The gene cortex controls scale colour identity in Heliconius
Livraghi, L.; Hanly, J. J.; Loh, L. S.; Ren, A.; Warren, I. A.; Concha, C.; Wright, C.; Walker, J. M.; Foley, J.; Arenas-Castro, H.; Brenes, L. R.; Martin, A.; McMillan, W. O.; Jiggins, C. D.
Show abstract
In Heliconius butterflies, wing pattern diversity is controlled by a few genes of large effect that regulate colour pattern switches between morphs and species across a large mimetic radiation. One of these genes, cortex, has been repeatedly associated with colour pattern evolution in butterflies. Here we carried out CRISPR knock-outs in multiple Heliconius species and show that cortex is a major determinant of scale cell identity. Chromatin accessibility profiling and introgression scans identified cis-regulatory regions associated with discrete phenotypic switches. CRISPR perturbation of these regions in black hindwing genotypes recreated a yellow bar, revealing their spatially limited activity. In the H. melpomene/timareta lineage, the candidate CRE from yellow-barred phenotype morphs is interrupted by a transposable element, suggesting that cis-regulatory structural variation underlies these mimetic adaptations. Our work shows that cortex functionally controls scale colour fate and that its cis-regulatory regions control a phenotypic switch in a modular and pattern-specific fashion.
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