Unique evolutionary radiation of odorant receptors in birds
Robert J. Driver, Mona A. Marie, Victoria J. Ko, Priyanka Meesa, Wanting Sun, Renee J. Li, Michael S. Brewer, Hsiu-Yi Lu, Kevin F. P. Bennett, Marco Sollitto, Giulio Formenti, Ichie Ojiro, Nivritti E. Mantha, Hiroaki Matsunami, Christopher N. Balakrishnan
The paper identifies a diverse and variable odorant receptor repertoire in birds, including the kiwi, and reveals gene conversion as a mechanism for generating functional diversity in avian olfaction.
bioRxiv · Nov 14, 2025 · PreprintEvolutionary Biology