A 23-copy tandem repeat of a cytochrome P450 gene underlies an adaptive introgression breakthrough in Ciona intestinalis

Abstract

Introgression between highly divergent species is generally selected against, yet some foreign alleles can break through species barriers when they provide a sufficient selective advantage, a process known as adaptive introgression. Here, we characterize the structural variant underlying adaptive introgression from Ciona robusta into C. intestinalis, two species separated by 14.5% net molecular divergence. Previous work identified a narrow peak of C. robusta ancestry on chromosome 5 that reached high frequency in several C. intestinalis populations despite otherwise restricted introgression. Using whole-genome Nanopore sequences from 15 C. intestinalis and three C. robusta individuals, together with short-read datasets including parent-offspring trios, we narrowed down the core introgressed segment from 16 to three genes and characterized copy-number variation affecting the cytochrome P450 gene CYP2U1c. The introgressed haplotype carries a tandem amplification of a 5,173-bp segment containing CYP2U1c, with 23 consecutive copies and conserved repeat boundaries. The nearly 120-kb array could not be fully resolved by long-read sequencing, but coverage consistently supported approximately 23 copies per introgressed haplotype. Despite its extreme size and repetitive structure, the allele showed Mendelian inheritance. CYP2U1c copy number was also polymorphic in C. robusta. Long reads fully resolved two structurally distinct haplotypes in one individual, carrying either a duplication encompassing adjacent CYP2U1b and CYP2U1c genes or five CYP2U1c copies. Their distinct breakpoints indicate independent origins. Our results reveal independently arising CYP2U1c amplifications in the donor species and show that an extreme high-copy-number allele was subsequently favoured following introgression into C. intestinalis.