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Talenti A, Wilkinson T, Cook EA, Hemmink JD, Paxton E, Mutinda M, Ngulu SD, Jayaraman S, Bishop RP, Obara I, Hourlier T, Garcia Giron C, Martin FJ, Labuschagne M, Atimnedi P, Nanteza A, Keyyu JD, Mramba F, Caron A, Cornelis D, Chardonnet P, Fyumagwa R, Lembo T, Auty HK, Michaux J, Smitz N, Toye P, Robert C, Prendergast JGD, Morrison LJ. Continent-wide genomic analysis of the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer). Commun Biol 2024; 7:792. [PMID: 38951693 PMCID: PMC11217449 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06481-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024] Open
Abstract
The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a wild bovid with a historical distribution across much of sub-Saharan Africa. Genomic analysis can provide insights into the evolutionary history of the species, and the key selective pressures shaping populations, including assessment of population level differentiation, population fragmentation, and population genetic structure. In this study we generated the highest quality de novo genome assembly (2.65 Gb, scaffold N50 69.17 Mb) of African buffalo to date, and sequenced a further 195 genomes from across the species distribution. Principal component and admixture analyses provided little support for the currently described four subspecies. Estimating Effective Migration Surfaces analysis suggested that geographical barriers have played a significant role in shaping gene flow and the population structure. Estimated effective population sizes indicated a substantial drop occurring in all populations 5-10,000 years ago, coinciding with the increase in human populations. Finally, signatures of selection were enriched for key genes associated with the immune response, suggesting infectious disease exert a substantial selective pressure upon the African buffalo. These findings have important implications for understanding bovid evolution, buffalo conservation and population management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Talenti
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
| | - Toby Wilkinson
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
| | - Elizabeth A Cook
- International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Kenya, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | - Johanneke D Hemmink
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Kenya, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | - Edith Paxton
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
| | - Matthew Mutinda
- Kenya Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 40241, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | | | - Siddharth Jayaraman
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
| | - Richard P Bishop
- International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | - Isaiah Obara
- Institute for Parasitology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Robert-von-Ostertag-Str. 7-13, 14163, Berlin, Germany
| | - Thibaut Hourlier
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, CB10 1SD, United Kingdom
| | - Carlos Garcia Giron
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, CB10 1SD, United Kingdom
| | - Fergal J Martin
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, CB10 1SD, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Anne Nanteza
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Julius D Keyyu
- Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute, Box 661, Arusha, Tanzania
| | - Furaha Mramba
- Vector and Vector-Borne Diseases Institute, Tanga, Tanzania
| | - Alexandre Caron
- ASTRE, University of Montpellier (UMR), CIRAD, 34090, Montpellier, France
- CIRAD, UMR ASTRE, RP-PCP, Maputo, 01009, Mozambique
- Faculdade Veterinaria, Universidade Eduardo Mondlan, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Daniel Cornelis
- CIRAD, Forêts et Sociétés, 34398, Montpellier, France
- Forêts et Sociétés, University of Montpellier, CIRAD, 34090, Montpellier, France
| | | | - Robert Fyumagwa
- Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute, Box 661, Arusha, Tanzania
| | - Tiziana Lembo
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Harriet K Auty
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Johan Michaux
- Laboratoire de Génétique de la Conservation, Institut de Botanique (Bat. 22), Université de Liège (Sart Tilman), Chemin de la Vallée 4, B4000, Liège, Belgium
| | - Nathalie Smitz
- Royal Museum for Central Africa (BopCo), Leuvensesteenweg 13, 3080, Tervuren, Belgium
| | - Philip Toye
- International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), ILRI Kenya, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | - Christelle Robert
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Genomic and Experimental Medicine, Institute of Genetics and Cancer, University of Edinburgh, Crewe Road South, Edinburgh, EH4 2XU, United Kingdom
| | - James G D Prendergast
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom
| | - Liam J Morrison
- The Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom.
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Roslin, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom.
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Winter S, Coimbra RTF, Helsen P, Janke A. A chromosome-scale genome assembly of the okapi (Okapia johnstoni). J Hered 2022; 113:568-576. [PMID: 35788365 PMCID: PMC9584810 DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esac033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The okapi (Okapia johnstoni), or forest giraffe, is the only species in its genus and the only extant sister group of the giraffe within the family Giraffidae. The species is one of the remaining large vertebrates surrounded by mystery because of its elusive behavior as well as the armed conflicts in the region where it occurs, making it difficult to study. Deforestation puts the okapi under constant anthropogenic pressure, and it is currently listed as “Endangered” on the IUCN Red List. Here, we present the first annotated de novo okapi genome assembly based on PacBio continuous long reads, polished with short reads, and anchored into chromosome-scale scaffolds using Hi-C proximity ligation sequencing. The final assembly (TBG_Okapi_asm_v1) has a length of 2.39 Gbp, of which 98% are represented by 28 scaffolds > 3.9 Mbp. The contig N50 of 61 Mbp and scaffold N50 of 102 Mbp, together with a BUSCO score of 94.7%, and 23 412 annotated genes, underline the high quality of the assembly. This chromosome-scale genome assembly is a valuable resource for future conservation of the species and comparative genomic studies among the giraffids and other ruminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sven Winter
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberganlage, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, Vetmeduni Vienna, Savoyenstraße, Vienna, Austria
| | - Raphael T F Coimbra
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberganlage, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institute for Ecology, Evolution and Diversity, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Straße, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Philippe Helsen
- Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Koningin Astridplein, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Axel Janke
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Senckenberganlage, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (LOEWE-TBG), Senckenberganlage, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institute for Ecology, Evolution and Diversity, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Straße, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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