Adaptation to the High-Arctic island environment despite long-term reduced genetic variation in Svalbard reindeer

Dussex, Nicolas; Tørresen, Ole K.; van der Valk, Tom; Le Moullec, Mathilde; Veiberg, Vebjørn; Tooming-Klunderud, Ave; Skage, Morten; Garmann-Aarhus, Benedicte; Wood, Jonathan; Rasmussen, Jacob A.; Pedersen, Åshild Ø.; Martin, Sarah L.F.; Røed, Knut H.; Jakobsen, Kjetill S.; Dalén, Love; Hansen, Brage B.; Martin, Michael D.

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.107811

Cited by 7 publications

(20 citation statements)

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“…ancient DNA, bottleneck, conservation genomics, genomic erosion, population genomics, Svalbard reindeer et al, 2023) and radiocarbondating evidence (Le Moullec, Martin and Hansen, unpubl. dating of an antler) that the colonization of Svalbard started earlier at around 8000-6000 BP (Dussex et al, 2023). The locations of a sample of carbon-dated ancient bones suggest they subsequently spread across the entire Svalbard archipelago (Le van der Knaap, 1989).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This increase is mainly driven by recovery from the past overharvesting and by climate change improving and enhancing the length of snow-free season (Hansen et al, 2019;Le Moullec et al, 2019;Loe et al, 2020). The Svalbard reindeer genetic diversity is by far the lowest among the Rangifer subspecies (Dussex et al, 2023;Kvie et al, 2016;Yannic et al, 2013). Despite this, local variation in genetic diversity is strong, with decreasing diversity from central Spitsbergen towards the peripheries of the archipelago (Burnett et al, 2023;Kvie et al, 2016;Peeters et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Figure5therein), perhaps because of the strong bottleneck they experienced during the colonization of Svalbard(Dussex et al, 2023).…”

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confidence: 99%

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A palaeogenomic investigation of overharvest implications in an endemic wild reindeer subspecies

Kellner,

Le Moullec,

Ellegaard

et al. 2024

Molecular Ecology

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Overharvest can severely reduce the abundance and distribution of a species and thereby impact its genetic diversity and threaten its future viability. Overharvest remains an ongoing issue for Arctic mammals, which due to climate change now also confront one of the fastest changing environments on Earth. The high‐arctic Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus), endemic to Svalbard, experienced a harvest‐induced demographic bottleneck that occurred during the 17–20th centuries. Here, we investigate changes in genetic diversity, population structure, and gene‐specific differentiation during and after this overharvesting event. Using whole‐genome shotgun sequencing, we generated the first ancient and historical nuclear (n = 11) and mitochondrial (n = 18) genomes from Svalbard reindeer (up to 4000 BP) and integrated these data with a large collection of modern genome sequences (n = 90) to infer temporal changes. We show that hunting resulted in major genetic changes and restructuring in reindeer populations. Near‐extirpation followed by pronounced genetic drift has altered the allele frequencies of important genes contributing to diverse biological functions. Median heterozygosity was reduced by 26%, while the mitochondrial genetic diversity was reduced only to a limited extent, likely due to already low pre‐harvest diversity and a complex post‐harvest recolonization process. Such genomic erosion and genetic isolation of populations due to past anthropogenic disturbance will likely play a major role in metapopulation dynamics (i.e., extirpation, recolonization) under further climate change. Our results from a high‐arctic case study therefore emphasize the need to understand the long‐term interplay of past, current, and future stressors in wildlife conservation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A palaeogenomic investigation of overharvest implications in an endemic wild reindeer subspecies

Kellner,

Le Moullec,

Ellegaard

et al. 2024

Molecular Ecology

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“…Here, we used a chromosome-level assembly of a reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus ) genome 5 as an example of how to utilize the Phylobone database 4 to annotate bone ECM proteins in novel proteomes. The initial Phylobone database included the annotation of six members of the Cervidae family (including Cervus hanglu yarkandensis , Odocoileus virginianus texanus , Cervus canadensis , Cervus elaphus , Muntiacus muntjak and Muntiacus reevesi ), as they have been suggested as potential models for bone regeneration.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The initial Phylobone database included the annotation of six members of the Cervidae family (including Cervus hanglu yarkandensis , Odocoileus virginianus texanus , Cervus canadensis , Cervus elaphus , Muntiacus muntjak and Muntiacus reevesi ), as they have been suggested as potential models for bone regeneration. 4 Although, the reindeer genome has been fully sequenced at a chromosome level, 5 – 7 it was not included in the first version of the database due to the lack of annotation of several proteins. Extracting proteins from the mineral-rich bone ECM is challenging, requiring decalcification and chemical treatments for analysis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of the Phylobone database for the annotation of bone extracellular matrix proteins in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)

Sánchez-Reverté,

Fontcuberta-Rigo,

Nakamura

et al. 2024

Science Progress

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Bone extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins play a key role in bone formation and regeneration, including structural and regulatory functions. The Phylobone database consists of 255 ECM protein groups from 39 species and can be used to support bone research. Here, we gathered bone ECM proteins from reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus), a member of the Cervidae family. The importance of reindeer lies in their ability to regenerate their antlers, in both male and female individuals. Protein sequences were extracted from the National Center for Biotechnology Information's repository and selected by homology searches. We identified 215 proteins and their corresponding functional domains, which are putatively present in the bone ECM of reindeer. Protein sequence alignments have shown a high degree of conservation between R. tarandus and other members of the Cervidae family. This update expands the Phylobone database and shows that it is a useful resource for the preliminary annotation of bone ECM proteins in novel proteomes.

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Inferences about the population history of Rangifer tarandus from Y chromosome and mtDNA phylogenies

Bozlak,

Pokharel,

Weldenegodguad

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Reindeer, called caribou in North America, has a circumpolar distribution and all extant populations belong to the same species (Rangifer tarandus). It has survived the Holocene thanks to its immense adaptability and successful coexistence with humans in different forms of hunting and herding cultures. Here, we examine the paternal and maternal history of Rangifer based on robust Y‐chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) trees representing Eurasian tundra reindeer, Finnish forest reindeer, Svalbard reindeer, Alaska tundra caribou, and woodland caribou. We first assembled Y‐chromosomal contigs, representing 1.3 Mb of single‐copy Y regions. Based on 545 Y‐chromosomal and 458 mtDNA SNPs defined in 55 males, maximum parsimony trees were created. We observed two well separated clades in both phylogenies: the “EuroBeringian clade” formed by animals from Arctic Islands, Eurasia, and a few from North America and the “North American clade” formed only by caribou from North America. The time calibrated Y tree revealed an expansion and dispersal of lineages across continents after the Last Glacial Maximum. We show for the first time unique paternal lineages in Svalbard reindeer and Finnish forest reindeer and reveal a circumscribed Y haplogroup in Fennoscandian tundra reindeer. The Y chromosome in domesticated reindeer is markedly diverse indicating that several male lineages have undergone domestication and less intensive selection on males. This study places R. tarandus onto the list of species with resolved Y and mtDNA phylogenies and builds the basis for studies of the distribution and origin of paternal and maternal lineages in the future.

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Adaptation to the High-Arctic island environment despite long-term reduced genetic variation in Svalbard reindeer

Cited by 7 publications

References 94 publications

A palaeogenomic investigation of overharvest implications in an endemic wild reindeer subspecies

A palaeogenomic investigation of overharvest implications in an endemic wild reindeer subspecies

Use of the Phylobone database for the annotation of bone extracellular matrix proteins in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)

Inferences about the population history of Rangifer tarandus from Y chromosome and mtDNA phylogenies

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