Minimal increase in genetic diversity enhances predation resistance

The importance of species diversity to emergent, ecological properties of communities is increasingly appreciated, but the importance of within‐species genetic diversity for analogous emergent properties of populations is only just becoming apparent. Here, the properties and effects of genetic variation on predation resistance in populations were assessed and the molecular mechanism underlying these emergent effects was investigated. Using biofilms of the ubiquitous bacterium Serratia marcescens, we tested the importance of genetic diversity in defending biofilms against protozoan grazing, a main source of mortality for bacteria in all natural ecosystems. S. marcescens biofilms established from wild‐type cells produce heritable, stable variants, which when experimentally combined, persist as a diverse assemblage and are significantly more resistant to grazing than either wild type or variant biofilms grown in monoculture. This diversity effect is biofilm‐specific, a result of either facilitation or resource partitioning among variants, with equivalent experiments using planktonic cultures and grazers resulting in dominance by a single resistant strain. The variants studied are all the result of single nucleotide polymorphisms in one regulatory gene suggesting that the benefits of genetic diversity in clonal biofilms can occur through remarkably minimal genetic change. The findings presented here provide a new insight on the integration of genetics and population ecology, in which diversity arising through minimal changes in genotype can have major ecological implications for natural populations.     

Rapid increase in southern elephant seal genetic diversity after a founder event

Genetic diversity provides the raw material for populations to respond to changing environmental conditions. The evolution of diversity within populations is based on the accumulation of mutations and their retention or loss through selection and genetic drift, while migration can also introduce new variation. However, the extent to which population growth and sustained large population size can lead to rapid and significant increases in diversity has not been widely investigated. Here, we assess this empirically by applying approximate Bayesian computation to a novel ancient DNA dataset that spans the life of a southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) population, from initial founding approximately 7000 years ago to eventual extinction within the past millennium. We find that rapid population growth and sustained large population size can explain substantial increases in population genetic diversity over a period of several hundred generations, subsequently lost when the population went to extinction. Results suggest that the impact of diversity introduced through migration was relatively minor. We thus demonstrate, by examining genetic diversity across the life of a population, that environmental change could generate the raw material for adaptive evolution over a very short evolutionary time scale through rapid establishment of a large, stable population.     

Effect of urban and industrial wastes on species diversity of the diatom community in a tropical river,Malaysia

Monthly species diversity and other components of diversity of diatom samples collected over a period of one year at eight stations in the Linggi River Basin, Malaysia were analysed. Species diversity ranged between 0.52–3.62 bits individua^–1. Among the four stations located in the Linggi River (sensu stricto), highest diversity values were recorded at a station polluted by rubber effluent, followed by the stations unpolluted from point sources. Lowest diversity was recorded at a station polluted with urban sewage. At Kundor River, highest diversity was recorded at stations located downstream of rubber and palm oil waste discharges. On the whole, diversity values at unpolluted stations were always lower than at mildly polluted stations. Severe organic loadings caused low diversity by reducing the number of species (species richness) but did not increase the evenness (equitability) as expected when compared with unpolluted or mildly polluted stations. The changes in species diversity can be related to changes in diatom community structure and thereby changes in water quality, but cannot be used as an index of water quality.     

DNA遗传标记在山羊遗传多样性研究上的应用

综述DNA遗传标记在山羊的遗传多样性分析上的应用,并分别叙述了RFLP、线粒体DNA多态性、RAID、微卫星标记、AFLP等几个方面目前在山羊上的研究。     

Parallel changes in genetic diversity and species diversity following a natural disturbance

We examined the spatial and temporal variation of species diversity and genetic diversity in a metacommunity comprising 16 species of freshwater gastropods. We monitored species abundance at five localities of the Ain river floodplain in southeastern France, over a period of four years. Using 190 AFLP loci, we monitored the genetic diversity of Radix balthica , one of the most abundant gastropod species of the metacommunity, twice during that period. An exceptionally intense drought occurred during the last two years and differentially affected the study sites. This allowed us to test the effect of natural disturbances on changes in both genetic and species diversity. Overall, local (alpha) diversity declined as reflected by lower values of gene diversity H _S and evenness. In parallel, the among-sites (beta) diversity increased at both the genetic ( F _ST) and species ( F _STC) levels. These results suggest that disturbances can lead to similar changes in genetic and community structure through the combined effects of selective and neutral processes.     

螅状独缩虫(Cachesium polypinum)遗传多样性的RAPD分析

用随机扩增多态ＤＮＡ（ＲＡＰＤ）技术对武汉的汉口（ＣＰ－１）、汉阳（ＣＰ－２）和武昌（ＣＰ－３）三个地区缘毛类的螅状独缩虫（Ｃａｃｈｅｓｉｕｍ ｐｏｌｙｐｉｎｕｍ）进行了遗传多样性分析。结果表明：这种动物存在广泛的变异,三个地域群体之间的遗传相似度为０．６５２２－０．７３８５（平均值为０．６９２１）,各群体之间遗传相似度大小依次为：ＣＰ－２－ＣＰ－３〉ＣＰ－１－ＣＰ－２〉ＣＰ－１－ＣＰ－３。本文对     

Novel polymorphic microsatellites for studying genetic diversity of red Asian arowanas

Asian arowana (Scleropages formosus) is a highly endangered fish species listed in Appendix 1 of CITES since 1980. Fourteen novel polymorphic microsatellites were isolated from a CA-enriched partial genomic DNA library, and were used for studying genetic diversity of 41 red arowanas from the wild population. Surprisingly the average allele number of the 14 polymorphic microsatellites was as high as 12.4/locus. The average observed heterozygosity was 0.78 ranging from 0.51 to 0.95, and the gene diversity was quite high (0.78). All these data suggest that high level of genetic diversity existed in the red Asian arowana population.     

4种红豆杉属植物遗传多样性和遗传关系的RAPD分析

采用RAPD标记研究了分属于4种红豆杉属(Taxus Linn.)植物的68个单株的遗传多样性,并采用UPGMA方法分析68个单株的遗传关系.结果表明:12条RAPD引物共扩增出109条带,其中多态性条带108条,多态性条带百分率为99.1％;平均每条引物扩增出9.1条带.南方红豆杉[T.wallichiana var.mairei (Lemée et Lévl)L.K.Fu et Nan Li.]种内的多态性条带百分率和观察等位基因数均最高;欧洲红豆杉(T.baccata Linn.)种内的有效等位基因数、Nei's基因多样度和Shannon's信息指数均最高;须弥红豆杉(T.wallichiana Zucc.)种内的各项遗传多样性指数均最低.供试4种植物的种内遗传多样度、种间遗传多样度、基因流和种间遗传分化系数分别为0.1745、0.358 6、0.401 7和0.554 5,表明55.45％的遗传变异发生在种间.南方红豆杉和须弥红豆杉遗传距离最近;曼地亚红豆杉(Taxus×media Rehd.)和须弥红豆杉的遗传距离最远.通过聚类分析可将68个单株分为3组,欧洲红豆杉的18个单株和曼地亚红豆杉的18个单株分别各自聚为1组;须弥红豆杉的16个单株和南方红豆杉的16个单株聚为1组,其中须弥红豆杉的16个单株和南方红豆杉的16个单株又各自聚为1个亚组,且南方红豆杉的雌、雄单株也分别聚在同一分支上,表明须弥红豆杉和南方红豆杉遗传关系较近,而欧洲红豆杉与其他3种植物的遗传关系较远.     

Indigenous domestic breeds as reservoirs of genetic diversity: the Argentinean Creole cattle

Contrary to highly selected commercial breeds, indigenous domestic breeds are composed of semi-wild or feral populations subjected to reduced levels of artificial selection. As a consequence, many of these breeds have become locally adapted to a wide range of environments, showing high levels of phenotypic variability and increased fitness under natural conditions. Genetic analyses of three loci associated with milk production (alpha(S1)-casein, kappa-casein and prolactin) and the locus BoLA-DRB3 of the major histocompatibility complex indicated that the Argentinean Creole cattle (ACC), an indigenous breed from South America, maintains high levels of genetic diversity and population structure. In contrast to the commercial Holstein breed, the ACC showed considerable variation in heterozygosity (H(e)) and allelic diversity (A) across populations. As expected, bi-allelic markers showed extensive variation in He whereas the highly polymorphic BoLA-DRB3 showed substantial variation in A, with individual populations having 39-74% of the total number of alleles characterized for the breed. An analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) of nine populations throughout the distribution range of the ACC revealed that 91.9-94.7% of the total observed variance was explained by differences within populations whereas 5.3-8.1% was the result of differences among populations. In addition, the ACC breed consistently showed higher levels of genetic differentiation among populations than Holstein. Results from this study emphasize the importance of population genetic structure within domestic breeds as an essential component of genetic diversity and suggest that indigenous breeds may be considered important reservoirs of genetic diversity for commercial domestic species.     

Social heterosis and the maintenance of genetic diversity at the genome level

Social heterosis is when individuals in groups or neighbourhoods receive a mutualistic benefit from across‐individual genetic diversity. Although it can be a viable evolutionary mechanism to maintain allelic diversity at a given locus, its efficacy at maintaining genome‐wide diversity is in question when multiple loci are being simultaneously selected. Therefore, we modelled social heterosis in a population of haploid genomes of two‐ or three‐linked loci. With such linkages, social heterosis decreases gametic diversity, but maintains allelic diversity. Genomes tend to survive as complimentary pairs, with alternate alleles at each locus (e.g. the pair AbC and aBc). The outcomes of selection appear similar to fitness epistasis but are novel in the sense that phenotypic interactions occur across rather than within individuals. The model’s results strongly suggest that strong linkage across gene loci actually increases the probability that social heterosis maintains significant genetic diversity at the level of the genome.     

Measurement and classification of genetic diversity in okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)

Eighteen accessions of okra of diverse ecological background were evaluated for genetic variability through the techniques of coefficient of racial likeness (CRL) and principal coordinate analysis (PCO). The variation patterns among the accessions were classified by using the techniques of metroglyph analysis and single-linkage cluster analysis. CRL and PCO produced similar results on the diversity of the accessions but the grouping of the accessions by metroglyph analysis and SLCA produced different results. The usefulness of metroglyph analysis depends on the amount of variation accounted for by the two principal characters on which the two co-ordinate axes are constructed. The techniques are compared.     

Birth of a hotspot of intraspecific genetic diversity: notes from the underground

Hotspots of intraspecific diversity have been observed in most species, often within areas of putative Pleistocene refugia. They have thus mostly been viewed as the outcome of prolonged stability of large populations within the refugia. However, recent evidence has suggested that several other microevolutionary processes could also be involved in their formation. Here, we investigate the contribution of these processes to current range-wide patterns of genetic diversity in the Italian endemic mole Talpa romana, using both nuclear (30 allozyme loci) and mitochondrial markers (cytochrome b sequences). Southern populations of this species showed an allozyme variation that is amongst the highest observed in small mammals (most populations had an expected heterozygosity of 0.10 or above), which was particularly unexpected for a subterranean species. Population genetic, phylogeographic and historical demographic analyses indicated that T. romana populations repeatedly underwent allopatric differentiations followed by secondary admixture within the refugial range in southern Italy. A prolonged demographic stability was reliably inferred from the mitochondrial DNA data only for a population group located north and east of the Calabrian peninsula, showing comparatively lower levels of allozyme variability, and lacking evidence of secondary admixture with other groups. Thus, our results point to the admixture between differentiated lineages as the main cause of the higher levels of diversity of refugial populations. When compared with the Pleistocene evolutionary history recently inferred for species from both the same and other geographic regions, these results suggest the need for a reappraisal of the role of gene exchange in the formation of intraspecific hotspots of genetic diversity.     

Population genetic diversity influences colonization success

Much thought has been given to the individual‐level traits that may make a species a successful colonizer. However, these traits have proven to be weak predictors of colonization success. Here, we test whether population‐level characteristics, specifically genetic diversity and population density, can influence colonization ability on a short‐term ecological timescale, independent of longer‐term effects on adaptive potential. Within experimentally manipulated populations of the weedy herb Arabidopsis thaliana, we found that increased genetic diversity increased colonization success measured as population‐level seedling emergence rates, biomass production, flowering duration, and reproduction. Additive and non‐additive effects contributed to these responses, suggesting that both individual genotypes (sampling effect) and positive interactions among genotypes (complementarity) contributed to increased colonization success. In contrast, manipulation of plant density had no effect on colonization success. The heightened ability of relatively genetically rich populations to colonize novel habitats, if a general phenomenon, may have important implications for predicting and controlling biological invasions.     

Impact of a population bottleneck on symmetry and genetic diversity in the northern elephant seal

Abstract The northern elephant seal (NES) suffered a severe population bottleneck towards the end of the nineteenth century. Theoretical expectations for the impact of population bottlenecks include the loss of genetic diversity and a loss of fitness (e.g. through a disruption of developmental stability); however, there are few direct demonstrations in natural populations. Here, we report on the comparison of archive samples collected prior to and following the NES population bottleneck. Measures of genetic diversity show a loss of variation consistent with expectations and suggest a strong disruption in the pattern of allele frequencies following the bottleneck. Measures of bilateral characters show an increase in fluctuating asymmetry.     

Strong intraspecific variation in genetic diversity and genetic differentiation in Daphnia magna: the effects of population turnover and population size

Theory predicts that genetic diversity and genetic differentiation may strongly vary among populations of the same species depending on population turnover and local population sizes. Yet, despite the importance of these predictions for evolutionary and conservation issues, empirical studies comparing high‐turnover and low‐turnover populations of the same species are scarce. In this study, we used Daphnia magna, a freshwater crustacean, as a model organism for such a comparison. In the southern/central part of its range, D. magna inhabits medium‐sized, stable ponds, whereas in the north, it occurs in small rock pools with strong population turnover. We found that these northern populations have a significantly lower genetic diversity and higher genetic differentiation compared to the southern/central populations. Total genetic diversity across populations was only about half and average within‐population diversity only about a third of that in southern/central populations. Moreover, an average southern population contains more genetic diversity than the whole metapopulation system in the north. We based our analyses both on silent sites and microsatellites. The similarity of our results despite the contrasting mutation rates of these markers suggests that the differences are caused by contemporary rather than by historical processes. Our findings show that variation in population turnover and population size may have a major impact on the genetic diversity and differentiation of populations, and hence may lead to differences in evolutionary processes like local adaptation, hybrid vigour and breeding system evolution in different parts of a species range.     

华南瓜类疫霉的RAPD遗传多样性分析

为了解来自广东和广西的瓜类疫霉的遗传多样性,利用从180条RAPD引物中所筛选出的多态扩增性强、重复性好的12条引物,对分离自两省区的96株瓜类疫霉进行了全基因组DNA遗传多样性分析和指纹图谱构建。通过对供试菌株的RAPD-PCR扩增,共获得135条DNA标记谱带,其中124条为多态性谱带,多态检测率为91.9%。利用NTSYSpc Version2.1软件对供试菌株间的遗传距离进行聚类分析并构建系统树,以遗传相似系数0.81为阈值,将96个供试菌株划分为12个RAPD群,多数分离物之间遗传相似性较低,在DNA水平上存在显著的遗传变异,具有较丰富的遗传多样性。不同地区间菌株的遗传分化程度不同,分离自黄瓜的菌株遗传分化明显高于分离自冬瓜的菌株。RAPD群与菌株地理来源、分离寄主、致病力、交配型及甲霜灵抗性均无明显的相关性。     

中国甘蓝型油菜遗传多样性的RAPD分子标记

本文利用ＲＡＰＤ方法和统计学分析,对我国７省市和国外引进的总计４０份甘蓝型油菜品种的遗传多样性进行了研究。结果表明,４０个品种的甘蓝型油菜存在着广泛的遗传变异,根据ＲＡＰＤ指纹图谱,通过在ＤＮＡ分子水平上的聚类分析可以将它们分为３大类群,反映出这些品种之间的亲缘关系,并对如何引进甘蓝型油菜资源进行了初浅的讨论。