1
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Allen J, Sire M, Belouard N, Gorzerino C, Coutellec MA, Mony C, Pannard A, Piscart C. Could landscape ecology principles apply at the microscale? A metabarcoding approach on Trichoptera larvae-associated microbial diversity. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 955:177304. [PMID: 39488271 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2024] [Revised: 10/22/2024] [Accepted: 10/28/2024] [Indexed: 11/04/2024]
Abstract
Landscape heterogeneity is known as a major factor of community structure and composition. Whether this effect of the landscape extends at different scales and particularly at the relevant scale for microorganisms remained to be determined. We used the cases produced by aquatic larvae of Trichoptera, which assemble organic or mineral particles, as naturally replicated experimental systems representing structured substrates to determine the effect of landscape structuration on microbial communities. A metabarcoding approach was used to characterise fungal, bacterial and diatom communities on cases produced by six Trichoptera species and related unstructured organic and mineral substrates. The structuration of the particles constituting the cases was also determined as a measure of microscale landscape. Structured substrates harboured communities of diatoms, fungi and bacteria that differed from those found on unstructured substrates. Microbial communities also differed between organic and mineral substrates. We found a higher microbial diversity on structured substrates than on unstructured substrates. The heterogeneity of the microscale landscape also affected bacterial and fungal communities within cases. These results highlight the importance of microscale landscape structuration for microbial diversity and demonstrate that approaches of landscape ecology could be downscaled to the microscale.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joey Allen
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France; LTSER-FR Zone Atelier Armorique, France.
| | - Marion Sire
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France; Centre de Recherche sur la Biodiversité et l'Environnement (CRBE), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, IRD, Toulouse INP, Université Toulouse 3 - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Toulouse, France
| | - Nadège Belouard
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France
| | - Caroline Gorzerino
- DECOD (Ecosystem Dynamics and Sustainability), INRAE, IFREMER, L'Institut Agro, Rennes, France
| | - Marie-Agnès Coutellec
- DECOD (Ecosystem Dynamics and Sustainability), INRAE, IFREMER, L'Institut Agro, Rennes, France
| | - Cendrine Mony
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France; LTSER-FR Zone Atelier Armorique, France
| | - Alexandrine Pannard
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France; DECOD (Ecosystem Dynamics and Sustainability), INRAE, IFREMER, L'Institut Agro, Rennes, France
| | - Christophe Piscart
- ECOBIO, CNRS, University of Rennes, UMR 6553, Rennes, France; LTSER-FR Zone Atelier Armorique, France
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2
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Martin-Roy R, Thyrring J, Mata X, Bangsgaard P, Bennike O, Christiansen G, Funder S, Gotfredsen AB, Gregersen KM, Hansen CH, Ilsøe PC, Klassen L, Kristensen IK, Ravnholt GB, Marin F, Der Sarkissian C. Advancing responsible genomic analyses of ancient mollusc shells. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0302646. [PMID: 38709766 PMCID: PMC11073703 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0302646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024] Open
Abstract
The analysis of the DNA entrapped in ancient shells of molluscs has the potential to shed light on the evolution and ecology of this very diverse phylum. Ancient genomics could help reconstruct the responses of molluscs to past climate change, pollution, and human subsistence practices at unprecedented temporal resolutions. Applications are however still in their infancy, partly due to our limited knowledge of DNA preservation in calcium carbonate shells and the need for optimized methods for responsible genomic data generation. To improve ancient shell genomic analyses, we applied high-throughput DNA sequencing to 27 Mytilus mussel shells dated to ~111-6500 years Before Present, and investigated the impact, on DNA recovery, of shell imaging, DNA extraction protocols and shell sub-sampling strategies. First, we detected no quantitative or qualitative deleterious effect of micro-computed tomography for recording shell 3D morphological information prior to sub-sampling. Then, we showed that double-digestion and bleach treatment of shell powder prior to silica-based DNA extraction improves shell DNA recovery, also suggesting that DNA is protected in preservation niches within ancient shells. Finally, all layers that compose Mytilus shells, i.e., the nacreous (aragonite) and prismatic (calcite) carbonate layers, with or without the outer organic layer (periostracum) proved to be valuable DNA reservoirs, with aragonite appearing as the best substrate for genomic analyses. Our work contributes to the understanding of long-term molecular preservation in biominerals and we anticipate that resulting recommendations will be helpful for future efficient and responsible genomic analyses of ancient mollusc shells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raphaël Martin-Roy
- Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse, UMR5288, CNRS, University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Jakob Thyrring
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Arctic Research Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Xavier Mata
- Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse, UMR5288, CNRS, University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Pernille Bangsgaard
- Globe Institute, Section for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ole Bennike
- Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Svend Funder
- Globe Institute, Section for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | | | | | - Peter Carsten Ilsøe
- Globe Institute, Section for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | | | | | - Frédéric Marin
- Biogéosciences, UMR6282, CNRS-EPHE-uB, University of Burgundy, EPHE, Dijon, France
| | - Clio Der Sarkissian
- Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse, UMR5288, CNRS, University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
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3
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Gallardo-Escárate C, Valenzuela-Muñoz V, Nuñez-Acuña G, Valenzuela-Miranda D, Tapia FJ, Yévenes M, Gajardo G, Toro JE, Oyarzún PA, Arriagada G, Novoa B, Figueras A, Roberts S, Gerdol M. Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly of the Blue Mussel Mytilus chilensis Reveals Molecular Signatures Facing the Marine Environment. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:876. [PMID: 37107634 PMCID: PMC10137854 DOI: 10.3390/genes14040876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The blue mussel Mytilus chilensis is an endemic and key socioeconomic species inhabiting the southern coast of Chile. This bivalve species supports a booming aquaculture industry, which entirely relies on artificially collected seeds from natural beds that are translocated to diverse physical-chemical ocean farming conditions. Furthermore, mussel production is threatened by a broad range of microorganisms, pollution, and environmental stressors that eventually impact its survival and growth. Herein, understanding the genomic basis of the local adaption is pivotal to developing sustainable shellfish aquaculture. We present a high-quality reference genome of M. chilensis, which is the first chromosome-level genome for a Mytilidae member in South America. The assembled genome size was 1.93 Gb, with a contig N50 of 134 Mb. Through Hi-C proximity ligation, 11,868 contigs were clustered, ordered, and assembled into 14 chromosomes in congruence with the karyological evidence. The M. chilensis genome comprises 34,530 genes and 4795 non-coding RNAs. A total of 57% of the genome contains repetitive sequences with predominancy of LTR-retrotransposons and unknown elements. Comparative genome analysis of M. chilensis and M. coruscus was conducted, revealing genic rearrangements distributed into the whole genome. Notably, transposable Steamer-like elements associated with horizontal transmissible cancer were explored in reference genomes, suggesting putative relationships at the chromosome level in Bivalvia. Genome expression analysis was also conducted, showing putative genomic differences between two ecologically different mussel populations. The evidence suggests that local genome adaptation and physiological plasticity can be analyzed to develop sustainable mussel production. The genome of M. chilensis provides pivotal molecular knowledge for the Mytilus complex.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Gustavo Nuñez-Acuña
- Center for Aquaculture Research, University of Concepción, Concepción 4070386, Chile
| | | | - Fabian J. Tapia
- Center for Aquaculture Research, University of Concepción, Concepción 4070386, Chile
| | - Marco Yévenes
- Laboratorio de Genética, Acuicultura & Biodiversidad, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno 5310230, Chile
| | - Gonzalo Gajardo
- Laboratorio de Genética, Acuicultura & Biodiversidad, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno 5310230, Chile
| | - Jorge E. Toro
- Facultad de Ciencias, Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Limnológicas (ICML), Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia 5110566, Chile
| | - Pablo A. Oyarzún
- Centro de Investigación Marina Quintay (CIMARQ), Universidad Andres Bello, Quintay 2340000, Chile
| | - Gloria Arriagada
- Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago 8370186, Chile
- FONDAP Center for Genome Regulation, Santiago 8370415, Chile
| | - Beatriz Novoa
- Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas (IIM), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), 36208 Vigo, Spain
| | - Antonio Figueras
- Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas (IIM), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), 36208 Vigo, Spain
| | - Steven Roberts
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences (SAFS), University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Marco Gerdol
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, 34127 Trieste, Italy
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4
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Walton K, Scarsbrook L, Mitchell KJ, Verry AJF, Marshall BA, Rawlence NJ, Spencer HG. Application of palaeogenetic techniques to historic mollusc shells reveals phylogeographic structure in a New Zealand abalone. Mol Ecol Resour 2022; 23:118-130. [PMID: 35951485 PMCID: PMC10087340 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Revised: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Natural history collections worldwide contain a plethora of mollusc shells. Recent studies have detailed the sequencing of DNA extracted from shells up to thousands of years old and from various taphonomic and preservational contexts. However, previous approaches have largely addressed methodological rather than evolutionary research questions. Here we report the generation of DNA sequence data from mollusc shells using such techniques, applied to Haliotis virginea Gmelin, 1791, a New Zealand abalone, in which morphological variation has led to the recognition of several forms and subspecies. We successfully recovered near-complete mitogenomes from 22 specimens including 12 dry-preserved shells up to 60 years old. We used a combination of palaeogenetic techniques that have not previously been applied to shell, including DNA extraction optimized for ultra-short fragments and hybridization-capture of single-stranded DNA libraries. Phylogenetic analyses revealed three major, well-supported clades comprising samples from: 1) the Three Kings Islands; 2) the Auckland, Chatham and Antipodes Islands; and 3) mainland New Zealand and Campbell Island. This phylogeographic structure does not correspond to the currently recognized forms. Critically, our non-reliance on freshly collected or ethanol-preserved samples enabled inclusion of topotypes of all recognized subspecies as well as additional difficult-to-sample populations. Broader application of these comparatively cost-effective and reliable methods to modern, historical, archaeological and palaeontological shell samples has the potential to revolutionize invertebrate genetic research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerry Walton
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand
| | - Lachie Scarsbrook
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand.,Palaeogenomics and Bio-Archaeology Research Network, School of Archaeology, 1 South Parks Road, OX1 3TG, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Kieren J Mitchell
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand
| | - Alexander J F Verry
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand.,Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse, CNRS UMR5288, Université de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Bruce A Marshall
- Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 169 Tory St, Te Aro, 6011, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Nicolas J Rawlence
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand
| | - Hamish G Spencer
- Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin 9054, PO, New Zealand
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5
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High-throughput degraded DNA sequencing of subfossil shells of a critically endangered stenoendemic land snail in the Aegean. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2022; 175:107561. [PMID: 35779768 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
High-throughput sequencing has enabled the comprehensive genetic exploration of biological diversity, especially by using natural history collections to study hard-to-find, threatened or even extinct-in-the-wild taxa. Mollusk shells are under-exploited as a source for DNA-based approaches, despite their apparent advantages in the field of conservation genetics. More particularly, degraded DNA techniques combined with high-throughput sequencing have never been used to gain insights about the DNA preservation in land snail subfossil or historical shells. Here, we applied degraded DNA analysis on two historical shells of Levantina rechingeri, a stenoendemic Critically Endangered species that has never been found alive, in order to explore the patterns of DNA preservation on land snail shells originating from the eastern Mediterranean, as well as to infer its molecular phylogenetic placement. Our results showed that centuries to decades-old DNA from an empty shell collected in an Aegean island exhibits characteristic post-mortem damage patterns similar to those observed in ancient DNA from eastern Mediterranean terrestrial animals, setting a precedent for future museomics studies on taxa distributed in areas with similar climate. Finally, genome skimming of the empty shell allowed high coverage of multiple nuclear and mitochondrial loci, enabling the phylogenetic placement of the focal taxon, the re-evaluation of its taxonomic classification, and the revealing of a new Aegean land snail lineage, Aristina genus novum. This approach is a non-invasive way to sample DNA from threatened land snail species and suitable to study the evolutionary history of taxa with cryptic ecology, stenoendemics, or extinct-in-the-wild, as well as old museum specimens.
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6
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Colgan DJ. The potential for using shell proteins in gastropod systematics, assessed in patellogastropod limpets. Zool J Linn Soc 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
This investigation of the application of shell protein information to gastropod systematics initially utilized available Lottia gigantea sequences and a transcriptome of Patelloida mimula developed here. Levels of differentiation between predicted sequences of reciprocal best-hit potential homologues in P. mimula and L. gigantea suggested that they could be useful within families, and possibly in higher taxa using some shell-associated proteins, particularly the peroxidases. Subsequently, proteomic analyses of the acid-soluble fraction of extractions from 17 shells and five tissue samples were conducted by combined liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry with nano-electrospray ionization. All proteins with abundance more than 1.2% in the L. gigantea shell proteome were identified with 100% confidence in most extractions by SearchGui/PeptideShaker analyses. In total, 259 of 379 peptides predicted from in silico digestion of L. gigantea shell proteins were represented by validated peptide spectrum matches in one or more specimens. Systematics applications were investigated by analysing metrics such as protein coverage by peptides and phylogenetic analyses of peptide presence/absence. The investigation suggested that diagnostic profiles based on fixed presence/absence differences can be used to separate species pairs. However, further development of analytical techniques and accumulation of reference databases is required for realising fully the systematics potential of the shell proteome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donald James Colgan
- Malacology, Australian Museum Research Institute, The Australian Museum, 1 William St, Sydney 2010, Australia
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7
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Quenu M, Trewick SA, Daly EE, Morgan-Richards M. Generation of large mitochondrial and nuclear nucleotide sequences and phylogenetic analyses using high-throughput short-read datasets for endangered Placostylinae snails of the southwest Pacific. MOLLUSCAN RESEARCH 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/13235818.2021.1957552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu Quenu
- Wildlife & Ecology, School of Agriculture & Environment, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Steven A. Trewick
- Wildlife & Ecology, School of Agriculture & Environment, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Elizabeth E. Daly
- Wildlife & Ecology, School of Agriculture & Environment, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Mary Morgan-Richards
- Wildlife & Ecology, School of Agriculture & Environment, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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8
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Sullivan AP, Marciniak S, O'Dea A, Wake TA, Perry GH. Modern, archaeological, and paleontological DNA analysis of a human-harvested marine gastropod (Strombus pugilis) from Caribbean Panama. Mol Ecol Resour 2021; 21:1517-1528. [PMID: 33595921 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Although protocols exist for the recovery of ancient DNA from land snail and marine bivalve shells, marine conch shells have yet to be studied from a paleogenomic perspective. We first present reference assemblies for both a 623.7 Mbp nuclear genome and a 15.4 kbp mitochondrial genome for Strombus pugilis, the West Indian fighting conch. We next detail a method to extract and sequence DNA from conch shells and apply it to conch from Bocas del Toro, Panama across three time periods: recently-eaten and discarded (n = 3), Late Holocene (984-1258 before present [BP]) archaeological midden (n = 5), and mid-Holocene (5711-7187 BP) paleontological fossil coral reef (n = 5). These results are compared to control DNA extracted from live-caught tissue and fresh shells (n = 5). Using high-throughput sequencing, we were able to obtain S. pugilis nuclear sequence reads from shells across all age periods: up to 92.5 thousand filtered reads per sample in live-caught shell material, 4.57 thousand for modern discarded shells, 12.1 thousand reads for archaeological shells, and 114 reads in paleontological shells. We confirmed authenticity of the ancient DNA recovered from the archaeological and paleontological shells based on 5.7× higher average frequency of deamination-driven misincorporations and 15% shorter average read lengths compared to the modern shells. Reads also mapped to the S. pugilis mitochondrial genome for all but the paleontological shells, with consistent ratios of mitochondrial to nuclear mapped reads across sample types. Our methods can be applied to diverse archaeological sites to facilitate reconstructions of the long-term impacts of human behaviour on mollusc evolutionary biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis P Sullivan
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Stephanie Marciniak
- Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Aaron O'Dea
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama.,Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Thomas A Wake
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama.,Department of Anthropology and the Costen Institute of Archaeology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - George H Perry
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.,Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.,Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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9
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Martin KR, Waits LP, Parent CE. Teaching an Old Shell New Tricks: Extracting DNA from Current, Historical, and Ancient Mollusk Shells. Bioscience 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biaa164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACT
The use of unconventional DNA sources has increased because the acquisition of traditional samples can be invasive, destructive, or impossible. Mollusks are one group for which novel genetic sources are crucial, but methodology remains relatively undeveloped. Many species are important ecologically and in aquaculture production. However, mollusks have the highest number of extinctions of any taxonomic group. Traditionally, mollusk shell material was used for morphological research and only recently has been used in DNA studies. In the present article, we review the studies in which shell DNA was extracted and found that effective procedures consider taxon-specific biological characteristics, environmental conditions, laboratory methods, and the study objectives. Importantly, these factors cannot be considered in isolation because of their fundamental, sometimes reciprocal, relationships and influence in the long-term preservation and recovery of shell DNA. Successful recovery of shell DNA can facilitate research on pressing ecological and evolutionary questions and inform conservation strategies to protect molluscan diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly R Martin
- Department of Biological Sciences, and Lisette Waits is a distinguished professor of wildlife resources and is head of the Fish and Wildlife Sciences Department, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, United States
| | - Lisette P Waits
- Department of Biological Sciences, and Lisette Waits is a distinguished professor of wildlife resources and is head of the Fish and Wildlife Sciences Department, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, United States
| | - Christine E Parent
- Department of Biological Sciences, and Lisette Waits is a distinguished professor of wildlife resources and is head of the Fish and Wildlife Sciences Department, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, United States
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10
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Grealy A, Langmore NE, Joseph L, Holleley CE. Genetic barcoding of museum eggshell improves data integrity of avian biological collections. Sci Rep 2021; 11:1605. [PMID: 33452280 PMCID: PMC7810714 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79852-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural history collections are often plagued by missing or inaccurate metadata for collection items, particularly for specimens that are difficult to verify or rare. Avian eggshell in particular can be challenging to identify due to extensive morphological ambiguity among taxa. Species identifications can be improved using DNA extracted from museum eggshell; however, the suitability of current methods for use on small museum eggshell specimens has not been rigorously tested, hindering uptake. In this study, we compare three sampling methodologies to genetically identify 45 data-poor eggshell specimens, including a putatively extinct bird’s egg. Using an optimised drilling technique to retrieve eggshell powder, we demonstrate that sufficient DNA for molecular identification can be obtained from even the tiniest eggshells without significant alteration to the specimen’s appearance or integrity. This method proved superior to swabbing the external surface or sampling the interior; however, we also show that these methods can be viable alternatives. We then applied our drilling method to confirm that a purported clutch of Paradise Parrot eggs collected 40 years after the species’ accepted extinction date were falsely identified, laying to rest a 53-year-old ornithological controversy. Thus, even the smallest museum eggshells can offer new insights into old questions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Grealy
- Langmore Group, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Building 46, Canberra, 0200, Australia. .,Australian National Wildlife Collection, National Research Collections Australia, CSIRO, Canberra, 2601, Australia.
| | - Naomi E Langmore
- Langmore Group, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Building 46, Canberra, 0200, Australia
| | - Leo Joseph
- Australian National Wildlife Collection, National Research Collections Australia, CSIRO, Canberra, 2601, Australia
| | - Clare E Holleley
- Australian National Wildlife Collection, National Research Collections Australia, CSIRO, Canberra, 2601, Australia
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