GENETICS OF BRIGHT COLORS IN REPTILES

The international team led by CIBIO-InBIO and the Uppsala University studied a large number of Wall lizard´s genomes and combined biochemical and microscopic analysis to understand how the great diversity of color patterns can be found even in only one population. The results show that mutations that arose million years ago, restricted to only two genes, are responsible for the great variation in color patterns and that natural selection and hybridization play an important role in the evolution of bright colors in reptiles.

The article was published in the journal PNAS and attracted national and international media attention.

To know more about this topic, please follow the links below:

"Identificados os genes que controlam cores brilhantes da lagartixa-dos-muros" | Público | March 01, 2019 (Information available in Portuguese)
"Investigadores identificam genes que controlam cores brilhantes das lagartixas" | DN | March 01, 2019 (Information available in Portuguese)
"Two genes explain variation in color and behavior in the wall lizard" | Phys.org | March 01, 2019

"Two genes clarify variation in coloration and conduct within the wall lizard" | Infosurhoy | March 03, 2019

"Variation in colour and behaviour in the wall lizard explained!" | AryNews | March 05, 2019

To read the national press release for this study, please click here.

To access the the original article, please click here.