Geographic distributions of Idh -1 alleles in a cricket are linked to differential enzyme kinetic performance across thermal environments

Background  

Geographic clines within species are often interpreted as evidence of adaptation to varying environmental conditions. However, clines can also result from genetic drift, and these competing hypotheses must therefore be tested empirically. The striped ground cricket, Allonemobius socius, is widely-distributed in the eastern United States, and clines have been documented in both life-history traits and genetic alleles. One clinally-distributed locus, isocitrate dehydrogenase (Idh -1), has been shown previously to exhibit significant correlations between allele frequencies and environmental conditions (temperature and rainfall). Further, an empirical study revealed a significant genotype-by-environmental interaction (GxE) between Idh -1 genotype and temperature which affected fitness. Here, we use enzyme kinetics to further explore GxE between Idh -1 genotype and temperature, and test the predictions of kinetic activity expected under drift or selection.