Title
The population genetics of the a-2 globin locus of orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus)
Author(s)
Steiper M.E., Wolfe N.D., Karesh W.B., Kilbourn A.M., Bosi E.J., Ruvolo M.
Published
2005
Publisher
Journal of Molecular Evolution
Abstract
In this study, the molecular population genetics of the orangutan's a-2 globin (HBA2) gene were investigated in order to test for the action of natural selection. Haplotypes from 28 orangutan chromosomes were collected from a 1.46-kilobase region of the a-2 globin locus. While many aspects of the data were consistent with neutrality, the observed heterogeneous distribution of polymorphisms was inconsistent with neutral expectations. Furthermore, a single amino acid variant, found in both the Bornean and the Sumatran orangutan subspecies, was associated with different alternative synonymous variants in each subspecies, suggesting that the allele may have spread separately through the two subspecies after two distinct origination events. This variant is not in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). These observations are consistent with neutral models that incorporate population structure and models that invoke selection. The orangutan Plasmodium parasite is a plausible selective agent that may underlie the variation at a-2 globin in orangutans. © Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2005.
Keywords
alpha globin; amino acid; allele; article; chromosome; controlled study; gene locus; genetic polymorphism; haplotype; nonhuman; nucleotide sequence; orang utan; Plasmodium; population genetics; population structure; Animals; Ape Diseases; Base Sequence; DNA Primers; Gene Components; Genetics, Population; Globins; Haplotypes; Indonesia; Linkage Disequilibrium; Malaria; Microsatellite Repeats; Models, Genetic; Molecular Sequence Data; Plasmodium; Polymorphism, Genetic; Pongo pygmaeus; Restriction Mapping; Selection (Genetics); Sequence Alignment; Species Specificity; Homo; Plasmodium parasites; Pongo pygmaeus; Pongo pygmaeus abelii; Primates
Access Full Text
A full-text copy of this article may be available. Please email the WCS Library to request.
![]()
Back
PUB11035