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Full-Text Articles in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Evolution Of Green Blood In New Guinea Lizards: Phylogenomics, Biogeography, And Comparative Genomics, Zachary Rodriguez
Evolution Of Green Blood In New Guinea Lizards: Phylogenomics, Biogeography, And Comparative Genomics, Zachary Rodriguez
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Non-model organisms with evolutionary novelties and complex distributions can provide valuable insight into the mechanisms underlying biological diversity. Green blood is one of the most unusual vertebrate physiologies and has repeatedly evolved in lizards from the megadiverse island of New Guinea. An unusually high concentration of the toxic green bile pigment biliverdin causes the green coloration of these lizards' blood, muscles, and bones. This dissertation uncovered the complex history of this novel trait (Chapter 2), identified protein-coding sequences that underlie green blood in lizards (Chapter 3), and explored evolutionary processes that drive genetic diversity in high-elevation lizards. To accurately trace …
Evolution Of Alu Elements In The Saimiri And Papio Lineages Of Primates, Jasmine Nicole Brown Baker
Evolution Of Alu Elements In The Saimiri And Papio Lineages Of Primates, Jasmine Nicole Brown Baker
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Alu elements are approximately 300 base pair (bp) primate specific non- autonomous retrotransposons. Alu elements, a short interspersed element (SINE), account for high copy numbers in all primate genomes. Numerous Alu element subfamilies have undergone varying degrees of activity and amplification within primates. Identification of these subfamilies has proved to be very informative in elucidating phylogenies and as phylogenomic markers. Squirrel monkeys, genus Saimiri, are one of the most well-known neotropical primates and the second most commonly used laboratory monkey. Squirrel monkey species diverged approximately 1.5 million years ago and are native to South America. Despite being well-known, there …