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İpekdal K, Burban C, Sauné L, Battisti A, Kerdelhué C. From refugia to contact: Pine processionary moth hybrid zone in a complex biogeographic setting. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:1623-1638. [PMID: 32076539 PMCID: PMC7029074 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2019] [Revised: 12/16/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Contact zones occur at the crossroad between specific dispersal routes and are facilitated by biogeographic discontinuities. Here, we focused on two Lepidoptera sister species that come in contact near the Turkish Straits System (TSS). We aimed to infer their phylogeographic histories in the Eastern Mediterranean and finely analyze their co-occurrence and hybridization patterns in this biogeographic context. We used molecular mitochondrial and nuclear markers to study 224 individuals from 42 localities. We used discordances between markers and complementary assignment methods to identify and map hybrids and parental individuals. We confirmed the parapatric distribution of Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) in the west and Thaumetopoea wilkinsoni in the east and identified a narrow contact zone. We identified several glacial refugia of T. wilkinsoni in southern Turkey with a strong east-west differentiation in this species. Unexpectedly, T. pityocampa crossed the TSS and occur in northern Aegean Turkey and some eastern Greek islands. We found robust evidence of introgression between the two species in a restricted zone in northwestern Turkey, but we did not identify any F1 individuals. The identified hybrid zone was mostly bimodal. The distributions and genetic patterns of the studied species were strongly influenced both by the Quaternary climatic oscillations and the complex geological history of the Aegean region. T. pityocampa and T. wilkinsoni survived the last glacial maximum in disjoint refugia and met in western Turkey at the edge of the recolonization routes. Expanding population of T. wilkinsoni constrained T. pityocampa to the western Turkish shore. Additionally, we found evidence of recurrent introgression by T. wilkinsoni males in several T. pityocampa populations. Our results suggest that some prezygotic isolation mechanisms, such as differences in timing of the adult emergences, might be a driver of the isolation between the sister species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Laure Sauné
- INRAE, CBGP (INRAE, CIRAD, RD, Montpellier Supagro, Univ. Montpellier)MontpellierFrance
| | | | - Carole Kerdelhué
- INRAE, CBGP (INRAE, CIRAD, RD, Montpellier Supagro, Univ. Montpellier)MontpellierFrance
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2
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Stefanović M, Djan M, Veličković N, Beuković D, Lavadinović V, Zhelev CD, Demirbaş Y, Paule L, Gedeon CI, Mamuris Z, Posautz A, Beiglböck C, Kübber-Heiss A, Suchentrunk F. Positive selection and precipitation effects on the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 gene in brown hares (Lepus europaeus) under a phylogeographic perspective. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0224902. [PMID: 31703111 PMCID: PMC6839855 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0224902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2019] [Accepted: 10/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies in hares and jackrabbits have indicated that positive selection has shaped the genetic diversity of mitochondrial genes involved in oxidative phosphorylation, which may affect cellular energy production and cause regional adaptation to different environmental (climatic) pressures. In the present study, we sequenced the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 (MT-ND6) gene of 267 brown hares (L. europaeus) from Europe and Asia Minor and tested for positive selection and adaptations acting on amino acid sequences (protein variants). Molecular diversity indices and spatial clustering were assessed by DnaSP, Network, and Geneland, while the presence of selection signals was tested by codeml in PAML, and by using the Datamonkey Adaptive Evolution web server. The SPSS software was used to run multinomial regression models to test for possible effects of climate parameters on the currently obtained protein variants. Fifty-eight haplotypes were revealed with a haplotype diversity of 0.817, coding for 17 different protein variants. The MT-ND6 phylogeographic pattern as determined by the nucleotide sequences followed the earlier found model based on the neutrally evolving D-loop sequences, and reflected the earlier found phylogeographic Late Pleistocene scenario. Based on several selection tests, only one codon position consistently proved to be under positive selection. It did occur exclusively in the evolutionarily younger hares from Europe and it gave rise to several protein variants from the southeastern and south-central Balkans. The occurrence of several of those variants was significantly favored under certain precipitation conditions, as proved by our multinomial regression models. Possibly, the great altitudinal variation in the Balkans may have lead to bigger changes in precipitation across that region and this may have imposed an evolutionarily novel selective pressure on the protein variants and could have led to regional adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milomir Stefanović
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
- * E-mail:
| | - Mihajla Djan
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
| | - Nevena Veličković
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
| | - Dejan Beuković
- Faculty of Agriculture, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
| | | | | | - Yasin Demirbaş
- Faculty of Science and Arts, University of Kırıkkale, Kırıkkale, Turkey
| | - Ladislav Paule
- Faculty of Forestry, Technical University, Zvolen, Slovakia
| | - Csongor István Gedeon
- Institute for Soil Sciences and Agricultural Chemistry, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zissis Mamuris
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, Larrisa, Greece
| | - Annika Posautz
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christoph Beiglböck
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Anna Kübber-Heiss
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Franz Suchentrunk
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Giannoulis T, Plageras D, Stamatis C, Chatzivagia E, Tsipourlianos A, Birtsas P, Billinis C, Suchentrunk F, Mamuris Z. Islands and hybrid zones: combining the knowledge from "Natural Laboratories" to explain phylogeographic patterns of the European brown hare. BMC Evol Biol 2019; 19:17. [PMID: 30630408 PMCID: PMC6329171 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-019-1354-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2018] [Accepted: 01/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The aim of the study was to use hybrid populations as well as island populations of the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) to explore the effect of evolutionary events, such as the post-deglaciation translocations, spontaneous and human-mediated, local adaptation and the genetic drift in the shaping of the phylogeographic patterns of the species. For this purpose, we used molecular markers, both nuclear and mitochondrial, that are indicative for local adaptation as well as neutral markers to elucidate the patterns of population differentiation based on geographic isolation and the clade of origin. To broaden our analysis, we included data from our previous studies concerning mainland populations, to explore the genetic differentiation in the base of the geographic origin (mainland/island) of the populations. Results Our results suggest that local adaptation shapes the differentiation in both genomes, favoring specific alleles in nuclear genes (e.g. DQA) or haplotypes in mtDNA (e.g. Control Region, CR). mtDNA variation was found to be in a higher level and was able to give a phylogeographic signal for the populations. Furthermore, the degree of variation was influenced not only by the geographic origin, but also by the clade of origin, since specific island populations of Anatolian origin showed a greater degree of variation compared to specific mainland populations of the European clade. Concerning the hybrid population, we confirmed the existence of both clades in the territory and we provided a possible explanation for the lack of introgression between the clades. Conclusion Our results indicate that the Quaternary’s climatic oscillations played a major role in the shaping of the phylogeographic patterns of the species, by isolating populations in the distinct refugia, where they adapted and differentiate in allopatry, leading to genome incompatibilities observed nowadays. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12862-019-1354-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Themistoklis Giannoulis
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Plageras
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece
| | - Costas Stamatis
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece
| | - Eleni Chatzivagia
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece
| | - Andreas Tsipourlianos
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece
| | - Periklis Birtsas
- Department of Forestry and Natural Environment Administration, TEI of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece
| | | | - Franz Suchentrunk
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Zissis Mamuris
- Laboratory of Genetics, Comparative and Evolutionary Biology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, Mezourlo, Larissa, Greece.
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Spatial genetics of brown hares (Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778) from Turkey: Different gene pool architecture on either side of the Bosphorus? Mamm Biol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mambio.2018.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Minoudi S, Papapetridis I, Karaiskou N, Chatzinikos E, Triantaphyllidis C, Abatzopoulos TJ, Triantafyllidis A. Genetic analyses of brown hare (Lepus europaeus) support limited migration and translocation of Greek populations. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0206327. [PMID: 30379887 PMCID: PMC6209229 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0206327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Accepted: 10/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerous studies have shown that the phylogeography of many species, including European brown hare, has been affected by the climatic oscillations of the Pleistocene. During this period the Balkans acted as a major refugium offering habitable conditions for many species. However, few studies have focused on the specific role of the Greek peninsula in the phylogeographic history of species in this southernmost margin of Balkans. We, therefore analyzed a 528 bp fragment of the D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA in 154 wild brown hare individuals from unsampled areas from both mainland and island Greece and compared it to 310 available brown hare sequences (including 110 Greek samples). Newly identified haplotypes show characteristic distribution in specific Greek areas reinforcing the theory that Greece can be considered as a subrefuge within Balkans for a number of species, with several “refugia within refugia” spots, holding significant genetic diversity. No haplotypes from wild Greek individuals clustered with the Central and Western Europe group revealing a minimal contribution of this area to the colonization of central Europe. One hundred and ten reared brown hares were also analyzed to elucidate the impact of introductions on local populations. Most of these samples presented close genetic affinity with haplotypes from Central and Western Europe indicating that farms in Greece use breeders from those areas. Therefore, despite human translocation of individuals, the genetic structure of brown hare has mostly been influenced by paleoclimatic conditions and minimally by human actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Styliani Minoudi
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Ioannis Papapetridis
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Nikoleta Karaiskou
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | | | - Costas Triantaphyllidis
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Theodore J. Abatzopoulos
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Alexandros Triantafyllidis
- Deparment of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
- * E-mail:
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6
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Large-scale mitochondrial DNA analysis reveals new light on the phylogeography of Central and Eastern-European Brown hare (Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778). PLoS One 2018; 13:e0204653. [PMID: 30286121 PMCID: PMC6171851 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0204653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2018] [Accepted: 09/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
European brown hare, Lepus europaeus, from Central and Eastern European countries (Hungary, Poland, Serbia, Lithuania, Romania, Georgia and Italy) were sampled, and phylogenetic analyses were carried out on two datasets: 1.) 137 sequences (358 bp) of control region mtDNA; and 2.) 105 sequences of a concatenated fragment (916 bp), including the cytochrome b, tRNA-Thr, tRNA-Pro and control region mitochondrial DNA. Our sequences were aligned with additional brown hare sequences from GenBank. A total of 52 and 51 haplotypes were detected within the two datasets, respectively, and assigned to two previously described major lineages: Anatolian/Middle Eastern (AME) and European (EUR). Furthermore, the European lineage was divided into two subclades including South Eastern European (SEE) and Central European (CE). Sympatric distribution of the lineages of the brown hare in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe revealed contact zones there. BAPS analysis assigned sequences from L. europaeus to five genetic clusters, whereas CE individuals were assigned to only one cluster, and AME and SEE sequences were each assigned to two clusters. Our findings uncover numerous novel haplotypes of Anatolian/Middle Eastern brown hare outside their main range, as evidence for the combined influence of Late Pleistocene climatic fluctuations and anthropogenic activities in shaping the phylogeographic structure of the species. Our results support the hypothesis of a postglacial brown hare expansion from Anatolia and the Balkan Peninsula to Central and Eastern Europe, and suggest some slight introgression of individual haplotypes from L. timidus to L. europaeus.
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7
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Bertl J, Ringbauer H, Blum MG. Can secondary contact following range expansion be distinguished from barriers to gene flow? PeerJ 2018; 6:e5325. [PMID: 30294507 PMCID: PMC6171497 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.5325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2016] [Accepted: 07/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Secondary contact is the reestablishment of gene flow between sister populations that have diverged. For instance, at the end of the Quaternary glaciations in Europe, secondary contact occurred during the northward expansion of the populations which had found refugia in the southern peninsulas. With the advent of multi-locus markers, secondary contact can be investigated using various molecular signatures including gradients of allele frequency, admixture clines, and local increase of genetic differentiation. We use coalescent simulations to investigate if molecular data provide enough information to distinguish between secondary contact following range expansion and an alternative evolutionary scenario consisting of a barrier to gene flow in an isolation-by-distance model. We find that an excess of linkage disequilibrium and of genetic diversity at the suture zone is a unique signature of secondary contact. We also find that the directionality index ψ, which was proposed to study range expansion, is informative to distinguish between the two hypotheses. However, although evidence for secondary contact is usually conveyed by statistics related to admixture coefficients, we find that they can be confounded by isolation-by-distance. We recommend to account for the spatial repartition of individuals when investigating secondary contact in order to better reflect the complex spatio-temporal evolution of populations and species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Bertl
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Vienna Graduate School of Population Genetics, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Harald Ringbauer
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Michael G.B. Blum
- Laboratoire TIMC-IMAG, UMR 5525, Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Grenoble, France
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Beugin MP, Letty J, Kaerle C, Guitton JS, Muselet L, Queney G, Pontier D. A single multiplex of twelve microsatellite markers for the simultaneous study of the brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and the mountain hare (Lepus timidus). Ecol Evol 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Pauline Beugin
- ANTAGENE; Animal Genomics Laboratory; La Tour de Salvagny (Lyon) France
- Univ Lyon; Université Lyon 1; CNRS; Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR5558; F-69622 Villeurbanne France
| | - Jérôme Letty
- Research Department; National Hunting and Wildlife Agency (ONCFS); Juvignac Nantes France
| | - Cécile Kaerle
- ANTAGENE; Animal Genomics Laboratory; La Tour de Salvagny (Lyon) France
| | - Jean-Sébastien Guitton
- Research Department; National Hunting and Wildlife Agency (ONCFS); Juvignac Nantes France
| | - Lina Muselet
- ANTAGENE; Animal Genomics Laboratory; La Tour de Salvagny (Lyon) France
| | - Guillaume Queney
- ANTAGENE; Animal Genomics Laboratory; La Tour de Salvagny (Lyon) France
| | - Dominique Pontier
- Univ Lyon; Université Lyon 1; CNRS; Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR5558; F-69622 Villeurbanne France
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Giannoulis T, Stamatis C, Tsipourlianos A, Mamuris Z. Mitogenomic analysis in European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) proposes genetic and functional differentiation between the distinct lineages. Mitochondrial DNA A DNA Mapp Seq Anal 2017; 29:353-360. [PMID: 28129721 DOI: 10.1080/24701394.2016.1278540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
European brown hare is a small game species spreading across Europe to Asia Minor, with important economic traits. Population genetics studies using mitochondrial DNA markers have revealed the existence of two major phylogeographic lineages, the European and the Anatolian. European lineage is further divided in the European type halpogroup and south-eastern European type halpogroup, while Anatolian consists only by the Anatolian/Middle Eastern type halpogroup. All three haplogroups show a discrete geographical distribution, with an overlapping zone forming in North-East Greece and Bulgaria, forming a contact zone. Despite the existence of a contact zone, European haplotype was never detected in Anatolia and vice versa, proposing the presence of genetic barriers responsible for this phenomenon. In this study, we analyzed the whole mitochondrial genomes of specimens originating from both lineages, aiming to detect the genetic and functional differentiation of the oxidative phosphorylation complexes that are encoded by mtDNA that could lead gradually to the reproductive isolation of the lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Costas Stamatis
- a Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology , University of Thessaly , Larissa , Greece
| | - Andreas Tsipourlianos
- a Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology , University of Thessaly , Larissa , Greece
| | - Zissis Mamuris
- a Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology , University of Thessaly , Larissa , Greece
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10
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Amoutzias GD, Giannoulis T, Moutou KA, Psarra AMG, Stamatis C, Tsipourlianos A, Mamuris Z. SNP Identification through Transcriptome Analysis of the European Brown Hare (Lepus europaeus): Cellular Energetics and Mother's Curse. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0159939. [PMID: 27459096 PMCID: PMC4961287 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0159939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2016] [Accepted: 07/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The European brown hare (Lepus europaeus, Pallas 1778) is an important small game species in Europe. Due to its size and position in the food chain, as well as its life history, phenotypic variation and the relatively recent speciation events, brown hare plays an important role in the structure of various ecosystems and has emerged as an important species for population management and evolutionary studies. In order to identify informative SNPs for such studies, heart and liver tissues of three samples from the European lineage and a three-sample pool from the Anatolian lineage were subjected to RNA-Sequencing analysis. This effort resulted in 9496 well-assembled protein-coding sequences with close homology to human. After applying very stringent filtering criteria, 66185 polymorphic sites were identified in 7665 genes/cds and 2050 of those polymorphic sites are potentially capable of distinguishing the European from the Anatolian lineage. From these distinguishing mutations we focused on those in genes that are involved in cellular energy production, namely the glycolysis, Krebs cycle and the OXPHOS machinery. A selected set of SNPs was also validated by Sanger sequencing. By simulating the three European individuals as one pool, no substantial informative-SNP identification was lost, making it a cost-efficient approach. To our knowledge this is the first attempt to correlate the differentiation in both nuclear and mitochondrial genome between the two different lineages of L. europaeus with the observed spatial partitioning of the lineages of the species, proposing a possible mechanism that is maintaining the reproductive isolation of the lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grigoris D. Amoutzias
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Themistoklis Giannoulis
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Katerina A. Moutou
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Anna-Maria G. Psarra
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Costas Stamatis
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Andreas Tsipourlianos
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
| | - Zissis Mamuris
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, 41221, Larissa, Greece
- * E-mail:
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11
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Sokos C, Birtsas P, Papaspyropoulos KG, Tsachalidis E, Giannakopoulos A, Milis C, Spyrou V, Manolakou K, Valiakos G, Iakovakis C, Athanasiou LV, Sfougaris A, Billinis C. Mammals and habitat disturbance: the case of brown hare and wildfire. Curr Zool 2016; 62:421-430. [PMID: 29491931 PMCID: PMC5804280 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zow020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2015] [Accepted: 01/24/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecosystem disturbances, such as wildfires, are driving forces that determine ecology and conservation measures. Species respond differentially to wildfires, having diverse post-fire population evolution. This study reports, for first time, the responses of brown hare (Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778) to wildfires. Hare relative abundance, age ratio, diet quality, body condition, and diseases were studied. Fire influence on vegetation was calculated at a micro-scale level. Hare abundance was lower the first year after wildfires in burned relative to unburned areas. The reverse was found in the second year when hare abundance was higher in burned areas. Hare abundance in burned areas was also higher in the third and fourth years. In the fifth and sixth years after wildfire no significant difference was found in abundance. At a micro-scale level, higher numbers of hare feces were counted in places with greater wildfire influence on vegetation. Age ratio analysis revealed more juveniles in burned areas, but the same number of neonates in burned and unburned areas, indicating lower mortality of juveniles in burned areas. Reduced predation in burned areas provides the most plausible explanation for our findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christos Sokos
- Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Hellas, Greece.,Institute for Research and Technology Thessaly, Larissa, Hellas, Greece.,Research Division, Hunting Federation of Macedonia and Thrace, Ethnikis, Antistasis 173-175, 55134 Thessaloniki, Hellas, Greece
| | - Periklis Birtsas
- Laboratory of Wildlife, Department of Forestry and Management of Natural Environment, Technological Institute of Thessaly, Karditsa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Konstantinos G Papaspyropoulos
- Research Division, Hunting Federation of Macedonia and Thrace, Ethnikis, Antistasis 173-175, 55134 Thessaloniki, Hellas, Greece
| | - Efstathios Tsachalidis
- Laboratory of Hunting Management, Department of Forestry and Environmental Management, Democritus University of Thrace, Orestiada, Hellas, Greece
| | - Alexios Giannakopoulos
- Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Chrysostomos Milis
- Ministry of Rural Development and Foods, Feed Stuff Control Laboratory of Thessaloniki, Thermi, Thessaloniki, Hellas, Greece
| | - Vassiliki Spyrou
- Department of Animal Production, Technological Institute of Thessaly, Larissa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Katerina Manolakou
- Department of Animal Husbandry and Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Hellas, Greece
| | - George Valiakos
- Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Hellas, Greece.,Institute for Research and Technology Thessaly, Larissa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Christos Iakovakis
- Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Hellas, Greece.,Institute for Research and Technology Thessaly, Larissa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Labrini V Athanasiou
- Department of Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Hellas, Greece
| | - Athanasios Sfougaris
- Laboratory of Ecosystem and Biodiversity Management, Faculty of Agriculture, Crop Production and Rural Environment, University of Thessaly, Volos, Hellas, Greece
| | - Charalambos Billinis
- Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Hellas, Greece.,Institute for Research and Technology Thessaly, Larissa, Hellas, Greece
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12
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Sokos C, Andreadis K, Papageorgiou N. Diet adaptability by a generalist herbivore: the case of brown hare in a Mediterranean agroecosystem. Zool Stud 2015; 54:e27. [PMID: 31966114 DOI: 10.1186/s40555-014-0095-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2013] [Accepted: 12/23/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Brown hares (Lepus europaeus) were collected before and after autumn rains from a mixed farmland and scrubland area. The age and sex of each specimen were determined, and microhistological technique was applied to analyze the stomach contents. RESULTS Hares consumed a higher number of plant species in comparison with other studies in continental European farmlands. A different pattern in diet of hare was found, where from a partial herbivory, frugivory, and granivory during the dry period, hares turn to primarily herbivory during the wet period. An expansion of diet breadth and an increase in food consumption was found in the dry season. Farming contributes to the enrichment of diet especially during the dry season. Diet composition was differed between ages, but no significant difference was found between the two sexes. CONCLUSIONS Hare is a facultative generalist herbivore that adapts its diet to the seasonal vegetation changes. In Mediterranean ecosystems, the seeds, fruits, and grapes are important additions to the diet. Results suggest that during the dry period juveniles cannot exploit all the available food resources, such as fruits and seeds, as effectively as adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christos Sokos
- Laboratory of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, School of Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki GR-54124, Hellas (Greece).,Research Division, Hunting Federation of Macedonia and Thrace, Ethnikis, Antistasis 173-175, GR-55134 Thessaloniki, Hellas
| | - Konstantinos Andreadis
- Laboratory of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, School of Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki GR-54124, Hellas (Greece)
| | - Nikolaos Papageorgiou
- Laboratory of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, School of Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki GR-54124, Hellas (Greece)
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