Journal
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
Volume 38, Issue 11, Pages 4884-4890Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab214
Keywords
European dogs; population genomics; lactase persistence; milk-drinking cultures
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [32000298]
- Innovative Research Team (in Science and Technology) of Yunnan Province [201905E160019]
- National Key R&D Program of China [2019YFA0707101]
- Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) [XDPB17]
- Key Research Program of Frontier Sciences of the CAS [ZDBS-LY-SM011]
- National Youth Talent Support Program
- State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of BioResources in Yunnan, Yunnan University [2018KF004]
- Animal Branch of the Germplasm Bank of Wild Species, Chinese Academy of Sciences
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Through genomic analysis, this study identified 86 unique positively selected genes in European dogs, including the LCT gene involved in lactose digestion. A mutation that increases the expression of LCT was found to enhance the ability of dogs to digest milk, supporting convergent evolution between humans and dogs in terms of diet.
Coexistence and cooperation between dogs and humans over thousands of years have supported convergent evolutionary processes in the two species. Previous studies found that Eurasian dogs evolved into a distinct geographic cluster. In this study, we used the genomes of 242 European dogs, 38 Southeast Asian indigenous (SEAT) dogs, and 41 gray wolves to identify adaptation of European dogs . We report 86 unique positively selected genes in European dogs, among which is LCT (lactase). LCT encodes lactase, which is fundamental for the digestion of lactose. We found that an A-to-G mutation (chr19:38,609,592) is almost fixed in Middle Eastern and European dogs. The results of two-dimensional site frequency spectrum (2D SFS) support that the mutation is under soft sweep . We inferred that the onset of positive selection of the mutation is shorter than 6,535 years and behind the well-developed dairy economy in central Europe. It increases the expression of LCT by reducing its binding with ZEB1, which would enhance dog's ability to digest milk-based diets. Our study uncovers the genetic basis of convergent evolution between humans and dogs with respect to diet, emphasizing the import of the dog as a biomedical model for studying mechanisms of the digestive system.
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