Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe

Abstract Population genetic studies provide accurate information on population structure, connectivity, and hybridization. These are key elements to identify units for conservation and define wildlife management strategies aimed to maintain and restore biodiversity. The Mediterranean island of Sardi...

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Autores principales:	Valentina Satta, Paolo Mereu, Mario Barbato, Monica Pirastru, Giovanni Bassu, Laura Manca, Salvatore Naitana, Giovanni Giuseppe Leoni
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/2bb89d3fb09d4c85af185a790340f3bf
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:2bb89d3fb09d4c85af185a790340f3bf2021-12-02T16:17:17ZGenetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe10.1038/s41598-021-94134-32045-2322https://doaj.org/article/2bb89d3fb09d4c85af185a790340f3bf2021-07-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-94134-3https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Population genetic studies provide accurate information on population structure, connectivity, and hybridization. These are key elements to identify units for conservation and define wildlife management strategies aimed to maintain and restore biodiversity. The Mediterranean island of Sardinia hosts one of the last autochthonous mouflon populations, descending from the wild Neolithic ancestor. The first mouflon arrived in Sardinia ~ 7000 years ago and thrived across the island until the twentieth century, when anthropogenic factors led to population fragmentation. We analysed the three main allopatric Sardinian mouflon sub-populations, namely: the native sub-populations of Montes Forest and Mount Tonneri, and the reintroduced sub-population of Mount Lerno. We investigated the spatial genetic structure of the Sardinian mouflon based on the parallel analysis of 14 highly polymorphic microsatellite loci and mitochondrial D-loop sequences. The Montes Forest sub-population was found to harbour the ancestral haplotype in the phylogeny of European mouflon. We detected high levels of relatedness in all the sub-populations and a mitochondrial signature of hybridization between the Mount Lerno sub-population and domestic sheep. Our findings provide useful insights to protect such an invaluable genetic heritage from the risk of genetic depletion by promoting controlled inter-population exchange and drawing informed repopulation plans sourcing from genetically pure mouflon stocks.Valentina SattaPaolo MereuMario BarbatoMonica PirastruGiovanni BassuLaura MancaSalvatore NaitanaGiovanni Giuseppe LeoniNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-13 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Valentina Satta Paolo Mereu Mario Barbato Monica Pirastru Giovanni Bassu Laura Manca Salvatore Naitana Giovanni Giuseppe Leoni Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
description	Abstract Population genetic studies provide accurate information on population structure, connectivity, and hybridization. These are key elements to identify units for conservation and define wildlife management strategies aimed to maintain and restore biodiversity. The Mediterranean island of Sardinia hosts one of the last autochthonous mouflon populations, descending from the wild Neolithic ancestor. The first mouflon arrived in Sardinia ~ 7000 years ago and thrived across the island until the twentieth century, when anthropogenic factors led to population fragmentation. We analysed the three main allopatric Sardinian mouflon sub-populations, namely: the native sub-populations of Montes Forest and Mount Tonneri, and the reintroduced sub-population of Mount Lerno. We investigated the spatial genetic structure of the Sardinian mouflon based on the parallel analysis of 14 highly polymorphic microsatellite loci and mitochondrial D-loop sequences. The Montes Forest sub-population was found to harbour the ancestral haplotype in the phylogeny of European mouflon. We detected high levels of relatedness in all the sub-populations and a mitochondrial signature of hybridization between the Mount Lerno sub-population and domestic sheep. Our findings provide useful insights to protect such an invaluable genetic heritage from the risk of genetic depletion by promoting controlled inter-population exchange and drawing informed repopulation plans sourcing from genetically pure mouflon stocks.
format	article
author	Valentina Satta Paolo Mereu Mario Barbato Monica Pirastru Giovanni Bassu Laura Manca Salvatore Naitana Giovanni Giuseppe Leoni
author_facet	Valentina Satta Paolo Mereu Mario Barbato Monica Pirastru Giovanni Bassu Laura Manca Salvatore Naitana Giovanni Giuseppe Leoni
author_sort	Valentina Satta
title	Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
title_short	Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
title_full	Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
title_fullStr	Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
title_full_unstemmed	Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe
title_sort	genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous mouflon population in europe
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/2bb89d3fb09d4c85af185a790340f3bf
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Genetic characterization and implications for conservation of the last autochthonous Mouflon population in Europe

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