title: Patterns of spatial genetic structuring in the endangered limpet Patella ferruginea: implications for the conservation of a Mediterranean endemic.
abstract: Patella ferruginea Gmelin, 1791 is an endangered marine gastropod endemic to the Western Mediterranean. Its range is restricted to the Sardinian-Corsican region (SCR), North Africa, a few scattered sites in Southern Spain, and Sicily. Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers and three different mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) regions, Cytochrome c Oxidase subunit I, 12S (small-subunit ribosomal RNA gene) and 16S (large-subunit ribosomal RNA gene), were used to investigate the presence of genetic population structuring. The mtDNA sequences showed very low levels of genetic differentiation. Conversely, ISSRs showed the presence of two main genetic groups, corresponding to Spain, North Africa and Sicily and the SCR. The SCR was further split into two subgroups. The ISSR results suggest that, on a regional scale, the genetic structure of P. ferruginea is mainly determined by the restriction of gene flow by dispersal barriers. On a more local scale human harvesting may play a crucial role in population structuring by increasing the effect of genetic drift.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Zoologia e Genetica Evoluzionistica, Università di Sassari, Via F. Muroni 25, 07100 Sassari, Italy. marcasu@uniss.it
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Casu
authors.forename: Georgina A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Rivera-Ingraham
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cossu
authors.forename: Tiziana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.forename: Daria
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sanna
authors.forename: Gian Luca
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Dedola
authors.forename: Rossana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sussarellu
authors.forename: Gabriella
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sella
authors.forename: Benedetto
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cristo
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Curini-Galletti
authors.forename: José Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: García-Gómez
authors.forename: Free
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Espinosa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics; D056727:Endangered Species; D049851:Gastropoda / Q000235:genetics*; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial