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Evolutionary dynamics of temporal transcription factor series in the insect optic lobe

Filippopoulou, K.; Iliopoulou, E.; Julliot de La Morandiere, C.; Lee, C.; Marcet-Houben, M.; Gabaldon, T.; Li, J. J.; Konstantinides, N.

2026-01-09 developmental biology
10.64898/2026.01.08.698497 bioRxiv
Show abstract

The nervous system is composed of a wide diversity of neuronal cell types arranged into complex circuits that support a broad range of behaviors. Patterning of neural stem cells in time through the expression of series of temporal transcription factors is a key contributor to neuronal diversity. How do temporal series arise and diversify across species to support neuronal type evolution? Here, we reconstruct the evolutionary history of the visual brain temporal series in insects; we identify a conserved temporal ground plan, as well as species-specific variations. We find that temporal programs evolve through recurrent modifications of a shared scaffold. Finally, we show how such evolutionary changes in temporal patterning can translate into altered neuronal type identities. Together, our results reveal both the deep conservation and the evolutionary plasticity of temporal patterning programs, and establish temporal transcription factor series as a tractable substrate for the evolution of neuronal diversity.

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