De genetische diversiteit van Lozano's grondel Pomatoschistus lozanoi (Teleostei, Gobiidae) op het Belgisch en Europees Continentaal Plat op basis van mitochondriaal DNA
Vangenck, D. (2000). De genetische diversiteit van Lozano's grondel Pomatoschistus lozanoi (Teleostei, Gobiidae) op het Belgisch en Europees Continentaal Plat op basis van mitochondriaal DNA. MSc Thesis. Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL): Leuven. 107 pp.
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Document type: Dissertation
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| Abstract |
P. minutus and P. lozanoi are considered as separate species based on morphological, ecological and genetic ditterences. Pomatoschistus spp. are an important source of food for economically important piscivorous fish and play a major role in host-parasite relationships. The adult gobies perform a spawning migration towards the coast in early spring. Eggs hatch after several weeks and the larvae stay in the zooplankton for several weeks. During this period they may be subjected to dispersal by the strong currents in the North Sea. In this study we have examined genetic diversity and structure in populations of P. lozanoi on a small geographical scale (BCP) and on a large scale (ECP). We have screened five populations by using single-stranded conformation polymorphism (SSCP) and DNA-sequencing techniques, to clarify the genetic structure of our gobies and to compare our findings with data on life-history and genetic structure of the species from the literature. We noticed that the populations of P. lozanoi that were investigated show a very high level of within-population variation which points to an ancient genetic history. A strong genetic structure seems to exist based on FST values. However, as more than 90% of the observed variability is explained by within-population variation, FST values are artificially inflated due to the high variability of the marker used (D-loop). Moreover, the (limited) number of shared haplotypes indicates a certain amount of gene flow in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Based on these data. and our knowledge of the life-history of the species we assume that a large amount of population mixing takes place and little differentiation exists on the scale we have studied. However, for more definitive conclusions a larger amount of samples should be screened and or another genetic marker used. |
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