A molecular mechanism for bright color variation in parrots

"The bright coloration of parrots is known to be determined by pigments known as psittacofulvins, but the molecular basis of these colors is still unknown. Arbore et al. (2024) used gene expression, chromatin accessibility, and genome-wide association studies to identify the genetic underpinning of red and yellow coloration in the dusky lory. The authors identified a putative causal variant near an enzyme involved in fatty aldehyde oxidation and tested this gene in yeast to confirm its ability to produce a pigment change. The extensive biochemical and genetics work in this study aids in our understanding of coloration in a nonmodel organism, opening the door for future studies into parrot and other avian pigmentation." —Corinne Simonti. Photo by Miguel Araújo.