Gallant, Jason R.Imhoff, Vance E.Martin, ArnaudSavage, Wesley K.Chamberlain, Nicola L.Pote, Ben L.Peterson, ChelseaSmith, Gabriella E.Evans, BenjaminReed, Robert D.Kronforst, Marcus R.Mullen, Sean P.2021-08-242021-08-242014-09-01Jason R Gallant, Vance E Imhoff, Arnaud Martin, Wesley K Savage, Nicola L Chamberlain, Ben L Pote, Chelsea Peterson, Gabriella E Smith, Benjamin Evans, Robert D Reed, Marcus R Kronforst, Sean P Mullen. 2014. "Ancient homology underlies adaptive mimetic diversity across butterflies." NATURE COMMUNICATIONS, Volume 5, pp. ? - ? (10). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms58172041-1723https://hdl.handle.net/2144/42940Convergent evolution provides a rare, natural experiment with which to test the predictability of adaptation at the molecular level. Little is known about the molecular basis of convergence over macro-evolutionary timescales. Here we use a combination of positional cloning, population genomic resequencing, association mapping and developmental data to demonstrate that positionally orthologous nucleotide variants in the upstream region of the same gene, WntA, are responsible for parallel mimetic variation in two butterfly lineages that diverged >65 million years ago. Furthermore, characterization of spatial patterns of WntA expression during development suggests that alternative regulatory mechanisms underlie wing pattern variation in each system. Taken together, our results reveal a strikingly predictable molecular basis for phenotypic convergence over deep evolutionary time.10 pagesen-USThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Science & technologyMultidisciplinary sciencesDNA-sequencing dataPhenotypic convergenceGenetic evolutionDiversificationPigmentationGenerationPatternWinglessMimicryColorAnimalsBiological evolutionButterfliesEvolution, molecularGene expression regulation, developmentalGenes, insectGenetic variationGenomePhenotypePigmentationSequence homology, nucleic acidWings, animalWnt proteinsArticle10.1038/ncomms581740202