抄録
Sensing taste helps animals make decisions about ingesting beneficial foods. The umami and sweet tastes are sensed by TAS1R1-TAS1R3 and TAS1R2- TAS1R3 heterodimers, respectively. Recent researches have revealed evolutionary diversity of genes encoding these receptors, TAS1R1, TAS1R2 and TAS1R3. However, much information has largely relied on whole-genome assembly data which are often incomplete. Platyrrhine primates are suitable for understanding the evolutionary diversity of umami-sweet taste receptor gene family because of their remarkable diversity in diets as well as in color vision which has often been discussed in relation to ecological diversification. In this study, we applied targeted capture followed by short-read high-depth massive parallel sequencing for the three genes from 18 species of platyrrhines from all three platyrrhine Families. While the three genes were overall conservative, we noted that TAS1R1 was disrupted in three genera of Subfamily Callitrichinae, tamarins (Saguinus), Saddle-back tamarins (Leontocebus) and lion tamarins (Leontopithecus), implying three independent disruption events in the three genera or at least two independent disruptions in Leontopithecus and the common ancestor of Saguinus and Leontocebus. This implies less importance of sensing umami in these genera. Their variation pattern of color vision and dietary dependence on tree-sap are also observed in other callitrichine species of which TAS1R1 was intact. Thus, it is currently not certain why TAS1R1 was disrupted in the three tamarin genera. Further studies on other taste and chemical sensor genes should complement this study and facilitate our understanding on the sensory diversity of platyrrhines and primates in general.
