| 1. |
- Geffen, E., et al.
(författare)
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Kin encounter rate and inbreeding avoidance in canids
- 2011
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 20:24, s. 5348-5358
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mating with close kin can lead to inbreeding depression through the expression of recessive deleterious alleles and loss of heterozygosity. Mate selection may be affected by kin encounter rate, and inbreeding avoidance may not be uniform but associated with age and social system. Specifically, selection for kin recognition and inbreeding avoidance may be more developed in species that live in family groups or breed cooperatively. To test this hypothesis, we compared kin encounter rate and the proportion of related breeding pairs in noninbred and highly inbred canid populations. The chance of randomly encountering a full sib ranged between 1–8% and 20–22% in noninbred and inbred canid populations, respectively. We show that regardless of encounter rate, outside natal groups mates were selected independent of relatedness. Within natal groups, there was a significant avoidance of mating with a relative. Lack of discrimination against mating with close relatives outside packs suggests that the rate of inbreeding in canids is related to the proximity of close relatives, which could explain the high degree of inbreeding depression observed in some populations. The idea that kin encounter rate and social organization can explain the lack of inbreeding avoidance in some species is intriguing and may have implications for the management of populations at risk
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| 2. |
- Hasselgren, Malin, et al.
(författare)
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Genomic and fitness consequences of inbreeding in an endangered carnivore
- 2021
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 30:12, s. 2790-2799
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Reduced fitness through genetic drift and inbreeding is a major threat to small and isolated populations. Although previous studies have generally used genetically verified pedigrees to document effects of inbreeding and gene flow, these often fail to capture the whole inbreeding history of the species. By assembling a draft arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) genome and resequencing complete genomes of 23 additional foxes born before and after a well-documented immigration event in Scandinavia, we here look into the genomic consequences of inbreeding and genetic rescue. We found a difference in genome-wide diversity, with 18% higher heterozygosity and 81% lower F-ROH in immigrant F1 compared to native individuals. However, more distant descendants of immigrants (F2, F3) did not show the same pattern. We also found that foxes with lower inbreeding had higher probability to survive their first year of life. Our results demonstrate the important link between genetic variation and fitness as well as the transient nature of genetic rescue. Moreover, our results have implications in conservation biology as they demonstrate that inbreeding depression can effectively be detected in the wild by a genomic approach.
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| 3. |
- McDevitt, Allan D., et al.
(författare)
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Next-generation phylogeography resolves post-glacial colonization patterns in a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), in Europe
- 2022
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 31:3, s. 993-1006
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Carnivores tend to exhibit a lack of (or less pronounced) genetic structure at continental scales in both a geographic and temporal sense and this can confound the identification of post-glacial colonization patterns in this group. In this study we used genome-wide data (using genotyping by sequencing [GBS]) to reconstruct the phylogeographic history of a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), by investigating broad-scale patterns of genomic variation, differentiation and admixture amongst contemporary populations in Europe. Using 15,003 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 524 individuals allowed us to identify the importance of refugial regions for the red fox in terms of endemism (e.g., Iberia). In addition, we tested multiple post-glacial recolonization scenarios of previously glaciated regions during the Last Glacial Maximum using an Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) approach that were unresolved from previous studies. This allowed us to identify the role of admixture from multiple source population post-Younger Dryas in the case of Scandinavia and ancient land-bridges in the colonization of the British Isles. A natural colonization of Ireland was deemed more likely than an ancient human-mediated introduction as has previously been proposed and potentially points to a larger mammalian community on the island in the early post-glacial period. Using genome-wide data has allowed us to tease apart broad-scale patterns of structure and diversity in a widespread carnivore in Europe that was not evident from using more limited marker sets and provides a foundation for next-generation phylogeographic studies in other non-model species.
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| 4. |
- Norén, Karin, et al.
(författare)
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Inbreeding depression in a critically endangered carnivore
- 2016
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 25:14, s. 3309-3318
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Harmful effects arising from matings between relatives (inbreeding) is a long-standing observation that is well founded in theory. Empirical evidence for inbreeding depression in natural populations is however rare because of the challenges of assembling pedigrees supplemented with fitness traits. We examined the occurrence of inbreeding and subsequent inbreeding depression using a unique data set containing a genetically verified pedigree with individual fitness traits for a critically endangered arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) population. The study covered nine years and was comprised of 33 litters with a total of 205 individuals. We recorded that the present population was founded by only five individuals. Over the study period, the population exhibited a tenfold increase in average inbreeding coefficient with a final level corresponding to half-sib matings. Inbreeding mainly occurred between cousins, but we also observed two cases of full-sib matings. The pedigree data demonstrated clear evidence of inbreeding depression on traditional fitness traits where inbred individuals displayed reduced survival and reproduction. Fitness traits were however differently affected by the fluctuating resource abundande. Inbred individuals born at low-quality years displayed reduced first-year survival, while inbred individuals born at high-quality years were less likely to reproduce. The documentation of inbreeding depression in fundamental fitness traits suggests that inbreeding depression can limit population recovery. Introducing new genetic material to promote a genetic rescue effect may thus be necessary for population long-term persistence.
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