Convergence and Divergence among Herbivorous Insects Specialized on Toxic Plants: Revealing Syndromes among the Cardenolide Feeders across the Insect Tree of Life.

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  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: University of Chicago Press Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 2984688R Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1537-5323 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00030147 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Am Nat Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Publication: Chicago, IL : University of Chicago Press
      Original Publication: Salem, Mass. : Essex Institute
    • Subject Terms:
      Herbivory* ; Insecta*/genetics ; Biological Evolution* ; Cardenolides*/metabolism; Animals
    • Abstract:
      AbstractRepeatable macroevolutionary patterns provide hope for rules in biology, especially when we can decipher the underlying mechanisms. Here we synthesize natural history, genetic adaptations, and toxin sequestration in herbivorous insects that specialize on plants with cardiac glycoside defenses. Work on the monarch butterfly provided a model for evolution of the "sequestering specialist syndrome," where specific amino acid substitutions in the insect's Na + /K + -ATPase are associated with (1) high toxin resistance (target site insensitivity [TSI]), (2) sequestration of toxins, and (3) aposematic coloration. We evaluate convergence for these traits within and between Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, and Orthoptera, encompassing hundreds of toxin-adapted species. Using new and existing data on ∼28 origins of specialization, we show that the monarch model evolved independently in five taxonomic orders (but not Diptera). An additional syndrome occurs in five orders (all but Hymenoptera): aposematic sequesterers with modest to medium TSI. Indeed, all sequestering species were aposematic, and all but one had at least modest TSI. Additionally, several species were aposematic nonsequesterers (potential Batesian mimics), and this combination evolved in species with a range of TSI levels. Finally, we identified some biases among these strategies within taxonomic orders. Biodiversity in this microcosm of life evolved repeatedly with a high degree of similarity across six taxonomic orders, yet we identified alternative trait combinations as well as lineage-specific outcomes.
    • Contributed Indexing:
      Keywords: Danaus plexippus; aposematism; convergent evolution; sequestration; sodium-potassium ATPase; specialist-generalist
    • Accession Number:
      0 (Cardenolides)
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20240823 Date Completed: 20240823 Latest Revision: 20240823
    • Publication Date:
      20240826
    • Accession Number:
      10.1086/731277
    • Accession Number:
      39179235