Reconstructing molecular phylogenies of extinct Vertebrates using collagen sequences

BUCKLEY M.; CARLINI A. A.; MANNING, P; RYBCZYNSKI N

Berlin

Congreso; 74th Annual Meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology; 2014

SVP

We have previously demonstrated that collagen fingerprints can be obtained fromextinct vertebrates and that they can be retrieved from sub-fossil material dating back tothe Pliocene. Our early work investigated their potential as a tool to identify species fromfragmentary material beyond the scope of ancient DNA techniques and the amenability ofthis technique to high-throughput species identification, culminating in a study thatinvestigated ~14,000 bone fragments from a single archaeological assemblage (Pin HoleCave, UK). However, we have more recently shown that the collagen retrieved has thepotential for phylogenetic reconstructions.Here we investigate the potential for the partial collagen sequences obtained byproteomics-based (LC-Orbitrap-MS/MS) techniques in recovering molecularphylogenies, and how they compare with known vertebrate phylogenies obtained fromtraditional morphological characterisation as well as more recent molecular phylogeniesrecovered from DNA sequence analysis. Case studies include a range of extinctmegafauna from the Americas as well as biodiversity hotspots worldwide, includingextinct taxa from the Caribbean and enigmatic megafauna from Madagascar. The resultsoffer unique insights into the evolution of mammals that may only be possible fromancient protein sequencing and could equally be applied to a wide range of otherQuaternary vertebrates.