scholarly journals DNA motifs are not general predictors of recombination in two Drosophila sister species

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. Howie ◽  
Rupert Mazzucco ◽  
Thomas Taus ◽  
Viola Nolte ◽  
Christian Schlötterer
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Sister Species ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Sequence Motifs ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

ABSTRACTMeiotic recombination is crucial for chromosomal segregation, and facilitates the spread of beneficial and removal of deleterious mutations. Recombination rates frequently vary along chromosomes and Drosophila melanogaster exhibits a remarkable pattern. Recombination rates gradually decrease towards centromeres and telomeres, with dramatic impact on levels of variation in natural populations. Two close sister species, D. simulans and D. mauritiana do not only have higher recombination rates, but also exhibit a much more homogeneous recombination rate that only drops sharply close to centromeres and telomeres. Because certain sequence motifs are associated with recombination rate variation in D. melanogaster, we tested whether the difference in recombination landscape between D. melanogaster and D. simulans can be explained by the genomic distribution of recombination-rate associated sequence motifs. We constructed the first high resolution recombination map for D. simulans, and searched for motifs linked with high recombination in both sister species. We identified five consensus motifs, present in either species. While the association between motif density and recombination is strong and positive in D. melanogaster, the results are equivocal in D. simulans. Despite the strong association in D. melanogaster, we do not find a decreasing density of these repeat motifs towards centromeres and telomeres. We conclude that the density of recombination-associated repeat motifs cannot explain the large-scale recombination landscape in D. melanogaster, nor the differences to D. simulans. The strong association seen for the sequence motifs in D. melanogaster likely reflects their impact influencing local differences in recombination rates along the genome.

scholarly journals Recombination Rate Variation and Infrequent Sex Influence Genetic Diversity in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 370-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed R Hasan ◽  
Rob W Ness
Keyword(s):  
Linkage Disequilibrium ◽  
Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii ◽  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Effective Rate ◽  
Sexual Cycle ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

Abstract Recombination confers a major evolutionary advantage by breaking up linkage disequilibrium between harmful and beneficial mutations, thereby facilitating selection. However, in species that are only periodically sexual, such as many microbial eukaryotes, the realized rate of recombination is also affected by the frequency of sex, meaning that infrequent sex can increase the effects of selection at linked sites despite high recombination rates. Despite this, the rate of sex of most facultatively sexual species is unknown. Here, we use genomewide patterns of linkage disequilibrium to infer fine-scale recombination rate variation in the genome of the facultatively sexual green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. We observe recombination rate variation of up to two orders of magnitude and find evidence of recombination hotspots across the genome. Recombination rate is highest flanking genes, consistent with trends observed in other nonmammalian organisms, though intergenic recombination rates vary by intergenic tract length. We also find a positive relationship between nucleotide diversity and physical recombination rate, suggesting a widespread influence of selection at linked sites in the genome. Finally, we use estimates of the effective rate of recombination to calculate the rate of sex that occurs in natural populations, estimating a sexual cycle roughly every 840 generations. We argue that the relatively infrequent rate of sex and large effective population size creates a population genetic environment that increases the influence of selection on linked sites across the genome.

scholarly journals The genomic landscape of recombination rate variation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii reveals a pronounced effect of linked selection

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed R. Hasan ◽  
Rob W. Ness
Keyword(s):  
Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii ◽  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Gc Content ◽  
Sexual Cycle ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Entire Genome ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation ◽  
Linked Selection

AbstractRecombination confers a major evolutionary advantage by breaking up linkage disequilibrium (LD) between harmful and beneficial mutations and facilitating selection. Here, we use genome-wide patterns of LD to infer fine-scale recombination rate variation in the genome of the model green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and estimate rates of LD decay across the entire genome. We observe recombination rate variation of up to two orders of magnitude, finding evidence of recombination hotspots playing a role in the genome. Recombination rate is highest just upstream of genic regions, suggesting the preferential targeting of recombination breakpoints in promoter regions. Furthermore, we observe a positive correlation between GC content and recombination rate, suggesting a role for GC-biased gene conversion or selection on base composition within the GC-rich genome of C. reinhardtii. We also find a positive relationship between nucleotide diversity and recombination, consistent with widespread influence of linked selection in the genome. Finally, we use estimates of the effective rate of recombination to calculate the rate of sex that occurs in natural populations of this important model microbe, estimating a sexual cycle roughly every 770 generations. We argue that the relatively infrequent rate of sex and large effective population size creates an population genetic environment that increases the influence of linked selection on the genome.

scholarly journals Inferring the Genomic Landscape of Recombination Rate Variation in European Aspen (Populus tremula)

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 299-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rami-Petteri Apuli ◽  
Carolina Bernhardsson ◽  
Bastian Schiffthaler ◽  
Kathryn M. Robinson ◽  
Stefan Jansson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Linkage Disequilibrium ◽  
Linkage Map ◽  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Gene Density ◽  
Populus Tremula ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Genomic Features ◽  
European Aspen ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

The rate of meiotic recombination is one of the central factors determining genome-wide levels of linkage disequilibrium which has important consequences for the efficiency of natural selection and for the dissection of quantitative traits. Here we present a new, high-resolution linkage map for Populus tremula that we use to anchor approximately two thirds of the P. tremula draft genome assembly on to the expected 19 chromosomes, providing us with the first chromosome-scale assembly for P. tremula (Table 2). We then use this resource to estimate variation in recombination rates across the P. tremula genome and compare these results to recombination rates based on linkage disequilibrium in a large number of unrelated individuals. We also assess how variation in recombination rates is associated with a number of genomic features, such as gene density, repeat density and methylation levels. We find that recombination rates obtained from the two methods largely agree, although the LD-based method identifies a number of genomic regions with very high recombination rates that the map-based method fails to detect. Linkage map and LD-based estimates of recombination rates are positively correlated and show similar correlations with other genomic features, showing that both methods can accurately infer recombination rate variation across the genome. Recombination rates are positively correlated with gene density and negatively correlated with repeat density and methylation levels, suggesting that recombination is largely directed toward gene regions in P. tremula.

scholarly journals What drives the evolution of condition-dependent recombination in diploids? Some insights from simulation modelling

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1736) ◽  
pp. 20160460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sviatoslav R. Rybnikov ◽  
Zeev M. Frenkel ◽  
Abraham B. Korol
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Rate ◽  
External Environment ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Simulation Modelling ◽  
Condition Dependence ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Theoretical Studies ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Modifier Locus ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

While the evolutionary advantages of non-zero recombination rates have prompted diverse theoretical explanations, the evolution of essential recombination features remains underexplored. We focused on one such feature, the condition dependence of recombination, viewed as the variation in within-generation sensitivity of recombination to external (environment) and/or internal (genotype) conditions. Limited empirical evidence for its existence comes mainly from diploids, whereas theoretical models show that it only easily evolves in haploids. The evolution of condition-dependent recombination can be explained by its advantage for the selected system (indirect effect), or by benefits to modifier alleles, ensuring this strategy regardless of effects on the selected system (direct effect). We considered infinite panmictic populations of diploids exposed to a cyclical two-state environment. Each organism had three selected loci. Examining allele dynamics at a fourth, selectively neutral recombination modifier locus, we frequently observed that a modifier allele conferring condition-dependent recombination between the selected loci displaced the allele conferring the optimal constant recombination rate. Our simulations also confirm the results of theoretical studies showing that condition-dependent recombination cannot evolve in diploids on the basis of direct fitness-dependent effects alone. Therefore, the evolution of condition-dependent recombination in diploids can be driven by indirect effects alone, i.e. by modifier effects on the selected system. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Evolutionary causes and consequences of recombination rate variation in sexual organisms’.

scholarly journals Genomics of recombination rate variation in temperature-evolved Drosophila melanogaster populations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari Winbush ◽  
Nadia D Singh
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Temperature Regime ◽  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Potential Candidate ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

Abstract Meiotic recombination is a critical process that ensures proper segregation of chromosome homologues through DNA double strand break repair mechanisms. Rates of recombination are highly variable among various taxa, within species, and within genomes with far-reaching evolutionary and genomic consequences. The genetic basis of recombination rate variation is therefore crucial in the study of evolutionary biology but remains poorly understood. In this study we took advantage of a set of experimental temperature-evolved populations of Drosophila melanogaster with heritable differences in recombination rates depending on the temperature regime in which they evolved. We performed whole genome sequencing and identified several chromosomal regions that appear to be divergent depending on temperature regime. In addition, we identify a set of single nucleotide polymorphisms and associated genes with significant differences in allele frequency when the different temperature populations are compared. Further refinement of these gene candidates emphasizing those expressed in the ovary and associated with DNA binding reveals numerous potential candidate genes such as Hr38, EcR, and mamo responsible for observed differences in recombination rates in these experimental evolution lines thus providing insight into the genetic basis of recombination rate variation.

scholarly journals Variation in recombination frequency and distribution across eukaryotes: patterns and processes

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1736) ◽  
pp. 20160455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Stapley ◽  
Philine G. D. Feulner ◽  
Susan E. Johnston ◽  
Anna W. Santure ◽  
Carole M. Smadja
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Essential Feature ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Evolutionary Processes ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Great Opportunity ◽  
Patterns And Processes ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

Recombination, the exchange of DNA between maternal and paternal chromosomes during meiosis, is an essential feature of sexual reproduction in nearly all multicellular organisms. While the role of recombination in the evolution of sex has received theoretical and empirical attention, less is known about how recombination rate itself evolves and what influence this has on evolutionary processes within sexually reproducing organisms. Here, we explore the patterns of, and processes governing recombination in eukaryotes. We summarize patterns of variation, integrating current knowledge with an analysis of linkage map data in 353 organisms. We then discuss proximate and ultimate processes governing recombination rate variation and consider how these influence evolutionary processes. Genome-wide recombination rates (cM/Mb) can vary more than tenfold across eukaryotes, and there is large variation in the distribution of recombination events across closely related taxa, populations and individuals. We discuss how variation in rate and distribution relates to genome architecture, genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, sex, environmental perturbations and variable selective pressures. There has been great progress in determining the molecular mechanisms governing recombination, and with the continued development of new modelling and empirical approaches, there is now also great opportunity to further our understanding of how and why recombination rate varies. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Evolutionary causes and consequences of recombination rate variation in sexual organisms’.

Extreme Differences in Recombination Rate between the Genomes of a Solitary and a Social Bee

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (10) ◽  
pp. 2277-2291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia C Jones ◽  
Andreas Wallberg ◽  
Matthew J Christmas ◽  
Karen M Kapheim ◽  
Matthew T Webster
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Sequencing Data ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Evolution Of Sociality ◽  
Leafcutter Bee ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Worker Caste ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation ◽  
Genomic Recombination

Abstract Social insect genomes exhibit the highest rates of crossing over observed in plants and animals. The evolutionary causes of these extreme rates are unknown. Insight can be gained by comparing recombination rate variation across the genomes of related social and solitary insects. Here, we compare the genomic recombination landscape of the highly social honey bee, Apis mellifera, with the solitary alfalfa leafcutter bee, Megachile rotundata, by analyzing patterns of linkage disequilibrium in population-scale genome sequencing data. We infer that average recombination rates are extremely elevated in A. mellifera compared with M. rotundata. However, our results indicate that similar factors control the distribution of crossovers in the genomes of both species. Recombination rate is significantly reduced in coding regions in both species, with genes inferred to be germline methylated having particularly low rates. Genes with worker-biased patterns of expression in A. mellifera and their orthologs in M. rotundata have higher than average recombination rates in both species, suggesting that selection for higher diversity in genes involved in worker caste functions in social taxa is not the explanation for these elevated rates. Furthermore, we find no evidence that recombination has modulated the efficacy of selection among genes during bee evolution, which does not support the hypothesis that high recombination rates facilitated positive selection for new functions in social insects. Our results indicate that the evolution of sociality in insects likely entailed selection on modifiers that increased recombination rates genome wide, but that the genomic recombination landscape is determined by the same factors.

scholarly journals Genetics of recombination rate variation in the pig

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Johnsson ◽  
Andrew Whalen ◽  
Roger Ros-Freixedes ◽  
Gregor Gorjanc ◽  
Ching-Yi Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Genome Wide Association Study ◽  
Chromosome Length ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Genomic Regions ◽  
Iterative Peeling ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

AbstractBackgroundIn this paper, we estimated recombination rate variation within the genome and between individuals in the pig using multiocus iterative peeling for 150,000 pigs across nine genotyped pedigrees. We used this to estimate the heritability of recombination and perform a genome-wide association study of recombination in the pig.ResultsOur results confirmed known features of the pig recombination landscape, including differences in chromosome length, and marked sex differences. The recombination landscape was repeatable between lines, but at the same time, the lines also showed differences in average genome-wide recombination rate. The heritability of genome-wide recombination was low but non-zero (on average 0.07 for females and 0.05 for males). We found three genomic regions associated with recombination rate, one of them harbouring the RNF212 gene, previously associated with recombination rate in several other species.ConclusionOur results from the pig agree with the picture of recombination rate variation in vertebrates, with low but nonzero heritability, and a major locus that is homologous to one detected in several other species. This work also highlights the utility of using large-scale livestock data to understand biological processes.

scholarly journals Constructing a high-density linkage map to infer the genomic landscape of recombination rate variation in European Aspen (Populus tremula)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rami-Petteri Apuli ◽  
Carolina Bernhardsson ◽  
Bastian Schiffthaler ◽  
Kathryn M. Robinson ◽  
Stefan Jansson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Linkage Disequilibrium ◽  
Linkage Map ◽  
Recombination Rate ◽  
Nucleotide Diversity ◽  
Populus Tremula ◽  
Rate Variation ◽  
Recombination Rates ◽  
Genomic Features ◽  
European Aspen ◽  
Recombination Rate Variation

AbstractThe rate of meiotic recombination is one of the central factors determining levels of linkage disequilibrium and the efficiency of natural selection, and many organisms show a positive correlation between local rates of recombination and levels of nucleotide diversity indicating that linked selection is an important factor determining genome-wide levels of nucleotide diversity. Several methods for estimating recombination rates from segregating polymorphisms in natural populations have recently been developed. These methods have been extensively used in part because they are relatively simple to implement even in many non-model organisms, but also because they potentially offer higher resolution than traditional map-based methods. However, thorough comparisons of LD and map-based estimates of recombination are not readily available in plants. Here we present a new, high-resolution linkage map for Populus tremula and use this to estimate variation in recombination rates across the P. tremula genome. We compare these results to recombination rates estimated based on linkage disequilibrium in a large number of unrelated individuals. We also assess how variation in recombination rates is associated with genomic features, such as gene density, repeat density and methylation levels. We find that recombination rates obtained from the two methods largely agree, although the LD-based method identify a number of genomic regions with very high recombination rates that the map-based method fail to detect. Linkage map and LD-based estimates of recombination rates are positively correlated and show similar correlations with other genomic features, showing that both methods can accurately infer recombination rate variation across the genome.

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