Abstract
During speciation, sex chromosomes often accumulate interspecific genetic incompatibilities faster than the rest of the genome. The drive theory posits that sex chromosomes are susceptible to recurrent bouts of meiotic drive and suppression, causing the evolutionary build-up of divergent cryptic sex-linked drive systems and, incidentally, genetic incompatibilities. To assess the role of drive during speciation, we combine high-resolution genetic mapping of X-linked hybrid male sterility with population genomics analyses of divergence and recent gene flow between the fruitfly species, Drosophila mauritiana and D. simulans. Our findings reveal a high density of genetic incompatibilities and a corresponding dearth of gene flow on the X chromosome. Surprisingly, we find that a known drive element recently migrated between species and, rather than contributing to interspecific divergence, caused a strong reduction in local sequence divergence, undermining the evolution of hybrid sterility. Gene flow can therefore mediate the effects of selfish genetic elements during speciation.
Highlights
Speciation involves the evolution of reproductive incompatibilities between diverging populations, including prezygotic incompatibilities that prevent the formation of hybrids and postzygotic incompatibilities that render hybrids sterile or inviable
Multiple intervals on the X chromosome cause male sterility when introduced from D. mauritiana into D. simulans (True et al, 1996b; Maside et al, 1998)
Each introgressed segment was marked by two co-dominant P element insertions bearing mini-white transgenes (P[w+]; True et al, 1996a) that serve as visible genetic markers
Summary
Speciation involves the evolution of reproductive incompatibilities between diverging populations, including prezygotic incompatibilities that prevent the formation of hybrids and postzygotic incompatibilities that render hybrids sterile or inviable. Two patterns characterizing speciation implicate a special role for sex chromosomes in the evolution of postzygotic incompatibilities: Haldane’s rule, the observation that hybrids of the heterogametic sex preferentially suffer sterility and inviability (Haldane, 1922; Wu and Davis, 1993; Orr, 1997; Laurie, 1997; Price and Bouvier, 2002; Presgraves, 2002; Coyne and Orr, 2004); and the large X-effect, the observation that the X chromosome has a disproportionately large effect on hybrid sterility (Coyne and Orr, 1989; Coyne, 1992a; Presgraves, 2008) These patterns hold across a wide range of taxa, including female heterogametic (ZW) birds and Lepidoptera and male heterogametic (XY) plants, Drosophila, and mammals (Coyne and Orr, 1989; Coyne and Orr, 2004).
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