Macrogeographic variation in mitochondrial DNA of meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

Abstract

PLANTE, Y., BOAG, P. T., and WHITE, B. N. 1989. Macrogeographic variation in mitochondrial DNA of meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus). Can. J. Zool. 67: 158 -167. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from 99 meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus) collected in 13 localities and from 2 Townsend's voles (M. townsendii) from a single locality was assayed for restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) with 13 restriction endonucleases. There was evidence of extensive mtDNA sequence heterogeneity within and among meadow vole populations. Thirty-eight different mtDNA composite phenotypes were found. Two cominon mtDNA composite phenotypes were shared among five populatiyns, the other mtDNA composite phenotypes being characteristic of individual populations. Estimates of nucleon diversity (h) were high (0.303 -0.893), as were measures of intrapopulational nucleotide divergence (p, values ranged from 0.0 to 0.038). Population fluctuations and periodic dispersal are the likely mechanisms maintaining high mtDNA composite phenotype diversity in meadow vole populations. Overall interpopulational nucleotide divergence (p,,) was also high (values ranged from 0.007 to 0.045). Cluster analysis clearly separates M. pennsylvanicus and M. townsendii and suggests the separation of the meadow vole populations into eastern and central groups, but there is little evidence of structure within the regional groups. Based on the zoogeography of the populations sampled, the mtDNA RFLP data support the differentiation of Microtus pennsylvanicus into at least two previously described subspecies.PLANTE, Y., BOAG, P. T., et WHITE, B. N. 1989. Macrogeographic variation in mitochondrial DNA of meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus). Can. J. Zool. 67 : 158 -167. L'ADN des mitochondries (ADNmt) de 99 Campagnols des champs (Microtus pennsylvanicus) capturks en 13 1ocalitCs et de 2 Campagnols de Townsend (Microtus townsendii) du mCme endroit a Ct C analysC au moyen de 13 endonuclCases de restriction, dans le but d'itudier le polymorphisme de la longueur des fragments obtenus. I1 y a une importante hCtCrogCnCitC des sCquences d'ADNmt au sein d'une mCme population et entre les diffkrentes populations chez les Campagnols des champs. Trente-huit phknotypes diffkrents de compositions d' ADNmt ont Ct C reconnus. Deux phknotypes communs se retrouvent chcz cinq populations, les autres sont caractkristiques de populations particulikres. L'estimation de la diversit6 des nuclCons (h) a donnC des valeurs Clevies (0,303 -0,893), la mesure de la divergence des nucliotides au sein d'une mCme population aussi (p, = 0,O-0,038). Les fluctuations dCmographiques et la dispersion pkriodique servent probablement a maintenir ClevCe la diversit6 des phCnotypes des compositions d'ADNmt chez les populations de Campagnols des champs. La divergence des nuclCotides entre toutes les populations (p,,) est Cgalement ClevCe (0,007 -0,045). L'analyse des groupements sCpare clairement M. pennsylvanicus et M. townsendii et indique qu'il faudrait faire une distinction entre les groupes de Ca...

Microgeographic variation in allozymes and mitochondrial DNA of <i>Microtus richardsoni</i>, the water vole, in the Beartooth Mountains of Montana and Wyoming, U.S.A.

“…The number of unique haplotypes and their frequencies are similar to those reported by Plante et al (1989a). The total number of haplotypes, the frequency of unique haplotypes localized in each watershed, and the estimated haplotype diversity are summarized in Table 6.…”

“…High diversity values are close to 1.0 and low diversity values are close to 0. Estimates of haplotype diversity ranged from 0.81 in the Rock Creek watershed to 0.28 in the Canyon Creek watershed and were within the range reported for Microtus pennsylvanicus (Plante et al 1989a).…”

“…The size of fragments produced by each restriction enzyme was estimated and ordered into a site map. A mtDNA genome size of about 16 600 base pairs has been observed in other Microtus species and was assumed in development of the site map (Thomas and Beckenbach 1986;Plante et al 1989a). A data matrix with presence-absence (1,0) information for each individual and each restriction enzyme was compiled.…”

“…Restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) have been important for detecting mtDNA heterogeneity in a number of Microtus species (Debry 1989;Plante et al 1989a;Plante et al 1989b;Jaarola and Tegelstrom 1995). The rapid evolution of the mitchondrial genome (Upholt and Dawid 1977;Brown et al 1979;Olivo et al 1983) and the small amount of heterogeneity of mtDNA within an individual (Upholt and Dawid 1977) make mtDNA RFLP analysis a good approach for studying dispersal and population substructure (Kessler and Avise 1985;Avise 1986).…”

Three patterns of mitochondrial DNA nucleotide divergence in the meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus

“…One genus, Microtus, has attracted our attention because of its rapid speciation in North America (Zakrzewski 1985). One of the species, the meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus, has divergent mtDNAs (Plante et al 1989;Pumo et al, unpublished). In preparing mtDNA restriction maps for this species, we used Southern blot hybridization to determine the gene content of the restriction fragments.…”