Multilocus detection of wolf x dog hybridization in italy, and guidelines for marker selection.
Hybridization and introgression can impact the evolution of natural populations. Several wild canid species hybridize in nature, sometimes originating new taxa. However, hybridization with free-ranging dogs is threatening the genetic integrity of grey wolf populations (Canis lupus), or even the survival of endangered species (e.g., the Ethiopian wolf C. simensis). Efficient molecular tools to assess hybridization rates are essential in wolf conservation strategies. We evaluated the power of biparental and uniparental markers (39 autosomal and 4 Y-linked microsatellites, a melanistic deletion at the β-defensin CBD103 gene, the hypervariable domain of the mtDNA control-region) to identify the multilocus admixture patterns in wolf x dog hybrids. We used empirical data from 2 hybrid groups with different histories: 30 presumptive natural hybrids from Italy and 73 Czechoslovakian wolfdogs of known hybrid origin, as well as simulated data. We assessed the efficiency of various marker combinations and reference samples in admixture analyses using 69 dogs of different breeds and 99 wolves from Italy, Balkans and Carpathian Mountains. Results confirmed the occurrence of hybrids in Italy, some of them showing anomalous phenotypic traits and exogenous mtDNA or Y-chromosome introgression. Hybridization was mostly attributable to village dogs and not strictly patrilineal. The melanistic β-defensin deletion was found only in Italian dogs and in putative hybrids. The 24 most divergent microsatellites (largest wolf-dog FST values) were equally or more informative than the entire panel of 39 loci. A smaller panel of 12 microsatellites increased risks to identify false admixed individuals. The frequency of F1 and F2 was lower than backcrosses or introgressed individuals, suggesting hybridization already occurred some generations in the past, during early phases of wolf expansion from their historical core areas. Empirical and simulated data indicated the identification of the past generation backcrosses is always uncertain, and a larger number of ancestry-informative markers is needed.
Laboratorio di Genetica, Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e Ricerca Ambientale, Ozzano Emilia, Bologna, Italy ; Department 18/Section of Environmental Engineering, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark.
Ettore
E
Randi
Department of Zoology, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic ; Life Science Research Centre, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Pavel
P
Hulva
Laboratorio di Genetica, Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e Ricerca Ambientale, Ozzano Emilia, Bologna, Italy.
Elena
E
Fabbri
Laboratorio di Genetica, Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e Ricerca Ambientale, Ozzano Emilia, Bologna, Italy.
Marco
M
Galaverni
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
Ana
A
Galov
Department of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
Josip
J
Kusak
Department of Agricultural and Food Science and Technology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Daniele
D
Bigi
Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
Barbora Černá
BČ
Bolfíková
Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic.
Milena
M
Smetanová
Laboratorio di Genetica, Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e Ricerca Ambientale, Ozzano Emilia, Bologna, Italy.
Romolo
R
Caniglia
D000818:Animals; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D004285:Dogs; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005260:Female; D005819:Genetic Markers; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005838:Genotype; D006824:Hybridization, Genetic; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D058885:Multilocus Sequence Typing; D019596:Wolves; D014998:Y Chromosome; D023083:beta-Defensins / Q000235:genetics
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D005819:Genetic Markers; D023083:beta-Defensins