), the likelihood that there were no more than three basking on open sandy ground. Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 moments (leading to the evolution of three sister groups) that led to matrotrophy in the three groups that make up skink ancestry (which includes 66 species). The results also showed a lot of similarity (Phys.org)—A team of researchers with Villanova between the ways mammalian reproduction University in the U.S. and associates from South evolved and placental development in skink Africa, Germany and Switzerland has found via ancestors. genetic study that extreme matrotrophy evolved just once in African mabuyine skink. In their paper More information: Margarita Metallinou et al. A published in the journal Biology Letters, the single origin of extreme matrotrophy in African researchers describe how they ventured to Zambia mabuyine skinks, Biology Letters (2016). DOI: and Angola to obtain skink samples and then 10.1098/rsbl.2016.0430 conducted DNA tests on them to create family trees which allowed them to learn more about the Abstract evolutionary history of matrotrophy in skinks. Most mammals and approximately 20% of squamates (lizards and snakes) are viviparous, Skinks are lizards with smooth bodies and short or whereas all crocodilians, birds and turtles are even absent limbs. Quite often, they look like oviparous. Viviparity evolved greater than 100 snakes. In this new effort, the researchers sought times in squamates, including multiple times in to learn more about a certain group of them—those Mabuyinae (Reptilia: Scincidae), making this group that reproduce using a process called extreme ideal for studying the evolution of nutritional matrotrophy. Instead of simply delivering their patterns associated with viviparity. Previous studies young through live birth, or by laying eggs, as is suggest that extreme matrotrophy, the support of done by most other lizards and snakes, some virtually all of embryonic development by maternal skinks provide nutrients to their embryos through a nutrients, evolved as many as three times in placenta—a form of extreme live birth. But has such Mabuyinae: in Neotropical Mabuyinae (63 species),

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Eumecia (2 species; Africa) and ivensii (Africa). However, no explicit phylogenetic hypotheses exist for understanding the evolution of extreme matrotrophy. Using multilocus DNA data, we inferred a species tree for Mabuyinae that implies that T. ivensii (here assigned to the resurrected genus ) is sister to , suggesting that extreme matrotrophy evolved only once in African mabuyine skinks.

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