Adaptation and conservation insights from the koala genome

Rebecca N Johnson; Denis O'Meally; Zhiliang Chen; Graham J Etherington; Simon Y W Ho; Will J Nash; Catherine E Grueber; Yuanyuan Cheng; Camilla M Whittington; Siobhan Dennison; Emma Peel; Wilfried Haerty; Rachel J O'Neill; Don Colgan; Tonia L Russell; David E Alquezar-Planas; Val Attenbrow; Jason G Bragg; Parice A Brandies; Amanda Yoon-Yee Chong; Janine E Deakin; Federica Di Palma; Zachary Duda; Mark D B Eldridge; Kyle M Ewart; Carolyn J Hogg; Greta J Frankham; Arthur Georges; Amber K Gillett; Merran Govendir; Alex D Greenwood; Takashi Hayakawa; Kristofer M Helgen; Matthew Hobbs; Clare E Holleley; Thomas N Heider; Elizabeth A Jones; Andrew King; Danielle Madden; Jennifer A Marshall Graves; Katrina M Morris; Linda E Neaves; Hardip R Patel; Adam Polkinghorne; Marilyn B Renfree; Charles Robin; Ryan Salinas; Kyriakos Tsangaras; Paul D Waters; Shafagh A Waters; Belinda Wright; Marc R Wilkins; Peter Timms; Katherine Belov

doi:10.1038/s41588-018-0153-5

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Adaptation and conservation insights from the koala genome

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Adaptation and conservation insights from the koala genome

Rebecca N Johnson, Denis O'Meally, Zhiliang Chen, Graham J Etherington, Simon Y W Ho, Will J Nash, Catherine E Grueber, Yuanyuan Cheng, Camilla M Whittington, Siobhan Dennison, …

Nature Genetics, Vol.50, pp.1102-1111

2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-018-0153-5

PMCID: PMC6197426

PMID: 29967444

Appears in UniSC Supported Open Access Outputs

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Abstract

The koala, the only extant species of the marsupial family Phascolarctidae, is classified as 'vulnerable' due to habitat loss and widespread disease. We sequenced the koala genome, producing a complete and contiguous marsupial reference genome, including centromeres. We reveal that the koala's ability to detoxify eucalypt foliage may be due to expansions within a cytochrome P450 gene family, and its ability to smell, taste and moderate ingestion of plant secondary metabolites may be due to expansions in the vomeronasal and taste receptors. We characterized novel lactation proteins that protect young in the pouch and annotated immune genes important for response to chlamydial disease. Historical demography showed a substantial population crash coincident with the decline of Australian megafauna, while contemporary populations had biogeographic boundaries and increased inbreeding in populations affected by historic translocations. We identified genetically diverse populations that require habitat corridors and instituting of translocation programs to aid the koala's survival in the wild.

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Title: Adaptation and conservation insights from the koala genome
Authors: Rebecca N Johnson (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Denis O'Meally (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Zhiliang Chen (Author) - University of New South Wales
Graham J Etherington (Author) - Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom
Simon Y W Ho (Author) - University of Sydney
Will J Nash (Author) - Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom
Catherine E Grueber (Author) - University of Sydney
Yuanyuan Cheng (Author) - University of Sydney
Camilla M Whittington (Author) - University of Sydney
Siobhan Dennison (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Emma Peel (Author) - University of Sydney
Wilfried Haerty (Author) - Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom
Rachel J O'Neill (Author) - University of Connecticut, United States
Don Colgan (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Tonia L Russell (Author) - University of New South Wales
David E Alquezar-Planas (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Val Attenbrow (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Jason G Bragg (Author) - Australian National University
Parice A Brandies (Author) - University of Sydney
Amanda Yoon-Yee Chong (Author) - Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom
Janine E Deakin (Author) - University of Canberra
Federica Di Palma (Author) - Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom
Zachary Duda (Author) - University of Connecticut, United States
Mark D B Eldridge (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Kyle M Ewart (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Carolyn J Hogg (Author) - University of Sydney
Greta J Frankham (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Arthur Georges (Author) - University of Canberra
Amber K Gillett (Author) - Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital
Merran Govendir (Author) - University of Sydney
Alex D Greenwood (Author) - Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Germany
Takashi Hayakawa (Author) - Kyoto University, Japan
Kristofer M Helgen (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Matthew Hobbs (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Clare E Holleley (Author) - CSIRO, National Research Collections Australia
Thomas N Heider (Author) - University of Connecticut, United States
Elizabeth A Jones (Author) - University of Sydney
Andrew King (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Danielle Madden (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Jennifer A Marshall Graves (Author) - Australian National University
Katrina M Morris (Author) - University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Linda E Neaves (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Hardip R Patel (Author) - Australian National University
Adam Polkinghorne (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Marilyn B Renfree (Author) - University of Melbourne
Charles Robin (Author) - University of Melbourne
Ryan Salinas (Author) - University of New South Wales
Kyriakos Tsangaras (Author) - Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Cyprus
Paul D Waters (Author) - University of New South Wales
Shafagh A Waters (Author) - University of New South Wales
Belinda Wright (Author) - Australian Museum Research Institute
Marc R Wilkins (Author) - University of New South Wales
Peter Timms (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Katherine Belov (Author) - University of New South Wales
Publication details: Nature Genetics, Vol.50, pp.1102-1111
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
Date published: 2018
DOI: 10.1038/s41588-018-0153-5
ISSN: 1061-4036
PMID: 29967444; PMC6197426
Copyright note: Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. Te images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Organisation Unit: School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99451453502621
Output Type: Journal article

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