Data from: Phenotype-environment association of the oxygen transport system in trimorphic European whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) populations

Replicated adaptive radiation events, typified by phenotypic divergence across resource axes, provide important insight into the eco-evolutionary dynamics that lead to the formation of new species. Here we show that in trimorphic adaptive radiations of European whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) divergence of the physiological oxygen transport system has occurred across the pelagic/littoral (shallow) – profundal (deep) resource axis, and at multiple biological scales. Profundal whitefish exhibited significantly larger red blood cells, a greater proportion of cathodic hemoglobin protein components, and higher hemoglobin transcript abundance in kidney compared to littoral and pelagic morphs. Hemoglobin transcript abundance in brain and gill, but not kidney, and anodic hemoglobin protein component diversity in blood were also linked to variation at an intronic single nucleotide polymorphism. As the whitefish morphs differ in population genetic structure at this SNP, hemoglobin transcript and protein divergence between profundal and pelagic/littoral morphs is likely being driven by genetic divergence. Our findings, along with our previous work on lake whitefish, highlight the importance of the oxygen transport system to the postglacial colonization of novel lacustrine environments by whitefish throughout the northern hemisphere.以跨资源轴的表型分化为典型特征的重复适应性辐射事件，可为解析驱动新物种形成的生态进化动力学机制提供重要洞见。本研究显示，欧洲白鲑（Coregonus lavaretus）的三型适应性辐射中，生理氧转运系统的分化发生于远洋/沿岸（浅水区）—深底带（深水区）资源轴上，且涉及多个生物学尺度。相较于沿岸与远洋形态型，深底带白鲑的红细胞体积显著更大，阴极血红蛋白蛋白组分占比更高，肾脏内的血红蛋白转录本丰度也更高。脑与鳃组织中的血红蛋白转录本丰度（肾脏组织中未观察到此关联），以及血液中的阳极血红蛋白蛋白组分多样性，同样与一处内含子单核苷酸多态性（single nucleotide polymorphism, SNP）的变异相关联。由于白鲑各形态型在该SNP位点的种群遗传结构存在差异，深底带与沿岸/远洋形态型之间的血红蛋白转录本与蛋白分化，很可能由遗传分化所驱动。本研究结果结合此前针对湖白鲑的研究，凸显了氧转运系统在北半球白鲑冰后定植新生湖相环境过程中的关键作用。