Human Evolution in Polynesia: a Molecular Biological Study

<p>Human evolution is an extremely interesting and contentious topic that incorporates data from a wide variety of disciplines. Molecular studies are becoming increasingly important for reconstructing human history, as new techniques allow faster recovery of results, and genetic tests provide an independent test for colonisation theories that are usually based on archaeological and linguistic evidence. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is an extremely useful genetic marker that is widely used in molecular biology for establishing phylogenetic links between individuals and populations. In the current study the 3' Hypervariable Region (3' HVI) of mtDNA from human populations living in New Zealand (Aotearoa) was analysed. The HVI mtDNA diversity in the New Zealand Maori population was significantly reduced compared with Polynesian and Melanesian populations, with an extremely high frequency (~87%) of the 'Polynesian CGT motif' haplotype. Additionally, the 9-bp deletion, common in Polynesian populations, has reached fixation (100%) in the Maori samples. These results support a settlement scenario with repeated population bottlenecks. The mtDNA HVI haplotype frequencies in this study, combined with those from previous studies, were used in computer simulations to estimate the number of females required to found the current Maori population. Approximately 56 women, and an equal or greater number of men, were estimated to have been present in the founding waka. This estimate is too large to support any settlement models with a small number of founders and effectively rules out the possibility of 'accidental discovery', instead supporting a planned settlement of Aotearoa in agreement with traditional knowledge. Analysis of interdisciplinary data has allowed current theories for the origins of the Polynesians and proto-Austronesians to be consolidated by introducing a 'Synthetic Total Evidence Theory'. It is likely that once published this theory will stimulate intense discussion and debate and will continue to grow as further evidence is obtained and incorporated into this model.</p>

Human Evolution in Polynesia: a Molecular Biological Study

<p>Human evolution is an extremely interesting and contentious topic that incorporates data from a wide variety of disciplines. Molecular studies are becoming increasingly important for reconstructing human history, as new techniques allow faster recovery of results, and genetic tests provide an independent test for colonisation theories that are usually based on archaeological and linguistic evidence. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is an extremely useful genetic marker that is widely used in molecular biology for establishing phylogenetic links between individuals and populations. In the current study the 3' Hypervariable Region (3' HVI) of mtDNA from human populations living in New Zealand (Aotearoa) was analysed. The HVI mtDNA diversity in the New Zealand Maori population was significantly reduced compared with Polynesian and Melanesian populations, with an extremely high frequency (~87%) of the 'Polynesian CGT motif' haplotype. Additionally, the 9-bp deletion, common in Polynesian populations, has reached fixation (100%) in the Maori samples. These results support a settlement scenario with repeated population bottlenecks. The mtDNA HVI haplotype frequencies in this study, combined with those from previous studies, were used in computer simulations to estimate the number of females required to found the current Maori population. Approximately 56 women, and an equal or greater number of men, were estimated to have been present in the founding waka. This estimate is too large to support any settlement models with a small number of founders and effectively rules out the possibility of 'accidental discovery', instead supporting a planned settlement of Aotearoa in agreement with traditional knowledge. Analysis of interdisciplinary data has allowed current theories for the origins of the Polynesians and proto-Austronesians to be consolidated by introducing a 'Synthetic Total Evidence Theory'. It is likely that once published this theory will stimulate intense discussion and debate and will continue to grow as further evidence is obtained and incorporated into this model.</p>

Results of the molecular biology study of goat’s mange mites

Demodicosis, also called demodectic mange infests human and animals worldwide. It is a skin parasitic disease caused by demodex mites. Of 615 goats randomly selected from Central and Western regions of Mongolia were carried out to detect the demodectic mange by clinical examination. The prevalence of Demodicosis was 1.3% in goats. It was considered as suspected /diseased that the skin had multifocal nodules with grayish, dried rough surface which were approximately 3-9 mm in diameter. The encrusted lesions of skin, especially over face, necks, shoulder blades, groin and hair loss were found on selected Mongolian goats. The samples of skinscrapings from the goats with above clinical signs were collected. The mites were identified as Demodex spp by parasitological examination. DNA was extracted from positive samples. The specific genes (mt16s rDNA) of Demodex spp. was detected by PCR. The 16s rDNA fragment was sequenced and aligned. The presence of D.-caprae in Mongolian goats is confirmed by molecular biological study. Ямааны хамуу өвчнийг молекул биологийн түвшинд оношлосон дүн Хураангуй: Демодекоз нь хачгаар үүсгэгддэг, дэлхийд түгээмэл тархсан хүн, мал, амьтны арьсанд эмгэг нөлөө үзүүлдэг өвчин юм. Бид санамсаргүй түүврын аргаар Монгол орны баруун болон төвийн бүсийг төлөөлүүлэн нийт 615 толгой ямаанд демодекоз эмнэлзүйн үзлэг хийхэд 1.3 % нь демодекоз болон уг өвчний сэжигтэй байв. Өөрөөр хэлбэл, эрүү, шанаа, нүдний дээд, доод зовхи, хүзүү, дал, хонго, цавины арьсанд 0.3-0.9 см хэмжээтэй товхойсон барзгар гадаргуутай, арьсны зарим хэсэгт яршиж хогжруутсан, хуурайдуу, саарал өнгийн олон тооны гүврүүтэй, үс нь унасан шинж тэмдэгтэй ямааг өвчтэй, сэжигтэй гэж үнэлэв. Дээрх шинж тэмдэгтэй ямааны арьсны эмгэгтэй хэсгээс авсан дээж (хусдас)-д хийсэн шимэгч судлалын шинжилгээгээр Demodex төрлийн хачиг илрэв. Хачиг илэрсэн (эерэг) дээжнээс ДНХ-ийг ялгаж Полимеразын гинжин урвал (ПГУ)-аар шинжлэхэд mt 16S rDNA генийн хэсэг (339 хос суурь) илэрч Demodex төрлийн хачиг болох нь баталгаажив. Уг ДНХ-ийн нуклеотидын дарааллыг тогтоож, гений мэдээлэлтэй харьцуулахад бидний судалгаанд хамрагдсан Монгол ямаанд D.caprae зүйл хачиг шимэгчлэн демодекоз үүсгэснийг молекул биологийн түвшинд анх тутам тогтоосон болно. ТҮЛХҮҮР ҮГ: ПГУ, Demodex caprae, mt 16S rDNA, ямаа

Improved G-AgarTrap: A highly efficient transformation method for intact gemmalings of the liverwortMarchantia polymorpha

Liverworts are key species for studies of plant evolution, occupying a basal position among the land plants.Marchantia polymorphahas emerged as a highly studied model liverwort, and many relevant techniques, including genetic transformation, have been established for this species.Agrobacterium-mediated transformation is widely used in many plant species because of its low cost. Recently, we developed a simplifiedAgrobacterium-mediated method for transformingM. polymorpha, known as AgarTrap (agar-utilized transformation with pouring solutions). The AgarTrap procedure, which involves culturing the liverwort tissue in various solutions on a single solid medium, yields up to a hundred independent transformants. AgarTrap is a simple procedure, requiring minimal expertise, cost, and time.Here, we investigated four factors that influence AgarTrap transformation efficiency: (1) humidity, (2) surfactant in the transformation buffer, (3)Agrobacteriumstrain, and (4) light/dark condition. We adapted the AgarTrap protocol for transforming intact gemmalings, achieving an exceptionally high transformation efficiency of 97%. The improved AgarTrap method will enhance the molecular biological study ofM. polymorpha. The present study also provides new possibilities for improving transformation techniques for a variety of plant species.