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Amplification of multiple copies of mitochondrial Cytochrome b gene fragments in the Australian freshwater crayfish, Cherax destructor Clark (Parastacidae: Decapoda)

journal contribution
posted on 2002-07-24, 00:00 authored by T Nguyen, N Murphy, Chris AustinChris Austin
Non-coding copies of fragments of the mitochondrial genome translocated to the nucleus or pseudogenes are being found with increasing frequency in a diversity of organisms. As part of a study to evaluate the utility of a range of mitochondrial gene regions for population genetic and systematic studies of the Australian freshwater crayfish, Cherax destructor (the yabby), we report the first detection of Cytochrome b (Cyt b) pseudogenes in crustaceans. We amplified and sequenced fragments of the mitochondrial Cyt b gene from 14 individuals of C. destructor using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with primers designed from conserved regions of Penaeus monodon and Drosophila melanogaster mitochondrial genomes. The phylogenetic tree produced from the amplified fragments using these primers showed a very different topology to the trees obtained from sequences from three other mitochondrial genes, suggesting one or more nuclear pseudogenes have been amplified. Supporting this conclusion, two highly divergent sequences were isolated from each of two single individuals, and a 2 base pair (bp) deletion in one sequence was observed. There was no evidence to support inadvertent amplification of parasite DNA or contamination of samples from other sources. These results add to other recent observations of pseudogenes suggesting the frequent transfer of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genes to the nucleus and reinforces the necessity of great care in interpreting PCR-generated Cyt b sequences used in population or evolutionary studies in freshwater crayfish and crustaceans more generally.

History

Alternative title

Amplification of multiple copies of mitochondrial Cytochrome b gene fragments in the Australian freshwater crayfish, Cherax destructor Clark (Parastacidae: Decapoda)

Journal

Animal genetics

Volume

33

Pagination

304-308

Location

Oxford, England

ISSN

0268-9146

eISSN

1365-2052

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2002, International Society for Animal Genetics,

Issue

4

Publisher

Blackwell Science

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