Convergent evolution of the thylacine and canids
Current project members:
Tiffany Morelande
Thylacine pouch young. (a) 1.5 weeks old; (b) 4 weeks old; (c) 5 weeks old; (d) 9.5 weeks old; and (e) 12 weeks old. (f) shows an incorrectly labelled thylacine specimen. Image used with permission. 
Comparison of the thylacine (top) and Australian dingo (bottom) showing remarkable similarity. Image courtesy of TMAG; and Adobe Stock. Images used with permission. 
3D digital rendering of thylacine 9.5 week old pouch young showing internal organs and skeleton. Credit Axel Newton and Jay Black
Key publications:
Newton AH, Pask AJ. Evolution and expansion of the RUNX2 QA repeat corresponds with the emergence of vertebrate complexity. Commun Biol. 2020 Dec 15;3(1):771. doi: 10.1038/s42003-020-01501-3. Erratum in: Commun Biol. 2021 Jan 25;4(1):133. PMID: 33319865; PMCID: PMC7738678.
Newton AH, Weisbecker V, Pask AJ, Hipsley CA. Ontogenetic origins of cranial convergence between the extinct marsupial thylacine and placental gray wolf. Commun Biol. 2021 Jan 8;4(1):51. doi: 10.1038/s42003-020-01569-x. PMID: 33420327; PMCID: PMC7794302.
Newton AH, Pask AJ. CHD9 upregulates RUNX2 and has a potential role in skeletal evolution. BMC Mol Cell Biol. 2020 Apr 15;21(1):27. doi:10.1186/s12860-020-00270-5. PMID: 32295522; PMCID: PMC7161146.
Feigin CY, Newton AH, Pask AJ. Widespread cis-regulatory convergence between the extinct Tasmanian tiger and gray wolf. Genome Res. 2019 Sep 18. doi: 10.1101/gr.244251.118.
Newton AH, Spoutil F, Prochazka J, Black JR, Medlock K, Paddle RN, Knitlova M, Hipsley CA, Pask AJ. Letting the ‘cat’ out of the bag: pouch young development of the extinct Tasmanian tiger revealed by X-ray computed tomography. R Soc Open Sci. 2018 Feb 21;5(2):171914. doi: 10.1098/rsos.171914. eCollection 2018 Feb. PubMed PMID: 29515893; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5830782.
Feigin CY, Newton AH, Doronina L, Schmitz J, Hipsley CA, Mitchell KJ, Gower G, Llamas B, Soubrier J, Heider TN, Menzies BR, Cooper A, O’Neill RJ, Pask AJ. Genome of the Tasmanian tiger provides insights into the evolution and demography of an extinct marsupial carnivore. Nat Ecol Evol. 2018 Jan;2(1):182-192. doi: 10.1038/s41559-017-0417-y. Epub 2017 Dec 11. PubMed PMID: 29230027.
Newton AH, Feigin CY, Pask AJ. RUNX2 repeat variation does not drive craniofacial diversity in marsupials. BMC Evol Biol. 2017 May 4;17(1):110. doi: 10.1186/s12862-017-0955-6. PubMed PMID: 28472940; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5418715.