Linked Life Data

17028943

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/17028943

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1-3
pubmed:dateCreated
2006-10-9
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
Microtus is one of the most taxonomically diverse mammalian genera, including over 60 extant species. These rodents have evolved rapidly, as the genus originated less than 2 million years ago. If these numbers are taken at face value, then an average of 30 microtine speciation events have occurred every million years. One explanation for the rapid rate of cladogenesis in Microtus could be the karyotypic differentiation exhibited across the genus: diploid numbers range from 17 to 64. Despite the striking chromosomal variability within Microtus, phenotypic variation is unremarkable. To determine whether nucleotide substitution rates are also elevated in voles, we sequenced the entire mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome of the Eurasian sibling vole (Microtus rossiaemeridionalis). We compared this genome to another previously sequenced vole mtDNA genome (Microtus kikuchii) and performed pairwise sequence comparisons with the mtDNA genomes of ten additional mammalian genera. We found that microtine mtDNA genomes are evolving more rapidly than any other mammalian lineage we sampled, as gauged by the rate of nucleotide substitution across the entire mtDNA genome as well as at each individual protein-coding gene. Additionally, we compared substitution rates within the cytochrome b gene to seven other rodent genera and found that Microtus mtDNA is evolving fastest. The root cause of accelerated evolution in Microtus remains uncertain, but merits further investigation.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
0016-6707
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
128
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
95-108
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:articleTitle
Accelerated molecular evolution in Microtus (Rodentia) as assessed via complete mitochondrial genome sequences.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, 195 Marsteller Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA. dtriant@purdue.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Comparative Study, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.