scholarly journals POPULATION STRUCTURE AND GENE FLOW IN THE SHEEPNOSE MUSSEL (PLETHOBASUS CYPHYUS) AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS FOR CONSERVATION

Author(s):  
Kevin Roe ◽  
Sara Schwarz

North American freshwater mussel species have experienced substantial range fragmentation and population reductions. These impacts have the potential to reduce genetic connectivity among populations and increase the risk of losing genetic diversity. Thirteen microsatellite loci and an 883 bp fragment of the mitochondrial ND1 gene were used to assess genetic diversity, population structure, contemporary and historical migration rates, and population size changes across the range of the Sheepnose mussel (Plethobasus cyphyus). Population structure analyses reveal five populations, three in the Upper Mississippi River Basin and two in the Ohio River Basin. Sampling locations exhibit a high degree of genetic diversity and contemporary migration estimates indicate that migration between populations within river basins is occurring, although at low rates. but no migration is occurring between the Ohio and Mississippi river basins. No evidence of bottlenecks was detected, and almost all locations exhibited the signature of population expansion. Our results indicate that although anthropogenic activity has altered the landscape across the range of the Sheepnose, these activities have yet to be reflected in losses of genetic diversity. Efforts to conserve sheepnose populations should focus on maintaining existing habitats and fostering genetic connectivity between extant demes to conserve remaining genetic diversity for future viable Sheepnose populations.

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvanus A. Nwafili ◽  
Tian-Xiang Gao

Abstract The genetic diversity and population structure of Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus were evaluated using a 443 base pair fragment of the mitochondrial control region. Among the eight populations collected comprising 129 individuals, a total of 89 polymorphic sites defined 57 distinct haplotypes. The mean haplotype diversity and nucleotide diversity of the eight populations were 0.966±0.006 and 0.0359±0.004, respectively. Analysis of molecular variance showed significant genetic differentiation among the eight populations (FST =0.34; P < 0.01). The present results revealed that C. nigrodigitatus populations had a high level of genetic diversity and distinct population structures. We report the existence of two monophyletic matrilineal lineages with mean genetic distance of 10.5% between them. Non-significant negative Tajima’s D and Fu’s Fs for more than half the populations suggests that the wild populations of C. nigrodigitatus underwent a recent population expansion, although a weak one since the late Pleistocene.


BMC Genetics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cun Chen ◽  
Yanguang Chu ◽  
Changjun Ding ◽  
Xiaohua Su ◽  
Qinjun Huang

Abstract Background Black cottonwood (Populus deltoides) is one of the keystone forest tree species, and has become the main breeding parents in poplar hybrid breeding. However, the genetic diversity and population structure of the introduced resources are not fully understood. Results In the present study, five loci containing null alleles were excluded and 15 pairs of SSR (simple sequence repeat) primers were used to analyze the genetic diversity and population structure of 384 individuals from six provenances (Missouri, Iowa, Washington, Louisiana, and Tennessee (USA), and Quebec in Canada) of P. deltoides. Ultimately, 108 alleles (Na) were detected; the expected heterozygosity (He) per locus ranged from 0.070 to 0.905, and the average polymorphic information content (PIC) was 0.535. The provenance ‘Was’ had a relatively low genetic diversity, while ‘Que’, ‘Lou’, and ‘Ten’ provenances had high genetic diversity, with Shannon’s information index (I) above 1.0. The mean coefficient of genetic differentiation (Fst) and gene flow (Nm) were 0.129 and 1.931, respectively. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed that 84.88% of the genetic variation originated from individuals. Based on principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) and STRUCTURE cluster analysis, individuals distributed in the Mississippi River Basin were roughly classified as one group, while those distributed in the St. Lawrence River Basin and Columbia River Basin were classified as another group. The cluster analysis based on the population level showed that provenance ‘Iow’ had a small gene flow and high degree of genetic differentiation compared with the other provenances, and was classified into one group. There was a significant relationship between genetic distance and geographical distance. Conclusions P. deltoides resources have high genetic diversity and there is a moderate level of genetic differentiation among provenances. Geographical isolation and natural conditions may be the main factors causing genetic differences among individuals. Individuals reflecting population genetic information can be selected to build a core germplasm bank. Meanwhile, the results could provide theoretical support for the scientific management and efficient utilization of P. deltoides genetic resources, and promote the development of molecular marker-assisted breeding of poplar.


2009 ◽  
Vol 66 (10) ◽  
pp. 1758-1774 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas P. Peterson ◽  
William R. Ardren

We genotyped Arctic grayling ( Thymallus arcticus ) at 10 microsatellite loci in 18 samples (n = 726) from Montana, Wyoming, and Saskatchewan to determine genetic relationships among native, captive, and naturalized populations in the upper Missouri River basin, to assess patterns in genetic diversity, and to infer recent demographic histories. Substantial genetic subdivision was observed among sample populations (global FST = 0.10). Canadian populations have been isolated from Missouri River populations long enough for mutation to cause genetic differences between regions (mean pairwise FST = 0.18, RST = 0.54). Within the Missouri River basin, most naturalized lacustrine populations traced their ancestry to Red Rock lakes. Two populations in headwater lakes within the Big Hole River watershed appear to be native. We found neither evidence for introgression of Canadian-origin grayling nor any effect of hatchery stocking in native populations. The native fluvial Big Hole River group was genetically distinct and most diverse (HE = 0.89), whereas native Madison River and Red Rock lakes populations exhibited lower genetic diversity (HE = 0.74 and 0.80, respectively) and evidence of recent bottlenecks. The existing Big Hole and Red Rock populations are at low abundance but do not appear to be at immediate risk of inbreeding depression (Ne = 207.7–228.2).


2009 ◽  
Vol 75 (10) ◽  
pp. 3187-3195 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Gentekaki ◽  
D. H. Lynn

ABSTRACT Studies that assess intraspecific genetic variation in ciliates are few and quite recent. Consequently, knowledge of the subject and understanding of the processes that underlie it are limited. We sought to assess the degree of intraspecific genetic variation in Carchesium polypinum (Ciliophora: Peritrichia), a cosmopolitan, freshwater ciliate. We isolated colonies of C. polypinum from locations in the Grand River basin in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. We then used the nuclear markers—ITS1, ITS2, and the hypervariable regions of the large subunit rRNA—and an 819-bp fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I gene (cox-1) to investigate the intraspecific genetic variation of C. polypinum and the degree of resolution of the above-mentioned markers at the population level. We also sought to determine whether the organism demonstrated any population structure that mapped onto the geography of the region. Our study shows that there is a high degree of genetic diversity at the isolate level, revealed by the mitochondrial markers but not the nuclear markers. Furthermore, our results indicate that C. polypinum is likely not a single morphospecies as previously thought.


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