Convergent adaptation to xeric environments in rodents. CONVERGENOMIX

Our study aims at better understanding the molecular basis of convergent evolution associated to xeric life adaptation. Adaptation to life in desertic environment can lead to the independent acquisition of similar biological traits all with the objective to save water. This phenomenon occurred several times independently in the rodents’ family, making them a great model to study convergence at the molecular scale. To study convergence at the level of gene expression, we carried out a large-scale transcriptomics study and prepared 57 libraries from 20 rodent species. For each species, kidneys from 1 to 7 individuals were collected for RNA extraction and library preparation. For all individuals, the libraries were sequenced in single-end (50nt). For one individual per species, the libraries were also sequenced in paired-end (100nt) to reach a sufficient coverage rate allowing to perform de novo transcriptome assembly. Species were classified mesic or xeric based on pluviometry values from the worldclim database (http://www.worldclim.org/) using a Bio17 value threshold of 40mm (xeric 40mm).