Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size
Summary: The narwhal (Monodon monoceros) is a highly specialized endemic Arctic cetacean, restricted to the Arctic seas bordering the North Atlantic. Low levels of genetic diversity have been observed across several narwhal populations using mitochondrial DNA and microsatellites. Despite this, the g...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:ca3cc20e8a7d4b2cbbd4dff7222e8b12 2023-05-15T14:47:50+02:00 Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size Michael V. Westbury Bent Petersen Eva Garde Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen Eline D. Lorenzen 2019-05-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 https://doaj.org/article/ca3cc20e8a7d4b2cbbd4dff7222e8b12 EN eng Elsevier http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004219300896 https://doaj.org/toc/2589-0042 2589-0042 doi:10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 https://doaj.org/article/ca3cc20e8a7d4b2cbbd4dff7222e8b12 iScience, Vol 15, Iss , Pp 592-599 (2019) Science Q article 2019 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 2022-12-31T15:31:48Z Summary: The narwhal (Monodon monoceros) is a highly specialized endemic Arctic cetacean, restricted to the Arctic seas bordering the North Atlantic. Low levels of genetic diversity have been observed across several narwhal populations using mitochondrial DNA and microsatellites. Despite this, the global abundance of narwhals was recently estimated at ∼170,000 individuals. However, the species is still considered vulnerable to changing climates due to its high specialization and restricted Arctic distribution. We assembled and annotated a genome from a narwhal from West Greenland. We find relatively low diversity at the genomic scale and show that this did not arise by recent inbreeding, but rather has been stable over an extended evolutionary timescale. We also find that the current large global abundance most likely reflects a recent rapid expansion from a much smaller founding population. : Biological Sciences; Genetics; Evolutionary Biology Subject Areas: Biological Sciences, Genetics, Evolutionary Biology Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Greenland Monodon monoceros narwhal* North Atlantic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Greenland iScience 15 592 599 |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
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English |
topic |
Science Q |
spellingShingle |
Science Q Michael V. Westbury Bent Petersen Eva Garde Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen Eline D. Lorenzen Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
topic_facet |
Science Q |
description |
Summary: The narwhal (Monodon monoceros) is a highly specialized endemic Arctic cetacean, restricted to the Arctic seas bordering the North Atlantic. Low levels of genetic diversity have been observed across several narwhal populations using mitochondrial DNA and microsatellites. Despite this, the global abundance of narwhals was recently estimated at ∼170,000 individuals. However, the species is still considered vulnerable to changing climates due to its high specialization and restricted Arctic distribution. We assembled and annotated a genome from a narwhal from West Greenland. We find relatively low diversity at the genomic scale and show that this did not arise by recent inbreeding, but rather has been stable over an extended evolutionary timescale. We also find that the current large global abundance most likely reflects a recent rapid expansion from a much smaller founding population. : Biological Sciences; Genetics; Evolutionary Biology Subject Areas: Biological Sciences, Genetics, Evolutionary Biology |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Michael V. Westbury Bent Petersen Eva Garde Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen Eline D. Lorenzen |
author_facet |
Michael V. Westbury Bent Petersen Eva Garde Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen Eline D. Lorenzen |
author_sort |
Michael V. Westbury |
title |
Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
title_short |
Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
title_full |
Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
title_fullStr |
Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
title_full_unstemmed |
Narwhal Genome Reveals Long-Term Low Genetic Diversity despite Current Large Abundance Size |
title_sort |
narwhal genome reveals long-term low genetic diversity despite current large abundance size |
publisher |
Elsevier |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 https://doaj.org/article/ca3cc20e8a7d4b2cbbd4dff7222e8b12 |
geographic |
Arctic Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Greenland |
genre |
Arctic Greenland Monodon monoceros narwhal* North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Arctic Greenland Monodon monoceros narwhal* North Atlantic |
op_source |
iScience, Vol 15, Iss , Pp 592-599 (2019) |
op_relation |
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004219300896 https://doaj.org/toc/2589-0042 2589-0042 doi:10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 https://doaj.org/article/ca3cc20e8a7d4b2cbbd4dff7222e8b12 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2019.03.023 |
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iScience |
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15 |
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592 |
op_container_end_page |
599 |
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1766318940420571136 |