| Abstract Detail
Population Genetics Germain-Aubrey, Charlotte [1], Nelson, Cory [2], Soltis, Pamela S. [3]. Microsatellite flanking regions as a source of information for population level studies: the case of Polygala lewtonii. Microsatellites have become popular due to their abundance, and high polymorphism caused by repeat length variation, co-dominant and Mendelian inheritance. The recent cost reduction of genotyping and the facilitation of the construction of primer libraries make them strong and popular candidates for population genetics.
However, microsatellites have their limitations as genetic markers, and can exhibit high levels of allele homoplasy. To resolve uncertainty, one method of gathering more exact data is to associate the microsatellite repeat length with the sequences of the flanking regions of the microsatellites (a compound marker).
In order to explore these compounds markers, we lead a pilot study using Polygala lewtonii. This federally endangered species occurs exclusively in the central Florida scrub, a region with high levels of endemism, and of which only 85% of the surface is remaining due to anthropogenic pressures.
We set out to compare the effectiveness in both simple and compound markers to determine if classical microsatellites alone are adequate genetic tools. Previous studies in fish, humans, and crops have shown that compound microsatellites help palliate to the microsatellite homoplasy problem.
Here, we test for significance in the differences between microsatellites and compound microsatellites’ ability to infer population structure. The results are then interpreted in the light of conservation needs for the species.
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1 - University of Florida, Department of Biology, Florida Museum of Natural History - Dickinson Hall, P.O. Box 117800, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
2 - University of Florida, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, P.O. Box 100245, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
3 - University of Florida, Department of Biology, Florida Museum of Natural History, P.O. Box 117800, Gainesville, FL, 32611-7800, USA
Keywords:
microsatellite
Florida scrub
population genetics
Compound marker
Polygala lewtonii.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Topics
Session: 40
Location: Cottonwood D/Snowbird Center
Date: Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
Time: 10:45 AM
Number: 40006
Abstract ID:534 |
