title: MHC class I and MHC class II DRB gene variability in wild and captive Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris).
abstract: Bengal tigers are highly endangered and knowledge on adaptive genetic variation can be essential for efficient conservation and management. Here we present the first assessment of allelic variation in major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and MHC class II DRB genes for wild and captive tigers from India. We amplified, cloned, and sequenced alpha-1 and alpha-2 domain of MHC class I and beta-1 domain of MHC class II DRB genes in 16 tiger specimens of different geographic origin. We detected high variability in peptide-binding sites, presumably resulting from positive selection. Tigers exhibit a low number of MHC DRB alleles, similar to other endangered big cats. Our initial assessment-admittedly with limited geographic coverage and sample size-did not reveal significant differences between captive and wild tigers with regard to MHC variability. In addition, we successfully amplified MHC DRB alleles from scat samples. Our characterization of tiger MHC alleles forms a basis for further in-depth analyses of MHC variability in this illustrative threatened mammal.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Evolutionary Biology/Systematic Zoology, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, 14476 Potsdam, Germany.
authors.forename: Ina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pokorny
authors.forename: Reeta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: Surendra Prakash
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Goyal
authors.forename: Sudanshu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.forename: Ralph
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tiedemann
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild; D000836:Animals, Zoo / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D004247:DNA / Q000302:isolation & purification; D056727:Endangered Species; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry; D045989:Felidae / Q000235:genetics; D005805:Genes, MHC Class I; D005802:Genes, MHC Class II; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007194:India; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017385:Sequence Homology; D046010:Tigers / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D004247:DNA
references.citation: J Mol Evol. 1994 Jul;39(1):22-33
references.pmid: 8064870
references.citation: Genetics. 1998 Mar;148(3):929-36
references.pmid: 9539414
references.citation: Nucleic Acids Res. 1998 Apr 1;26(7):1819-25
references.pmid: 9512558
references.citation: Nature. 1993 Jul 1;364(6432):33-9
references.pmid: 8316295
references.citation: Mol Biol Evol. 2006 Feb;23(2):254-67
references.pmid: 16221896
references.citation: Heredity (Edinb). 2006 Jan;96(1):7-21
references.pmid: 16094301
references.citation: J Evol Biol. 2003 May;16(3):363-77
references.pmid: 14635837
references.citation: J Vet Med Sci. 2000 Dec;62(12):1283-9
references.pmid: 11193344
references.citation: Bioinformatics. 1998;14(1):68-73
references.pmid: 9520503
references.citation: J Biol Chem. 1990 Mar 15;265(8):4718-21
references.pmid: 2307682
references.citation: Evolution. 2002 Oct;56(10):1902-8
references.pmid: 12449477
references.citation: Mol Ecol. 2004 Jan;13(1):221-9
references.pmid: 14653802
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 1990;31(4):217-9
references.pmid: 2329006
references.citation: J Immunol. 1997 Mar 15;158(6):2822-33
references.pmid: 9058818
references.citation: Trends Genet. 2010 Apr;26(4):177-87
references.pmid: 20227782
references.citation: Bioinformatics. 2009 Jun 1;25(11):1451-2
references.pmid: 19346325
references.citation: Mol Biol Evol. 1989 Nov;6(6):559-79
references.pmid: 2484936
references.citation: Gene. 2008 Dec 31;427(1-2):117-23
references.pmid: 18848974
references.citation: Semin Immunol. 1994 Dec;6(6):411-24
references.pmid: 7654997
references.citation: Front Zool. 2005 Oct 20;2:16
references.pmid: 16242022
references.citation: Genetics. 2004 Oct;168(2):1041-51
references.pmid: 15514074
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 2010 May;62(5):307-17
references.pmid: 20372886
references.citation: Science. 1983 Jul 29;221(4609):459-62
references.pmid: 17755482
references.citation: PLoS Biol. 2004 Dec;2(12):e442
references.pmid: 15583716
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 2005 Jan;56(10):702-9
references.pmid: 15592824
references.citation: Mol Ecol. 2005 Apr;14(5):1597-9; discussion 1601-2
references.pmid: 15813797
references.citation: Mol Ecol. 2004 Nov;13(11):3389-402
references.pmid: 15487998
references.citation: Mol Biol Evol. 2007 Aug;24(8):1586-91
references.pmid: 17483113
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 1995;42(4):233-43
references.pmid: 7672817
references.citation: Brief Bioinform. 2004 Jun;5(2):150-63
references.pmid: 15260895
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 1999 Apr;49(4):362-7
references.pmid: 10079304
references.citation: Immunogenetics. 2002 Aug;54(5):348-52
references.pmid: 12185538
references.citation: Tissue Antigens. 2003 Oct;62(4):313-23
references.pmid: 12974798
references.citation: Tissue Antigens. 1998 Apr;51(4 Pt 1):374-81
references.pmid: 9583809
references.citation: Crit Rev Immunol. 1997;17(2):179-224
references.pmid: 9094452
references.citation: Tissue Antigens. 2005 Jul;66(1):9-18
references.pmid: 15982252
references.citation: PLoS One. 2008 Jul 16;3(7):e2674
references.pmid: 18629345
references.citation: Mol Ecol. 2006 Aug;15(9):2441-50
references.pmid: 16842418
references.citation: Genome Res. 2003 Jun;13(6A):1169-79
references.pmid: 12743023
references.citation: J Exp Med. 1990 Aug 1;172(2):621-30
references.pmid: 1695669
references.citation: Immunol Rev. 1999 Feb;167:133-44
references.pmid: 10319256
references.citation: J Mol Evol. 2009 Jun;68(6):679-87
references.pmid: 19471989
references.citation: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1990 Jan;87(2):836-40
references.pmid: 1967831
references.citation: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989 Feb;86(3):958-62
references.pmid: 2492668
references.citation: Annu Rev Biochem. 1990;59:253-88
references.pmid: 2115762
references.citation: Genomics. 2001 Feb 1;71(3):282-95
references.pmid: 11170745