Abstract
Genetic analyses using ancient DNA from Pleistocene and early Holocene fossils have largely relied on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences. Among woolly mammoths, Mammuthus primigenius, mtDNA analyses have identified 2 distinct clades (I and II) that diverged 1-2 Ma. Here, we establish that microsatellite markers can be effective on Pleistocene samples, successfully genotyping woolly mammoth specimens at 2 loci. Although significant differentiation at the 2 microsatellite loci was not detected between 16 clade I and 4 clade II woolly mammoths, our results demonstrate that the nuclear population structure of Pleistocene species can be examined using fast-evolving nuclear microsatellite markers.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 459-464 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of Heredity |
Volume | 103 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 2012 |
Keywords
- Mammuthus primigenius
- ancient DNA
- short tandem repeats
- speciation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biotechnology
- Molecular Biology
- Genetics
- Genetics(clinical)