Accelerated sex chromosome degeneration and mitonuclear coevolution in a brood parasitic bird

Accelerated sex chromosome degeneration and mitonuclear coevolution in a brood parasitic bird | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Accelerated sex chromosome degeneration and mitonuclear coevolution in a brood parasitic bird Michael Sorenson, Ekaterina Osipova, Claire Spottiswoode, Gabriel Jamie, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7330189/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The coevolution of interacting mitochondrial and nuclear genes involved in the oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) pathway has received growing attention as a critical component of organismal fitness1 and potential source of genetic incompatibilities2–4 that promote speciation5–7. However, in species with “ZW” sex chromosomes, the mitochondrial genome and female-specific W chromosome are effectively linked by their shared matrilineal history, such that selection on either should subject both to the accumulation of deleterious mutations via genetic hitchhiking8,9. Thus, enhanced ecological selection on maternally inherited traits should accelerate both W chromosome degeneration and mitonuclear coevolution, though this prediction has not been tested empirically. Here we show that brood parasitic cuckoo finches Anomalospiza imberbis, in which mimetic egg coloration is maternally inherited, have experienced accelerated W chromosome pseudogenization and gene loss in addition to higher rates of amino acid substitution in both their mitochondrial and nuclear-encoded OXPHOS genes. Using a structural model of respiratory complex I, we also show that the degree of acceleration in nuclear-encoded residues is a function of their proximity to mtDNA-encoded residues, providing strong evidence of compensatory mitonuclear coevolution. Our results link ecological coevolution at the species level to both sex chromosome degeneration and mitonuclear coevolution, highlighting genomic consequences of selection on non-recombining genome components. Biological sciences/Evolution/Evolutionary genetics Biological sciences/Evolution/Population genetics Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementaryTables47.xlsx SupplementaryTables_4_7 SupplementaryInfo.pdf Supplementary_Info ExtendedDataFigs.pdf Extended Data Figs 1-10 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7330189","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":513254748,"identity":"d060e3e4-5917-4af8-93d2-b7bda313fb8d","order_by":0,"name":"Michael 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