Genetic characterization of Indian-origin and Chinese-origin rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).
Genetic differences between Indian-origin and Chinese-origin rhesus macaques are as great as those between some primate species and can influence the results of experiments in which both are used as animal models for the study of the same human diseases. Unfortunately, many breeding facilities do not know with certainty the origin of the founders of their rhesus breeding colonies. Here I summarize the most definitive of the genetic traits among the microsatellite (STR) loci and mitochondrial DNA sequences that my laboratory previously reported to characterize Indian-origin and Chinese-origin rhesus macaques and then estimate the frequencies of these traits and their reliability as indicators of country of origin. The expression of diagnostic traits at two or more of four different unlinked loci provides a nearly 100% reliability in distinguishing rhesus macaques of Indian and Chinese origin.
Smith
David Glenn
DG
MolecularAnthropology Laboratory, Department of Anthropology and California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, USA.
D000818:Animals; D002681:China; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000032:analysis / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D005787:Gene Frequency; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics; D007194:India; D008253:Macaca mulatta / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013045:Species Specificity
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial