Estimation of Divergence Dates for Monotremes From Comparisons of A-Lactalbumin Amino Acid Sequences.

cx-Lactalbumins were isolated from milk of the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) and the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Their amino acid sequences were determined and compared with those of the cx- lactalbumins often eutherian and two marsupial species, using the computer programme ("Distances") to calculate the number of differences (substitutions) between a total of 36 pairs of cx-lactalbumins. As expected, the amino acid sequences of the monotreme cx-lactalbumins were more similar to each other than to those of other mammals, as were the sequences of the marsupial and the eutherian cx-lactalbumins. If one makes the common assumption that marsupials and eutherians diverged from each other 135 Myr ago then simple calculations from the data would suggest that the platypus and echidna lineages diverged 56 ± 8 (SD) Myr ago and that monotremes diverged from the other mammals 152 ± 29 Myr ago. These values are not inconsistent with the little that is known about the palaeontology of the monotremes and are very similar to those derived from previous studies on globin sequences. If, however, monotreme cx-lactalbumins evolved more slowly than the cx-lactalbumins of eutherians and marsupials, these dates could be underestimates.