Annual Review of Animal Biosciences最新文献

The surge in chromosome-scale genome sequences from across the tree of life, as well as new comparative methods, has made it possible to study the impact of genomic changes on macroevolution. In this review, we discuss the state of animal comparative genomics. We outline developments in genomic taxonomic sampling and technological advancements in sequencing as well as emerging 3D genomics and provide a perspective on outstanding problems in biodiversity-driven comparative genomics. We discuss the importance of studying genomes holistically and propose the recently introduced evolutionary genome topology framework for topological, multi-scale comparisons across distantly related clades. We highlight how this approach is crucial to understanding the interlinked evolution of subchromosomal and chromosomal changes and their functional implications (e.g., via regulatory entanglement). Lastly, we provide a vision for future areas of research in these approaches and make predictions about the future potential of animal genome evolution.

Liver function is critical for high-producing dairy cows to achieve high milk production and good fertility, as well as to avoid periparturient health problems. Key processes include gluconeogenesis, fatty acid metabolism, protein synthesis, amino acid metabolism and urea formation, bile acid synthesis, detoxification, endocrine functions, and immune functions. Various tests have been used to assess liver function. Fatty liver develops when fatty acid uptake exceeds the liver's capacity to oxidize fatty acids and export triacylglycerols and may negatively affect hepatic function. Metabolomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics are opening new insights into hepatic adaptations in normal and abnormal situations, such as the roles of acylcarnitines, lysophospholipids, and sphingolipids. Nutritional strategies such as controlled energy dry cow diets and supplemental rumen-protected methionine and choline help maintain liver function during the periparturient period. Nutritional manipulations that impact liver function help to promote health and productivity of high-producing dairy cows.

Dairy cattle industries navigating increasingly frequent climate disruptions and volatile input costs must maintain productivity while simultaneously minimizing environmental impacts. This article examines how resilience (ability to recover from short-term disturbances) and robustness (capacity for long-term adaptation to challenging environments) contribute to longevity and lifetime efficiency in farm animals. Resilience reduces aging costs by enhancing recovery from environmental perturbations, e.g., health challenges, whereas robustness involves resource allocation strategies that facilitate survival in constraining environments. Both traits exhibit moderate heritability, offering opportunities for genetic improvement. However, their expression varies significantly across environments, necessitating context-specific selection approaches. Simulation studies, using models that incorporate robustness and resilience mechanisms, demonstrate that genotype-by-environment interactions strongly influence the economic and environmental benefits of selecting for these traits. In conclusion, incorporating resilience and robustness into breeding objectives can improve lifetime efficiency, particularly in challenging environments, but their economic value must be evaluated carefully in relation to specific production systems and anticipated future conditions.

comparative genomics, evolution, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, computational biology, behaviorMammals and other vertebrates exhibit an incredible diversity of complex behaviors that have evolved as these species adapted to their environments. Underlying the phenotypic diversity is molecular diversity: The brain is composed of hundreds of molecularly distinct cell types that play a variety of roles in different behaviors and neural circuits. Single cell and spatial transcriptomic techniques are providing insights into which features of those neural cell types are conserved or divergent across mammals and, more broadly, vertebrates. The ability to genomically characterize individual neurons has created opportunities to link evolution at a molecular level to evolution at the circuit and behavioral levels. Although discoveries in evolutionary biology have been made by leveraging single cell genomics, fundamental methodological challenges remain to be addressed. New types and increased complexity of data sets have spurred the development of various new computational techniques. In parallel, new genomic technologies are being developed to better perturb and study brain regulatory networks. The methods for reconstructing regulatory networks in vitro have been advancing rapidly, but challenges still exist in reliably adapting those technologies for use in vivo across a wide variety of species. As the genomic technologies and computational approaches become tractable in the brains of animals, the field is poised to make big discoveries in how complex mammalian behaviors evolve.

In low- and lower-middle-income countries, livestock systems contribute to food and nutritional security, economic growth, and the livelihoods of nearly one billion smallholders. They provide high-quality nutrition through animal-sourced foods, contribute to improved smallholder resilience, and employ more than 873 million people. Yet, persistent feed constraints exacerbated by climate change, land degradation, poor extension, feed markets, and social inequalities continue to undermine livestock productivity. This article explores how feed-focused interventions can deliver a triple win for food and nutrition security, climate resilience, and women and youth empowerment. It reviews the complexity of the regional feed systems and underlying constraints and proposes strategies to improve feed quality, availability, accessibility, and affordability, particularly through greater inclusion of women and youth, who are pivotal to the sector. The article recommends scaling evidence-based strategies to transform feed systems into inclusive and climate-smart systems that optimally enhance livestock productivity, reduce food insecurity, and improve the livelihoods of farmers and pastoralists.

Sleep is a universal behavior across animals, critical for physiological homeostasis, cognitive function, and development. Throughout evolution, animals have adapted to environmental changes, but current rapid climate change may threaten sleep patterns adapted to specific ecological niches through rising temperatures, shifting precipitation, and extreme weather. Despite the importance of sleep, climate change-driven sleep disruptions are not well-considered. We introduce the importance of sleep and examine how climate change affects sleep in different biogeographical zones (polar, tropical, dry, and marine and coastal regions), highlighting region-specific vulnerabilities. Furthermore, we discuss the cascading effects of sleep disruption on species interactions, population dynamics, and ecosystem functioning. We emphasize the need for long-term ecological studies, advances in sleep-measurement technologies in free-living animals, and the integration of sleep ecology into conservation strategies. Future priorities include assessing variability within and between individuals, the fitness costs of sleep loss, and the potential for evolutionary adaptation.

Ruminant species are vital for agriculture, ecosystems, and conservation and remain vulnerable to infectious and zoonotic diseases. Advances in genome sequencing and genomics now enable high-resolution analysis of immunoglobulin (IG) loci and antibody repertoires uncovering extensive germline diversity, structural variation, and lineage-specific adaptations, such as ultralong cysteine-rich Abs in cattle. This review summarizes current knowledge of ruminant IG locus organization and repertoire generation and discusses the evolutionary origins of ultralong Abs. It also examines the challenges highly repetitive IG loci pose for assembly, annotation, and nomenclature and highlights emerging solutions. Finally, it describes genomic approaches for linking immune genotypes to phenotypes that create promise for improving ruminant health.

Spontaneous cancers in client-owned dogs often closely recapitulate their human counterparts with respect to clinical presentation, histological features, molecular profiles, response and resistance to therapy, and the evolution of drug-resistant metastases. In several instances, the incorporation of dogs with cancer into the preclinical development path of cancer therapeutics has influenced outcomes by helping to establish pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics relationships, dose/regimen, expected clinical toxicities, and ultimately the potential for biologic activity. As our understanding regarding the molecular drivers and immune landscape of canine cancers has improved, unique opportunities have emerged to leverage this spontaneous model as a mechanism to better guide cancer drug development so that therapies likely to fail are eliminated earlier, whereas those with true potential are optimized prior to human trials. Both pets and people benefit from this approach, because it provides dogs with access to cutting-edge cancer treatments and helps to insure that people are given treatments with a greater probability of success.

Adopted in December 2022, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) under the Convention on Biological Diversity outlines a visionary road map guiding humanity's relationship with nature. KMGBF commitments require active intervention, sustained monitoring and scientific reporting, capacity building for tools and technologies, and cooperation among 196 signatories. Genetic diversity, which underlies adaptation and fitness, is a core tenet of the KMGBF. This article aims to distill the KMGBF to help researchers, practitioners, and other interested parties achieve its commitments. In five sections, we address (a) the KMGBF's terminology and scope, (b) the intersection of KMGBF targets with genetic diversity, (c) genetic monitoring for tracking its progress, (d) paradigms and decision frameworks to guide genetic conservation actions, and (e) emerging frontiers. A better understanding of the KMGBF will help researchers, practitioners, and other interested parties more effectively engage and fulfill global, national, and local commitments to the conservation of our planet's biodiversity.