scholarly journals AMY2B Gene Copy-Number Variation Studied by Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) in Three Canids: Red Fox, Arctic Fox, and Chinese Raccoon Dog

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-55
Author(s):  
Michal Antkowiak ◽  
Joanna Nowacka-Woszuk ◽  
Izabela Szczerbal ◽  
Marek Switonski ◽  
Maciej Szydlowski
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Raccoon Dog ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Arctic Foxes ◽  
Number Variation ◽  
Raccoon Dogs

Copy-number variation (CNV) is an important source of genetic variation, and one that played a role in the process of domestication. The adaptation to a new diet is a characteristic feature of dog domestication. We therefore sought genomic signatures of this process. The pancreatic alpha-amylase gene (AMY2B), expressed in the pancreas, exhibits a variable number of copies. It has been shown that the multiplication of this gene is associated with the adaptation of dogs to a starch-rich diet. To date, there has been no information made available on the copy-number variation of AMY2B in canid farm animals. The aim of the present study was to examine the AMY2B copy number in the red fox, the arctic fox, and in the Chinese raccoon dog. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) was used to count the gene copies in 152 animals (60 red foxes, 53 arctic foxes, and 39 Chinese raccoon dogs). We found that the majority (91%) of the animals had two copies of this gene. Of the red foxes and Chinese raccoon dogs, only 8% had three copies, while 32% of the arctic foxes had three copies. Our study showed that the multiplication of the AMY2B gene did not occur over several decades of breeding selection, which may reflect the low-starch feeding regime.

scholarly journals Copy number variation of the putative speciation genes in the European house mouse hybrid zone

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexey Yanchukov ◽  
Zusana Hiadlovska ◽  
Zeljka Pezer ◽  
Milos Macholan ◽  
Jaroslav Pialek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
House Mouse ◽  
Hybrid Zone ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
Gene Copy ◽  
Ancestral Population ◽  
Hybrid Zones ◽  
Interaction Sites ◽  
Number Variation

Hybrid zones have long been described as "windows on the evolutionary process", and studying them has become even more important since the advance in the genome analysis tools. The hybrid zone between two subspecies of the house mouse (Mus musculus musculus and Mus m. domesticus) is a unique model speciation system to study fine scale interactions of recently diverged genomes. Here, we explore the role of gene Copy Number Variation in shaping the barrier to introgression in the hybrid zone within a previously established transect in Central Europe. The CNV of seven pre-selected candidate genes was determined via droplet-digital PCR and analyzed in the context of ~500k SNPs, with the ancestral population (i.e. musculus or domesticus) of every SNP allele previously inferred in the admixed individuals (Baird et al., in prep.). The copy numbers of five genes were clearly associated with the prevalence of either musculus or domesticus genomes across the hybrid zone. In three cases, the highest and/or outlying levels of association were observed at or very close to the annotated positions of the respective gene amplicons, demonstrating the power of our approach in confirming the reference locations of copy number variants. Notably, several other reference locations were recognized as positive outliers in the association with particular CNV genes, possibly representing the extra gene copies and/or their epistatic interaction sites.

scholarly journals High levels of copy number variation of ampliconic genes across major human Y haplogroups

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danling Ye ◽  
Arslan Zaidi ◽  
Marta Tomaszkiewicz ◽  
Corey Liebowitz ◽  
Michael DeGiorgio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
Y Chromosome ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Gene Copy Number ◽  
Gene Families ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
Gene Copy ◽  
Copy Numbers ◽  
Number Variation ◽  
Gene Copy Numbers

AbstractDue to its highly repetitive nature, the human male-specific Y chromosome remains understudied. It is important to investigate variation on the Y chromosome to understand its evolution and contribution to phenotypic variation, including infertility. Approximately 20% of the human Y chromosome consists of ampliconic regions which include nine multi-copy gene families. These gene families are expressed exclusively in testes and usually implicated in spermatogenesis. Here, to gain a better understanding of the role of the Y chromosome in human evolution and in determining sexually dimorphic traits, we studied ampliconic gene copy number variation in 100 males representing ten major Y haplogroups world-wide. Copy number was estimated with droplet digital PCR. In contrast to low nucleotide diversity observed on the Y in previous studies, here we show that ampliconic gene copy number diversity is very high. A total of 98 copy-number-based haplotypes were observed among 100 individuals, and haplotypes were sometimes shared by males from very different haplogroups, suggesting homoplasies. The resulting haplotypes did not cluster according to major Y haplogroups. Overall, only three gene families (DATZ, RBMY, TSPY) showed significant differences in copy number among major Y haplogroups, and the haplogroup of an individual could not be predicted based on his ampliconic gene copy numbers. Finally, we found a significant correlation between copy number variation and individual’s height (for three gene families), but not between the former and facial masculinity/femininity. Our results suggest rapid evolution of ampliconic gene copy numbers on the human Y, and we discuss its causes.

scholarly journals Comparison of microfluidic digital PCR and conventional quantitative PCR for measuring copy number variation

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (11) ◽  
pp. e82-e82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra S. Whale ◽  
Jim F. Huggett ◽  
Simon Cowen ◽  
Valerie Speirs ◽  
Jacqui Shaw ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
Quantitative Pcr ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
Number Variation

scholarly journals Optimisation of droplet digital PCR for determining copy number variation of α-gliadin genes in mutant and gene-edited polyploid bread wheat

2020 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. 102903 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurélie Jouanin ◽  
Rubén Tenorio-Berrio ◽  
Jan G. Schaart ◽  
Fiona Leigh ◽  
Richard G.F. Visser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Copy Number Variation ◽  
Bread Wheat ◽  
Copy Number ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
Droplet Digital Pcr ◽  
Number Variation

scholarly journals Relationships between fox populations and rabies virus spread in northern Canada

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0246508
Author(s):  
Susan A. Nadin-Davis ◽  
Emilie Falardeau ◽  
Alex Flynn ◽  
Hugh Whitney ◽  
H. Dawn Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Population Structure ◽  
Rabies Virus ◽  
Control Region ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Population Substructure ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Northern Canada ◽  
Arctic Foxes ◽  
Northern Alaska

Rabies spreads in both Arctic (Vulpes lagopus) and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) throughout the Canadian Arctic but limited wildlife disease surveillance, due to the extensive landmass of the Canadian north and its small widely scattered human population, undermines our knowledge of disease transmission patterns. This study has explored genetic population structure in both the rabies virus and its fox hosts to better understand factors that impact rabies spread. Phylogenetic analysis of 278 samples of the Arctic lineage of rabies virus recovered over 40 years identified four sub-lineages, A1 to A4. The A1 lineage has been restricted to southern regions of the Canadian province of Ontario. The A2 lineage, which predominates in Siberia, has also spread to northern Alaska while the A4 lineage was recovered from southern Alaska only. The A3 sub-lineage, which was also found in northern Alaska, has been responsible for virtually all cases across northern Canada and Greenland, where it further differentiated into 18 groups which have systematically evolved from a common predecessor since 1975. In areas of Arctic and red fox sympatry, viral groups appear to circulate in both hosts, but both mitochondrial DNA control region sequences and 9-locus microsatellite genotypes revealed contrasting phylogeographic patterns for the two fox species. Among 157 Arctic foxes, 33 mitochondrial control region haplotypes were identified but little genetic structure differentiating localities was detected. Among 162 red foxes, 18 control region haplotypes delineated three groups which discriminated among the Churchill region of Manitoba, northern Quebec and Labrador populations, and the coastal Labrador locality of Cartwright. Microsatellite analyses demonstrated some genetic heterogeneity among sampling localities of Arctic foxes but no obvious pattern, while two or three clusters of red foxes suggested some admixture between the Churchill and Quebec-Labrador regions but uniqueness of the Cartwright group. The limited population structure of Arctic foxes is consistent with the rapid spread of rabies virus subtypes throughout the north, while red fox population substructure suggests that disease spread in this host moves most readily down certain independent corridors such as the northeastern coast of Canada and the central interior. Interestingly the evidence suggests that these red fox populations have limited capacity to maintain the virus over the long term, but they may contribute to viral persistence in areas of red and Arctic fox sympatry.

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