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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Artículo científico |
| Language: | en |
| Published: |
bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology
2026
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| Online Access: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42039420/ |
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Table of Contents:
- Genetic analysis of bone morphometry and ivory vertebrae in threespine stickleback. Behrens, Veronica C Lee, David Wucherpfennig, Julia I Kingsley, David M Previous genetic studies of skeletal variation in threespine stickleback fish ( ) have focused primarily on striking morphological differences. Here, we examine the largely unexplored genetic architecture of internal bone microstructural variation between marine and freshwater stickleback. μCT X-ray analysis revealed differences in the porosity, bone thickness, and bone volume fraction within armor plates and vertebrae from a marine and freshwater stickleback. Quantitative trait locus mapping in F2 progeny from a marine × freshwater stickleback cross identified a significant locus on chromosome 4 influencing multiple aspects of armor plate internal microstructure. This locus overlaps the well-characterized region previously known to control armor plate number and size. Co-mapping of bone microstructure could be due to pleiotropic effects of on multiple aspects of plate development or to changes in closely linked genes including , which also plays a role in bone formation. Most bone microstructure traits in vertebrae showed weak or no genetic signal, consistent with a polygenic architecture. However, we identified a highly significant locus on chromosome 17 that is strongly associated with abnormally thickened "ivory vertebrae" that occurred in 8.4% of F2 offspring. This phenotype resembles Paget's disease in humans, and the major locus region contains , the stickleback ortholog of a human Paget's disease susceptibility gene . Together, our findings identify genetic loci underlying natural variation in bone microstructure in wild fish and reveal a candidate gene associated with a disease-like skeletal phenotype, highlighting stickleback as a model for studying both evolutionary and pathological bone biology.