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POPULATION GENOMICS

Tracking haplotypes to quantify genome erosion

Nature Reviews Genetics volume 23, page 197 (2022)Cite this article

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Inbreeding and genetic drift lead to genome erosion in small populations. To quantify their effects in a natural, highly inbred, small population, Viluma et al. performed whole-genome sequencing of 76 individuals from the Scandinavian wolf population. From these samples (spanning several generations and including the founder female), chromosome-level haplotypes were derived for all three founders, and the fate of each haplotype was tracked over a 30-year period. Within 20 years, 10–24% of the founder diploid genomes had been lost, potentially unmasking deleterious recessive alleles and reducing adaptive variation. Moreover, the genetic diversity of the initial population was substantially reduced by megabase-sized stretches of homozygosity in the two male founders and shared haplotypes among all three founders. The findings of this novel approach have important implications for the management and conservation of endangered species.

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  1. Nature Reviews Genetics http://www.nature.com/nrg/

    Dorothy Clyde

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  1. Dorothy Clyde
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Correspondence to Dorothy Clyde.

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Clyde, D. Tracking haplotypes to quantify genome erosion. Nat Rev Genet 23, 197 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41576-022-00461-0

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