Biology and Evolution of the Mexican Cavefish

About this book

Biology and Evolution of the Mexican Cavefish features contributions by leading researchers in a comprehensive, unique work that examines a number of distinct areas of biology – evolution, development, ecology, and behavior – using the Mexican cavefish as a powerful model system to further understanding of basic biological processes such as eye degeneration, hearing, craniofacial development, sleep, and metabolic function.

These fish are currently being used to better understand a number of issues related to human health, including age-related blindness, sleep, obesity, mood-related disorders, and aging. The recent sequencing of the cavefish genome broadens the interest of this system to groups working with diverse biological systems, and has helped researchers identify genes that regulate sleep, eye degeneration, and metabolic function.

Mexican cavefish are particularly powerful for the study of biological processes because these fish evolved independently in twenty-nine caves in the Sierra de el Abra Region of Northeast Mexico. These fish have dramatic adaptations to the cave environment, and this can be used to identify genes involved in disease-related traits.

This scholarly text will be of interest to researchers and students throughout diverse areas of biology and ecology. It includes photographs of animals and behavior in laboratory and natural settings that will also increase interest and accessibility to non-experts.

Contents

Introduction
Mexican cavefish as a model for the study of evolution, development and behavior
Clifford Tabin

Ecology and Evolution
1. Cave exploration and mapping in the Sierra de El Abra region
William R. Elliott

2. Hydrogeology of caves in the Sierra de El Abra region
Luis Espinasa

3. Biodiversity and ecology of Sierra de El Abra caves
William R. Elliott

4. Phylogeny and evolutionary history of A. mexicanus
Claudia Patricia Ornelas-García

Genetics and Genomics
5. Population genetics and QTL mapping approaches
Richard Borowsky

6. Genome sequencing and population genomics
Suzanne McGaugh

7. Selection through standing variation
Nicholas Rohner

Morphology and Development
8. Regressive evolution of albinism
William Jeffery

9. The molecular evolution of eye loss
Yoshi Yamamoto

10. The evolution of the cavefish craniofacial complex
Joshua Gross

11. Jaws and teeth: Adaptation to cave living
Tamara Franz Odenaal

12. Neural development in A. mexicanus
Sylvie Retaux

Behavior
13. Sensory regulation of foraging behaviors in A. mexicanus
Masato Yoshizawa

14. Feeding Behavior and starvation response
Helene Volkoff

15. Evolutionary convergence of sleep loss
Alex Keene

16. Circadian Rhythms and light entrainment
David Whitmore

17. Social behavior and Aggression
Yannick Elipot and Helene Hinaux

18. Spatial Mapping in Perpetual Darkness: EvoDevo of Behavior in Astyanax mexicanus Cavefish
Ernesto Maldanato

Future Applications
Transgenesis and future applications for cavefish research
Harold Burgess

Concluding remarks
Bill Jeffery (University of Maryland)

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