Journal of Heredity - 100 most-cited articles

Journal of Heredity 1927 18:153-162
© The American Genetic Association

Hereditary Adiposity in Mice

C. H. Danforth Department of Anatomy, Stanford University

[Danforth C (1927) Hereditary Adiposity in Mice. Journal of Heredity 18:153-162.]

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Journal of Heredity 1930 21:3-19
© The American Genetic Association

Some Genetic Effects of X-Rays in Plants

L. J. Stadler University of Missouri, Columbia, Mo.

[Stadler L (1930) Some Genetic Effects of X-Rays in Plants. Journal of Heredity 21:3-19.]

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Journal of Heredity 1933 24:105-106
© The American Genetic Association

Pigs Born without Eye Balls

Fred Hale Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, College Station, Texas

[Hale F (1933) Pigs Born without Eye Balls. Journal of Heredity 24:105-106.]

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Journal of Heredity 1935 26:60-64
© The American Genetic Association

Salivary Chromosome Maps

With a Key to the Banding of the Chromosomes of Drosophila Melanogaster

Calvin B. Bridges Carnegie Institution of Washington, Resident at California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California

[Bridges C (1935) Salivary Chromosome Maps. Journal of Heredity 26:60-64.]

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Journal of Heredity 1937 28:393-411
© The American Genetic Association

Methods of Inducing Doubling of Chromosomes in Plants

Treatment With Colchicine

Albert F. Blakeslee Carnegie Institution of Washington, Department of Genetics, Cold Spring Harbor, N. Y.

Amos G. Avery Carnegie Institution of Washington, Department of Genetics, Cold Spring Harbor, N. Y.

[Blakeslee A, Avery A (1937) Methods of Inducing Doubling of Chromosomes in Plants. Journal of Heredity 28:393-411.]

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Journal of Heredity 1938 29:11-13
© The American Genetic Association

A Revised Map of the Salivary Gland X-Chromosome

of Drosophila Melanogaster

Calvin B. Bridges Carnegie Institution of Washington, Resident at California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California

[Bridges C (1938) A Revised Map of the Salivary Gland X-Chromosome. Journal of Heredity 29:11-13.]

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Journal of Heredity 1938 29:137-139
© The American Genetic Association

Hereditary Acholuric Jaundice

in a New Mutant Strain of Rats

C. H. Gunn Department of Biology and Connaught Laboratories, University of Toronto, Canada

[Gunn C (1938) Hereditary Acholuric Jaundice. Journal of Heredity 29:137-139.]

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Journal of Heredity 1942 33:393-399
© The American Genetic Association

The Efficiency of Three Method of Selection

L. N. Hazel Iowa State College

Jay L. Lush Iowa State College

[Hazel L, Lush J (1942) The Efficiency of Three Method of Selection. Journal of Heredity 33:393-399.]

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Journal of Heredity 1942 33:403-407
© The American Genetic Association

A New Map of the Salivary Gland 2L-Chromosome

of Drosophila Melanogaster

Philip N. Bridges Department of Zoology, Columbia University, New York, N. Y.

[Bridges P (1942) A New Map of the Salivary Gland 2L-Chromosome. Journal of Heredity 33:403-407.]

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Journal of Heredity 1943 34:71-80
© The American Genetic Association

Serological Factors as Possible Causes in Spontaneous Abortions

Philip Levine Division of Laboratories, Newark Beth Israel Hospital

It is now established that a specific disease of the fetus and the new-born, erythroblastosis fetalis, can be attributed not to disease in the father or in the mother, but rather to genetic and constitutional differences in the antigenic composition of their erythrocytes. The actual mechanism depends upon isoimmunization of the mother by the Rh factor in fetal blood and the intra-uterine action of maternal anti-Rh agglutinins on susceptible fetal blood. Evidence of a preliminary nature is presented to indicate that the same mechanism induced by other blood factors may be responsible for both early and late fetal death, i.e., abortions and stillbirths.

[Levine P (1943) Serological Factors as Possible Causes in Spontaneous Abortions. Journal of Heredity 34:71-80.]

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Journal of Heredity 1943 34:88-92
© The American Genetic Association

The Development of Some External Features in Mouse Embryos

Hans Gruneberg Department of Biometry, University College, London, at Mount Vernon Hospital, Northwood, Middlesex

Crown-rump length measurements of mouse embryos from 9-1/3 to 18-1/3 days of age are given; these allow a rough, but not quite reliable estimation of embryonic age. The development of various external features provides criteria for the determination of the age to within 24 hours, and slightly more accurately in the earlier stages.

[Gruneberg H (1943) The Development of Some External Features in Mouse Embryos. Journal of Heredity 34:88-92.]

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Journal of Heredity 1946 37:107-116
© The American Genetic Association

The Origin of Triticum Spelta and its Free-Threshing Hexaploid Relatives (Continued from the March Issue)

E. S. McFadden

E. R. Sears

Aegilops squarrosa (n = 7) was found to carry a group of major characters that distinguish the hexaploid (n = 21) Triticum spelta from the tetraploids (n = 14) T. dicoccum and T. dicoccoides. Hybrids between these tetraploid species of wheat and Ae. squarrosa proved to have all of the major taxonomic characters of T. spelta, but were completely or nearly sterile. When the F₁ hybrids of T. dicoccoides×Ae. squarrosa were treated with colchicine, highly fertile allopolyploids with 42 chromosomes were obtained. These synthetic hexaploids closely resemble the cultivated T. spelta, and produce highly fertile and cytologically regular hybrids with that species and with T. vulgare. This demonstrates that the C genome of the hexaploid wheats corresponds to the chromosome set of Ae. squarrosa.Further evidence that Ae. squarrosa possesses the C genome was obtained from the amphidiploid Ae. caudata (n = 7) ×Ae. squarrosa. This amphidiploid has the taxonomic characters of Ae. cylindrica (n = 14), and forms fertile, meiotically regular hybrids with that species, which was already known to have both the C genome and the genome of Ae. caudata.It is postulated that T. spelta is the ancestral hexaploid wheat of Europe, having arisen, possibly in fairly recent times, in southeastern Europe or southwestern Asia following chromosome doubling in natural hybrids of T. dicoccoides (or its cultivated close relative, T. dicoccum) ×Ae. squarrosa. The recently described, rough Asiatic hexaploids, T. speltiforme, T. rigidum, T. macha, and T. vavilovi, possibly originated independently as allopolyploids of tetraploid wheats and diploid species of Aegilops other than Ae. squarrosa, but with chromosomes similar to those of Ae. squarrosa.Triticum spelta is believed to have been carried over a northerly route into central and western Europe where it came into contact with a free-threshing, tetraploid wheat–probably the now extinct Lake Dweller wheat. This wheat, although generally known as a variety of T. vulgare, is considered by the authors to have been a tetraploid. It was presumably the ancestor of the free-threshing tetraploid, T. persicum, which still exists in parts of the Lake Dweller region.Hybridization of T. spelta and the Lake Dweller wheat is thought to have given rise within historic times to T. vulgare and T. compactum as segregates. These segregates presumably acquired a single block of Lake Dweller genes, including factors for compactness, awn suppression, and free-threshing characters. Complete linkage within a portion of this chromatin block would account for the seemingly manifold effects of the spelta“gene.”The Lake Dweller wheat may have arisen as an amphidiploid of its cultivated forerunner, T. monococcum (n = 7), and the wild grass, Agropyron triticeum (n = 7), which occurs as a common weed in the wheat fields of southeastern Europe.

[McFadden E, Sears E (1946) The Origin of Triticum Spelta and its Free-Threshing Hexaploid Relatives (Continued from the March Issue). Journal of Heredity 37:107-116.]

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Journal of Heredity 1946 37:81-89
© The American Genetic Association

The Origin of Triticum Spelta and its Free-Threshing Hexaploid Relatives

E. S. McFadden U. S. Department of Agriculture, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, College Station, Texas

E. R. Sears U. S. Department of Agriculture, Genetics Building, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri

[McFadden E, Sears E (1946) The Origin of Triticum Spelta and its Free-Threshing Hexaploid Relatives. Journal of Heredity 37:81-89.]

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Journal of Heredity 1948 39:311-325
© The American Genetic Association

Segregation and Reduction in Somatic Tissues

I. Initial observations on Allium cepa

C. Leonard Huskins Department of Botany, University of Wisconsin

By growing bulbs of Allium cepa in an aqueous solution of 1–4% sodium nucleate, chromosome segregation and/or reduction of the chromosome number has been induced in root-tip cells. In treatments of freshly harvested bulbs made November, 1947, with the Schwarz sample S.N. 4509 both pairing and segregation of metaphase-like chromosomes was obtained. A second division which separates sister chromatids and resembles that of a normal gonocyte meiosis occurred in a number of cells. More commonly the two divisions overlap and separation of chromatids occurs during the equivalent of gonocyte meiotic anaphase I.Segregation of long, prophase-like chromosomes also occurs and this is the more frequent type of “somatic meiosis” found in both the onion and other plants in recent experiments with other samples of sodium nucleate. It has also been found in untreated onion bulbs that were flaccid after several months' storage at room temperature.Some superficial similarities to the action of colchicine, ethylene glycol, etc., occur. The occurrence of “somatic meiosis” (either normally or by induction with substances that are used in the normal metabolism of the organism) raises many issues that require the use of different test-objects for their elucidation. Some of these are outlined. The onion data cannot present a complete picture but they indicate some of the lines along which further studies should proceed and in particular show that in an appreciable number of cells a process occurs that is genetically equivalent to gonocyte meiosis. In this the effects of sodium nucleate differ from those of “mitotic poisons.”

[Huskins C (1948) Segregation and Reduction in Somatic Tissues. Journal of Heredity 39:311-325.]

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Journal of Heredity 1950 41:122-124
© The American Genetic Association

A New Mutation with Asymmetrical Expression in the Mouse

E. D. Garber Office of Naval Research Task V, Department of Bacteriology and U. S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 1, University of California, Berkeley, California

F. C. Hauth Office of Naval Research Task V, Department of Bacteriology and U. S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 1, University of California, Berkeley, California

[Garber E, Hauth F (1950) A New Mutation with Asymmetrical Expression in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 41:122-124.]

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Journal of Heredity 1950 41:317-318
© The American Genetic Association

Obese, a New Mutation in the House Mouse

Ann M. Ingalls Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

Margaret M. Dickie Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

G. D. Snell Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

A new mutation called obese and designated by the symbol ob, occurred in the V stock at this laboratory in the summer of 1949. Obese animals increase rapidly in weight until they are about four times the weight of normal animals. This recessive gene causes sterility in the homozygote, but as yet, there seems to be no indication of any affect on the life span of the animals.

[Ingalls A, Dickie M, Snell G (1950) Obese, a New Mutation in the House Mouse. Journal of Heredity 41:317-318.]

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Journal of Heredity 1952 43:107-115
© The American Genetic Association

Colchicine Induced Variants in Sorghum

C. J. Franzke South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station

J. G. Ross South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station

Colchicine treatment of full sibs of a true breeding variety of sorghum gave variants possessing a number of ancestral characteristics of which some bred true immediately. Untreated stock of a full sib of the above has not segregated in subsequent generations. In no case among these has the chromosome number been found changed. It is proposed that such variant plants could originate through reductional grouping of the somatic chromosomes so that a concentration of chromosomes containing gene blocks originating from one of the ancestors of the polyploid species might occur in one cell. This cell, by virtue of its inherent and perhaps environmental competitive advantage, could form a new growing point and produce a plant with a genotype entirely different from that of the original zygote, in fact, homozygous diploidy may thus be induced. Further evidence that colchicine treatment causes homozygosity was obtained by comparisons of measurements of F₂ progenies from treated F₁ plants and untreated F₁ plants. Progenies from treated plants were significantly more uniform in height.

[Franzke C, Ross J (1952) Colchicine Induced Variants in Sorghum. Journal of Heredity 43:107-115.]

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Journal of Heredity 1952 43:167-172
© The American Genetic Association

Mammalian Chromosomes In Vitro

I. The Karyotype of Man

T. C. Hsu Tissue Culture Laboratory, University of Texas, Medical Branch, Galveston

[Hsu T (1952) Mammalian Chromosomes In Vitro. Journal of Heredity 43:167-172.]

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Journal of Heredity 1953 44:23-29
© The American Genetic Association

Mammalian Chromosomes In Vitro

II. A Method for Spreading the Chromosomes of Cells in Tissue Culture

T. C. Hsu Tissue Culture Laboratory, Medical Branch, University of Texas, Galveston

C. M. Pomerat Tissue Culture Laboratory, Medical Branch, University of Texas, Galveston

Illustrations of chromosome plates resulting from pre-fixation treatment of cells in tissue culture with hypotonic solution are shown for the mouse, guinea pig, cotton rat, dog, and for a human tumor.A method is described which involves tissue cultures of simple hanging drop slides and the roller tube technique. A balanced salt solution (Gey's) containing no sodium chloride isSee PDF for Structure.mixed at a proportion of 70 to 80 parts with 30 to 20 parts of the regular Gey's solution and is applied to the cells in culture for 20 minutes before fixation. Helly Zenker's fixation followed by Delafield haematoxylin or haematoxylin-eosin-azure stain is recommended.The method gives great promise in studying mammalian, avian and other animal cells with large numbers of chromosomes. Special attention is directed to the opportunity of studying malignant elements with this method as well as the effects of radiation and carcinostatic chemicals.

[Hsu T, Pomerat C (1953) Mammalian Chromosomes In Vitro. Journal of Heredity 44:23-29.]

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Journal of Heredity 1956 47:113-122
© The American Genetic Association

Black Flies: Siblings, Sex, and Species Grouping

K. H. Rothfels Department of Botany, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Fixed banding differences, diverse spectra of floating inversions, and differential sex determining mechanisms are assessed for their value in revealing sibling species.The cytology of sex determination is described for Prosimulium hirtipes and sibling. It is postulated that a minute differential segment became secondarily enlarged by successive inversions.Conventions are proposed for the construction of salivary gland chromosome idiograms and for the nomenclature of chromosomes, chromosome arms, sections and bands.The use of rearrangements as tracers of phylogenetic affinities is illustrated by examples from the genus Prosimulium.

[Rothfels K (1956) Black Flies: Siblings, Sex, and Species Grouping. Journal of Heredity 47:113-122.]

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Journal of Heredity 1956 47:123-128
© The American Genetic Association

Steel, A New Dominant Gene in the House Mouse

With Effects on Coat Pigment and Blood

Patricia A. Sarvella Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Agronomy Department, North Carolina State College, Raleigh

Liane B. Russell Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

A dominant mutation, Steel (Sl) arose in the C3H strain. Heterozygotes are characterized by slight dilution of fur color, light ears, feet, tail and vibrassae, and a number of small white spots (tip of snout, forehead, belly) whose occurrence depends somewhat on genetic background. Homozygotes die prenatally, probably on days 15–16 postconception. They are characterized by a severe anemia which is first grossly recognizable on day 13 1/2. Heterozygotes have a reduced red cell count but are viable.Sl is not an allele of Wv, but the two genes interact in their effects on the coat. Sl and Wv assort independently.

[Sarvella P, Russell L (1956) Steel, A New Dominant Gene in the House Mouse. Journal of Heredity 47:123-128.]

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Journal of Heredity 1956 47:217-220
© The American Genetic Association

A Bean Interspecific Hybrid

Shigemi Honma Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan

Four plants were produced from the cross, Phaseolus vulgaris×P. acutifolius. The hybrids appeared more like the P. vulgaris parent. Chromosome smears of root tips showed no morphological differences between the complements of the hybrids and the parents. Common blight reaction and botanical characters which differed distinctly between the parents were found to he quantitatively inherited in the F₂ generation.

[Honma S (1956) A Bean Interspecific Hybrid. Journal of Heredity 47:217-220.]

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Journal of Heredity 1956 47:248-252
© The American Genetic Association

Inherited Muscle Abnormality in the Domestic Fowl

V. S. Asmundson Department of Poultry Husbandry and School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis

L. M. Julian Department of Poultry Husbandry and School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis

A muscle abnormality, which prevents the birds from raising their wings and rising from a flat surface when laid on their backs, has occurred in New Hampshires. When compared with normal birds of this breed but of a different strain (Strain No. 2), in which muscular symptoms have not occurred, the abnormal birds were found to be wider breasted and to have shorter bones.Preliminary anatomical studies show that most of the muscles of the bird are involved. Gross and microscopic alterations of the muscles are comparable to recorded changes in muscular dystrophies of man.The data, from various types of matings, indicate that abnormal birds are homozygous for an autosomal gene (am) which is recessive to normal.Heterozygous (normal) birds have wider breasts than homozygous normal birds of the New Hampshire breed.

[Asmundson V, Julian L (1956) Inherited Muscle Abnormality in the Domestic Fowl. Journal of Heredity 47:248-252.]

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Journal of Heredity 1957 48:271-277
© The American Genetic Association

Pollen Cytology and Self-Incompatibility Systems in Plants

James L. Brewbaker Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, L. I., New York

[Brewbaker J (1957) Pollen Cytology and Self-Incompatibility Systems in Plants. Journal of Heredity 48:271-277.]

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Journal of Heredity 1957 48:63-70
© The American Genetic Association

Scaleless, An Inherited Ectodermal Defect in the Domestic Fowl

U. K. Abbott Department of Poultry Husbandry, University of California, Davis, California

V. S. Asmundson Department of Poultry Husbandry, University of California, Davis, California

Scaleless, a new autosomal recessive mutation has been described. The name has been chosen to illustrate its effect on all scales and on the specialized derivatives of scales, feather papillae, spurs and foot pads. Chicks homozygous for sc have a smooth, waxy skin, largely free of down feathers; their legs and feet lack scales and foot pads. Other epidermal derivatives such as nails, beak, comb and wattles are normal. A few scattered feathers are present in the head, humeral, crural and caudal tracts. The adult scaleless bird has even fewer feathers than the chick and these are abnormal, resembling juvenile rather than adult plumage. Adult males do not develop spurs.Feather follicle formation is retarded in scaleless embryos. During the period when the primordia of the scales and major feather tracts characteristically appear, no papillae are evident in scsc embryos. Later scattered papillae appear almost simultaneously on the head, humeral, crural and caudal areas.The scaleless mutation does not affect embryo viability for scsc embryos from normal carrier dams hatched as well as their normal siblings. After hatching the scsc phenotype is lethal under natural rearing conditions but is viable when birds are reared in rooms maintained at suitable temperatures. Under the latter conditions their growth rate is equal to that of normal birds of the same strain and they attain sexual maturity at the same time. Inbred scaleless females lay at a low rate of 40 per cent, the eggs varying in size, shape and shell quality; relatively fewer embryos hatch from such dams than from normal dams.Adult scaleless females are more resistant to temperature extremes and to prolonged low temperature exposure than adult males.

[Abbott U, Asmundson V (1957) Scaleless, An Inherited Ectodermal Defect in the Domestic Fowl. Journal of Heredity 48:63-70.]

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Journal of Heredity 1958 49:91-98
© The American Genetic Association

Evidence on the Origin of the B Genome of Wheat

Ralph Riley Plant Breeding Institute, Cambridge, England; and Dept. of Plant Science, University of Alberta, Canada

John Unrau Plant Breeding Institute, Cambridge, England; and Dept. of Plant Science, University of Alberta, Canada

Victor Chapman Plant Breeding Institute, Cambridge, England; and Dept. of Plant Science, University of Alberta, Canada

It can he concluded from the analysis of karyotype, and chromosome pairing in hybrids, that Aegilops speltoides is the diploid species most closely approaching the requirements of the donor of the B genome of polyploid wheat. This sustains the conclusions of Sarkar and Stebbins based on morphological characters.Support for this conclusion comes from two sources of evidence. First, that both pairs of satellited chromosomes of the polyploid wheats are in the B genome, and two similar pairs are found only in Aeg. speltoides. Secondly, a mechanism restricting intergenome pairing, has been discovered in the B genome of polyploid wheat and pairing data in hybrids has been reinterpreted in the light of this situation. This reappraisal shows that the chromosomes of Aegilops speltoides are closely related to those of the B genome.

[Riley R, Unrau J, Chapman V (1958) Evidence on the Origin of the B Genome of Wheat. Journal of Heredity 49:91-98.]

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Journal of Heredity 1959 50:209-221
© The American Genetic Association

Sex-Linked Dwarfism in the Fowl

F. B. Hutt Department of Poultry Husbandry, New York State College of Agriculture, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York

A sex-linked recessive gene, dw, was found to reduce body weights of homozygous males by about 43 percent below normal and those of hemizygous females by 26 to 32 percent.Chicks that later become dwarfs are normal in size if hatched from eggs of normal size, but by two weeks of age retardation of growth has begun. Dwarfs grow at a slower rate than their big siblings, but without any abrupt cessation of growth up to 26 weeks, at least. Those hatched from small eggs remain smaller for many weeks than those hatched from big eggs.Viability, fertility and hatchability of eggs are as good in these dwarfs as in larger birds. However, in four sire families, egg production of 249 dwarf females was 7.9 to 13.3 percent below that for their 222 big sisters and half- sisters. Average egg size for the dwarfs was 4.8 to 6.5 grams smaller than those for their big sisters.Effects of this type of dwarfing on the skeleton, as shown by lengths of the three long bones of the leg, are compared with those of four other kinds of genetic dwarfing in the fowl. All three bones are shortened more, and more uniformly, in dwarfs than in creepers.The gene dw is remote from B (barring) and shows crossing-over of 6.6 percent with K (slow feathering), and 7.0 percent with S (silver). The probable order of these genes in the chromosome is B–S–K–dw.

[Hutt F (1959) Sex-Linked Dwarfism in the Fowl. Journal of Heredity 50:209-221.]

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Journal of Heredity 1959 50:9-13
© The American Genetic Association

Visceral Inversion and Associated Anomalies in the Mouse

Katharine P. Hummel Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Habor, Maine

Dorothy B. Chapman Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Habor, Maine

Situs inversus viscerum, inherited as a single recessive character with incomplete penetrance has been described for the second time in mice. Expression includes left-right transposition of thoracic and abdominal viscera and associated blood vessels, anomalous relationship of postcaval and azygos veins, anomalous position of the hepatic portal vein, abnormalities in spleen position and shape, and in liver and lung lobation.

[Hummel K, Chapman D (1959) Visceral Inversion and Associated Anomalies in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 50:9-13.]

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Journal of Heredity 1961 52:275-278
© The American Genetic Association

Fatty, A New Mutation in the Rat

Lois M. Zucker Laboratory of Comparative Pathology, Stow, Massachusetts

Theodore F. Zucker Laboratory of Comparative Pathology, Stow, Massachusetts

An obese rat mutation, fa (called fatty), is described. Breeding experiments show that it is due to a single recessive gene. The obesity is apparently of metabolic origin, being associated with obviously deranged lipid metabolism leading to very high blood lipid levels.

[Zucker L, Zucker T (1961) Fatty, A New Mutation in the Rat. Journal of Heredity 52:275-278.]

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Journal of Heredity 1962 53:111-114
© The American Genetic Association

Inheritance of Serum Esterases Having Different Electrophoretic Patterns

Among Inbred Strains of Mice

Raymond A. Popp Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, operated by Union Carbide Corporation for the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission

Diana M. Popp Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, operated by Union Carbide Corporation for the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission

Sera of 21 strains and three partially inbred stocks of mice were examined by starch-gel electrophoresis and a colorimetric method for differences in zymogram patterns and levels of serum esterases. A single band of esterase activity that is electrophoretically similar to serum albumin was found in C57BL and C57L mice; two bands of slightly slower mobility were found in the other strains. This analysis indicated that these enzymes are codominantly inherited in F₁ progeny. Moreover, in the C57BL and C57L strains the level of esterase activity is lower than in sera of other strains of mice. Genetic tests indicated that such differences are controlled by allelomorphs of a single locus, designated Es.

[Popp R, Popp D (1962) Inheritance of Serum Esterases Having Different Electrophoretic Patterns. Journal of Heredity 53:111-114.]

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Journal of Heredity 1962 53:233-237
© The American Genetic Association

Tottering–A Neuromuscular Mutation in the Mouse

And Its Linkage With Oligosyndactylism

Margaret C. Green Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

Richard L. Sidman Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

A new neuromuscular defect in the mouse has been shown to be due to a recessive mutation. The mutation, called tottering, symbol tg, is very closely linked to Oligosyndactylism, Os. Homozygous tottering mice are characterized by: (1) intermittent seizures which may begin as early as two weeks of age and continue throughout life: and (2) a wobbly gait (affecting particularly the hindquarters) which may appear before four weeks of age but in some stocks is not detectable until eight weeks or more, and which continues throughout life. Tottering mice of both sexes are often fertile.

[Green M, Sidman R (1962) Tottering–A Neuromuscular Mutation in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 53:233-237.]

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Journal of Heredity 1964 55:281-285
© The American Genetic Association

Tissue-Specific Isozyme Variations in Maize

John G. Scandalios Department of Genetics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

The presence of tissue-specific variants of the enzymes leucine-aminopeptidase, esterase, peroxidase and catalase have been shown to exist in maize by use of the zymogram technique. The data give supporting evidence for the existance of multiple molecular forms of various enzymes within the same organism and within the same tissue. The possible physiological significance of multiple forms of enzymes for tissue function are discussed.

[Scandalios J (1964) Tissue-Specific Isozyme Variations in Maize. Journal of Heredity 55:281-285.]

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Journal of Heredity 1965 56:23-29
© The American Genetic Association

Retinal Degeneration in the Mouse

Location of the rd Locus in Linkage Group XVII

Richard L. Sidman Laboratory of Cellular Neuropathology, Harvard Medical School and The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

Margaret C. Green Laboratory of Cellular Neuropathology, Harvard Medical School and The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

The mutant retinal degeneration, rd, is linked to W??? in linkage group XVII with recombination of 13.4 ± 1.7 percent. Recombination between rd and low glucuronidase, g, another locus in this linkage group, is 15.4 ± 2.3 percent in males. This estimate is significantly different from that previously found for rd and g in females. The order of these three loci and luxate, lx, is: lx, W???, rd, g. The very similar mutant, rodless retina, r, was previously shown not to be closely linked to the W locus. Therefore r and rd are probably not alleles. A diligent search for r, long thought to be extinct, might uncover its presence among the many stocks of different origin known to be lacking retinal photoceptor cells.

[Sidman R, Green M (1965) Retinal Degeneration in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 56:23-29.]

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Journal of Heredity 1966 57:29-31
© The American Genetic Association

Association of Megacolon with Two Recessive Spotting Genes in the Mouse

Priscilla W. Lane The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor Maine

Hereditary megacolon in mice has been shown to be produced by two different recessive spotting genes, piebald-lethal (sl) and lethal-spotting (ls). Both genes act to reduce the number of pigment cells in the coat and the number of myenteric ganglion cells in the lower colon. Genetic studies with piebald-lethal show that it is an allele of piebald spotting (s).

[Lane P (1966) Association of Megacolon with Two Recessive Spotting Genes in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 57:29-31.]

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Journal of Heredity 1966 57:58-60
© The American Genetic Association

X-Linked Electrophoretic Variation in 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase

In Drosophila melanogaster

William J. Young Department of Anatomy, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205

Electrophoretic variation, on starch gels, in 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase in Drosophila melanogaster has been observed. The responsible locus has been identified as X-linked and is at 0.9±. Two alleles, PgdA and PgdB, have been identified; the heterozygote produces a “hybrid” enzyme pattern. The significance of this observation to the problem of dosage compensation in Drosophila is briefly discussed.

[Young W (1966) X-Linked Electrophoretic Variation in 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase. Journal of Heredity 57:58-60.]

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Journal of Heredity 1967 58:135-140
© The American Genetic Association

Audiogenic Seizures in Eleven Mouse Strains

John L. Fuller The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine

Frank H. Sjursen The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine; Jamestown Community College, Jamestown, N. Y.

Eleven diverse inbred strains of mice were tested weekly for audiogenic seizures at from three to six weeks of age. Convulsion and fatality risks were higher than usually reported, perhaps because testing was done in the early evening when susceptibility is maximal. In order of overall susceptibility the strains can be ranked: DBA/2J, LP/J, 129/J, RF/J. AKR/J, LG/J, SJL/J, CBA/J, SM/J, BALB/cJ and C57BL/6J. No nonsusceptible strain was found; hence it is argued that seizure susceptibility in laboratory mice is not related to a mutant from a wild-type gene conveying resistance. The variability among strains in the relationship of age to susceptibility could be attributed to changing physiological balance among several autonomous developmental processes.

[Fuller J, Sjursen F (1967) Audiogenic Seizures in Eleven Mouse Strains. Journal of Heredity 58:135-140.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1967 58:159-163
© The American Genetic Association

Genetic Markers in the Boll Weevil

Alan C. Bartlett U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Entomology Research Division, Boll Weevil Research Laboratory, State College, Mississippi

Four new mutations for the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis, are described. Two, slate (s) and ebony (e), are body color genes exhibiting semidominant autosomal inheritance. Both of these genes, in the homozygous state, produce black body color. In the heterozygous state, ebony produces a bronze color, and slate produces a dark red color compared to the red wild-type color. Two are recessive autosomal eye color genes. Pearl (p) produces a white spectacled appearance of the eyes. The second eye color mutation produces yellow eyes and is called yellow (y). Linkage relationships of these genes are at present undetermined. Genetic markers such as those described in this paper should be of value in entomological research. Such mutants meet most of the conditions required of marking methods. Searches for mutants in other insect species should be made for use both as biological markers and for use in biological control.

[Bartlett A (1967) Genetic Markers in the Boll Weevil. Journal of Heredity 58:159-163.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1967 58:299-300
© The American Genetic Association

Giant Granules in Leukocytes of the Beige Mouse

Marvin A. Lutzner Dermatology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20014

Charles T. Lowrie Dermatology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20014

Harold W. Jordan Dermatology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20014

[Lutzner M, Lowrie C, Jordan H (1967) Giant Granules in Leukocytes of the Beige Mouse. Journal of Heredity 58:299-300.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1968 59:9-12
© The American Genetic Association

On the Inheritance of Handedness

I. Laterality in inbred mice

Robert L. Collins The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Paw preference was tested experimentally in 591 mice from 7 highly inbred strains and 2 hybrid crosses. Consistency of preference over time and grip strength were assessed. Mice exhibited reliable functional laterality and their individual preferences were enduring. Both right and left paw preferent mice were observed within each of the nine genetically uniform groups. One-half the subjects in C57BL/6J and DBA/2J strains were dextral, and one half, sinistral. This indicates that maximal variation in lateralization may exist in populations possessing minimal genetic variance, and suggests that hand preference is not determined by hereditary factors.

[Collins R (1968) On the Inheritance of Handedness. Journal of Heredity 59:9-12.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1968 59:300-308
© The American Genetic Association

Three Recessive Mutations Producing Disproportionate Dwarfing in Mice

Achondroplasia, brachymorphic, and stubby

Priscilla W. Lane The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine, 04609

Margaret M. Dickie The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine, 04609

Three new recessive genes, cn, bm, and stb, each producing disproportionate dwarfing in the house mouse are described, and skeletal and organ weight comparisons with normal siblings are given. All three genes cause reduced bone growth and abnormal epiphyseal cartilage development. Stubby is located in linkage group V between nonagouti and Danforth's short tail in the position a-39-stb-12-Sd. Brachymorphic is located in linkage group XII, linked to ep with 8.56 percent recombination.

[Lane P, Dickie M (1968) Three Recessive Mutations Producing Disproportionate Dwarfing in Mice. Journal of Heredity 59:300-308.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1969 60:117-119
© The American Genetic Association

On the Inheritance of Handedness

II. Selection for sinistrality in mice

Robert L. Collins The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Further studies of paw preference in mice are presented. Three generations of selection for dextrality and sinistrality were conducted using C57BL/6J inbred mice. Neither qualitative nor quantitative indices of paw preference were responsive to selection pressure. Approximately one-half the progeny from the concordant parental combinations, R-R and L-L, were dextral, and one-half, sinistral. Offspring from the discordant parental pairs, R-L and L-R, yielded similar findings. These results suggest that paw preference variation in mice is neither maintained by a residue of heritable genetic variation nor by transmissible cultural influences associated with the parental phenotypes. Of 858 C57BL/6J mice tested, 52.7 percent exhibited left paw preference.

[Collins R (1969) On the Inheritance of Handedness. Journal of Heredity 60:117-119.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1970 61:203-212
© The American Genetic Association

Multiple Molecular Forms of Peroxidases and Esterases Among Nicotiana Species and Amphiploids

H. H. Smith Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973

D. E. Hamill Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973

E. A. Weaver Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973

K. H. Thompson Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973

Electrophoretic patterns of 61 species of the genus Nicotiana were analyzed for seedling root peroxidases demonstrated in starch gels, and 55 for esterases extracted from dry seeds and separated in polyacrylamide gels. Each species had a unique band pattern. In all, 33 peroxidase and 25 esterase bands were determined; and in any one species the range was from 3 to 10 peroxidase bands, 3 to 15 esterase bands. No single specific band was common to all Nicotiana species.Statistical methods, based on a hypergeometric distribution model, were used to assess the degree of phylogenetic association within vs. between taxonomic sections in terms of matching species bands. The probability that the observed band matching was due to chance was less among species within a section, thus indicating a closer genetic relationship in agreement with the established taxonomy of the genus.Seventeen amphiploids were synthesized and their peroxidase and esterase band patterns were compared with those of their parental species. Seventy-five percent, of the amphiploid bands showed the same mobility as in one or both parents; while 25 percent were new (possibly “hybrid”) bands. The number of bands of the amphiploid that matched those of the sum of the band positions in the diploid parents was greater than could be due to chance. It was concluded that this method of band assessment is a reliable measure of genetic similarity.The band patterns of three species of amphiploid origin (N. rustica, N. arentsii, and N. tabacum) were compared with those of the sum of their putative diploid progenitors. The number of matched bands was higher than could be attributed to chance, thus substantiating the ancestry predicated on evidence from cytogenetics and morphology.

[Smith H, Hamill D, Weaver E, Thompson K (1970) Multiple Molecular Forms of Peroxidases and Esterases Among Nicotiana Species and Amphiploids. Journal of Heredity 61:203-212.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1972 63:69-72
© The American Genetic Association

Standard Karyotype of the Mouse, Mus musculus

The Committee on Standardized Genetic Nomenclature for Mice recommends that:1. The chromosomes of the mouse shall be designated by the numbers shown in the first column of Table I. The chromosome corresponding to each number is identified cytologically as shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3, and genetically, where known, by the linkage group it bears.2. As soon as feasible, chromosome numbers in Arabic should be used in place of the corresponding linkage group numbers. Until the use of chromosome numbers for linkage groups becomes firmly established, the form “chromosome 1 (LG XIII)” should be used at least once in each published paper.3. In symbols for chromosome aberrations Arabic chromosome numbers printed in bold face (wavy underline in transcript) should be used for the chromosomes involved. In published papers it should also be stated that chromosome numbers are meant, not linkage group numbers.

[ (1972) Standard Karyotype of the Mouse, Mus musculus. Journal of Heredity 63:69-72.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1972 63:83-86
© The American Genetic Association

Genetic Relationships Between Inbred Strains of Mice

B. A. Taylor The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Using data on the strain distribution of alleles at 16 polymorphic loci, the genetic relationships among 27 inbred strains, whose pedigree relationships are largely unknown, has been studied. The 27 strains were ranked according to their distinctiveness. The positions occupied by the strains relative to each other is represented in a two dimensional plot. The utility of this information and certain limitations of the data are discussed.

[Taylor B (1972) Genetic Relationships Between Inbred Strains of Mice. Journal of Heredity 63:83-86.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1974 65:33-36
© The American Genetic Association

Single-Locus Control of Saccharin Preference in Mice

John L. Fuller State University of New York at Binghamton, Binghamton, New York 13901

The preference of mice for a 0.1 percent solution of saccharin in a situation involving free choice seems to be primarily regulated at a single locus for which the designation Sac is proposed. The allele present in the C57BL/6J strain of mice, Sacb, is dominant over Sacd, found in the DBA/2J strain and results in higher preference scores. The mechanism of preference is probably related to the incentive value of the taste of saccharin rather than to the threshold for detection.

[Fuller J (1974) Single-Locus Control of Saccharin Preference in Mice. Journal of Heredity 65:33-36.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1975 66:242-244
© The American Genetic Association

NOTES

Congenic strains of RCS rats with inherited retinal dystrophy

M. M. LaVail Department of Neuropathology, Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Neuroscience, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts

R. L. Sidman Department of Neuropathology, Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Neuroscience, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts

C. O. Gerhardt Department of Neuropathology, Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Neuroscience, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts

Two congenic strains of RCS rats, RCS-p/+ and RCS-c, have been developed that differ from the parental strain at genetic loci affecting pigmentation. Inbred RCS rats are pink-eyed, while RCS-p/+ rats produce segregating litters of pink-eyed (p/p) and black-eyed (p/+) offspring, and RCS-c rats are albinos. All the strains are homozygous for the mutant form of the retinal dystrophy gene. The black eye pigment in RCS-p/+ rats slows the progression of the retinal degeneration by about 10 days in the posterior retina and by about 30–35 days in the peripheral retina in the superior half of the eye. No slowing of the disease occurs in the inferior half of the eye along the vertical meridian. All the strains are similar in body weight and litter size, and show a low incidence of cataract and microphthalmia.

[LaVail M, Sidman R, Gerhardt C (1975) Congenic strains of RCS rats with inherited retinal dystrophy. Journal of Heredity 66:242-244.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1975 66:250-258
© The American Genetic Association

Motheaten, An Immunodeficient Mutant of the Mouse

I. Genetics and pathology

Margaret C. Green The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Leonard D. Shultz The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

A new recessive mutation, motheaten (me), is on chromosome 6, 21.9 ± 4.3 recombination units distal to white (Miwh). Mice homozygous for the new mutation have neutrophilic lesions of the skin beginning as early as day 1, and pneumonitis with many macrophages in the alveoli as early as day 3. They suffer high mortality from birth onward and none has survived longer than 8 weeks. The lymph nodes may be enlarged, but the thymus, Peyer's patches, and lymphatic tissue of the spleen are much reduced in size. Lymph nodes, spleen, and Peyer's patches lack lymphatic nodules. The lymph nodes and spleen contain many plasma cells. There are increased numbers of neutrophils and monocytes in the peripheral blood, and increased numbers of neutrophils in bone marrow at the expense of red cell precursors. Hematopoietic tissue in the spleen is increased and appears more active than normal. Motheaten mice appear to have an immune deficiency beginning very shortly after birth.

[Green M, Shultz L (1975) Motheaten, An Immunodeficient Mutant of the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 66:250-258.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1976 67:123-128
© The American Genetic Association

Interspecific Hybridization by Protoplast Fusion in Nicotiana

Confirmation and extension

H. H. Smith Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, N.Y. 11973

K. N. Kao Prairie Regional Laboratory, National Research Council of Canada, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N OW9 Canada

N. C. Combatti Department of Biology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, N.Y. 11973

Protoplasts of Nicotiana glauca and N. langsdorffii were prepared from leaf tissue by enzymatic digestion and were fused with the aid of polyethylene glycol. The mixed population of protoplasts was grown first on an enriched medium (M3 of Kao, et al.) and was then transferred to a medium lacking phytohormones, which selects against the parental types. A total of 174 calli that grew on the hormoneless medium were obtained. Mature flowering plants were differentiated from 19 different calli, and more than one from three of these, making 23 regenerated plants in all. Each of the plants was shown to be a parasexual hybrid in that it formed tumors; and the corolla, leaf, and plant habit were similar to, but somewhat different from, the amphiploid produced by cross pollination.The parasexual hybrids were examined cytologically and, instead of the amphiploid number 42, they were found to have a range of from 56 to 64 chromosomes, which accounted for the different characteristics observed. At meiosis mostly bivalents were formed and pollen fertility was high, averaging 84 percent. Seeds or progeny have been obtained from 16 of the hybrids.The unusual chromosome numbers found in the parasexual hybrids may have been due primarily to triple fusions (giving 60–66 chromosomes) followed by losses during callus growth, accompanied by selection for a particular range of aneuploidy (2n = 56 to 64) favorable for development of plantlets from calli.

[Smith H, Kao K, Combatti N (1976) Interspecific Hybridization by Protoplast Fusion in Nicotiana. Journal of Heredity 67:123-128.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1976 67:11-18
© The American Genetic Association

Osteopetrosis, A New Recessive Skeletal Mutation on Chromosome 12 of the Mouse

Sandy C. Marks Department of Anatomy, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 N. Lake Avenue, Worcester, Massachusetts 01605, and The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Priscilla W. Lane Department of Anatomy, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 N. Lake Avenue, Worcester, Massachusetts 01605, and The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Osteopetrosis (op/op) is a new mutation in the mouse that is transmitted as an autosomal recessive linked with varitint waddler (Va) on chromosome 12. Compared with normal littermates, young op/op mice have excessive accumulations of bone without marrow cavities, increases in bone matrix formation and concentrations of parafollicular cells of the thyroid, and are hypophosphatemic. Osteoclasts from op/op mice are small, few in number and have an abnormal cytoplasmic distribution of the lysosomal enzyme acid phosphatase. In contrast to the three other mutations that transmit osteopetrosis in mice, the skeletal signs of the disease slowly disappear in op/op animals after bone matrix formation declines about 6 weeks after birth from 145 percent to 20 percent of that in normal siblings. The main skeletal defect in op/op mice appears to be a severe restriction in bone remodeling that is capable of slowly removing the excessive skeletal mass characteristic of the disease only after bone formation has declined to one-fifth that of normal littermates.

[Marks S, Lane P (1976) Osteopetrosis, A New Recessive Skeletal Mutation on Chromosome 12 of the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 67:11-18.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1976 67:87-91
© The American Genetic Association

Inherited Ateliotic Dwarfism in Mice

Characteristics of the mutation, little, on Chromosome 6

Eva M. Eicher Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

Wesley G. Beamer Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

A new autosomal recessive mutation in the mouse, little (lit), has been shown to be located on Chromosome ???. The mutation in the homozygous state causes ateliotic dwarfism that is first detected at 15 days of age by decreased body weight. Long bone lengths are significantly reduced. Skull width, however, is not affected. Female little mice are fully fertile; they may lose their first litters. Although most of the little males sire one or two litters, they rarely sire a third litter. Analysis of pituitary extracts electrophoresed on acrylamide gels reveal a significant reduction of the two anterior pituitary hormones, GH and PRL, in both male and female little mice. Because the little mouse shares a number of similarities with the human ateliotic dwarfism, isolated growth hormones deficiency type I, it may be a useful animal model for this inherited human growth disorder.

[Eicher E, Beamer W (1976) Inherited Ateliotic Dwarfism in Mice. Journal of Heredity 67:87-91.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1976 67:336-338
© The American Genetic Association

Random determination of a developmental process

Reversal of normal visceral asymmetry in the mouse

W. M. Layton Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755

Situs inversus viscerum in the mouse has been shown to be inherited as an autosomal recessive trait (gene symbol iv) with reduced penetrance. It is hypothesized that the normal allele at the iv locus exhibits complete dominance and controls normal visceral asymmetry. Absence of this control allows the situs of visceral asymmetry to be determined in a random fashion. This hypothesis also appears to apply to the inheritance of situs inversus in man and to the experimental production of situs inversus.

[Layton W (1976) Random determination of a developmental process. Journal of Heredity 67:336-338.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1977 68:213-222
© The American Genetic Association

Mitochondrial degeneration in Texas cytoplasmic male-sterile corn anthers

H. E. Warmke Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Plant Virus Laboratory, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611; Department of Plant Breeding and Biometry, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Sheu-Ling Janet Lee Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Plant Virus Laboratory, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611; Department of Plant Breeding and Biometry, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Sections of anthers at a series of developmental stages from F₄₄ and F₆ corn inbreds (Zea mays L.), in Texas male-sterile and maintainer cytoplasms, were studied by light and electron microscopy. Mitochondria in the tapetum and middle layer of sterile anthers begin to degenerate shortly after meiosis. The matrix stains lightly, and mitochondria lose their internal structure. By the intermediate microspore stage, tapetal mitochondria have increased in size and become sac-like. Mitochondria in fertile anthers are condensed and have dark matrices and angular cristae during comparable developmental stages. Plastids and other organelles in fertile and sterile anthers do not appear to differ in structure until late in anther development. Mitochondrial breakdown in the tapetum of sterile anthers is the first indication of abnormality and, it is suggested, may initiate the events leading to pollen abortion.

[Warmke H, Lee S (1977) Mitochondrial degeneration in Texas cytoplasmic male-sterile corn anthers. Journal of Heredity 68:213-222.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1978 69:27-36
© The American Genetic Association

B-A translocations in maize

I. Use in locating genes by chromosome arms

J. B. Beckett Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Assistant Professor of Agronomy, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65201

The use of B-A translocations as a tool for locating many recessive genes to chromosome arm in the F₁ is outlined. Twelve new B-A translocations produced by the author are described. All available B-A translocations are listed, the most useful are identified, and a new system of nomenclature is introduced. Procedures are detailed for locating dominant genes and any recessives not located in the F₁. Procedures for maintaining translocation stocks and for producing seed almost certain to carry the translocations are described. Genes suitable for confirming the presence of the translocations are listed.

[Beckett J (1978) B-A translocations in maize. Journal of Heredity 69:27-36.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1979 70:291-296
© The American Genetic Association

Genetics of Aedes aegypti

Updating the linkage map

Leonard E. Munstermann Department of Biology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame IN 46556

George B. Craig Department of Biology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame IN 46556

A new linkage map for Aedex aegypti was constructed with a total of 60 markers. Thirty-two have been added to the previously published 12-year-old map. Brief descriptions are provided for five morphological and nine enzyme markers not previously published. The markers span a total map distance of 156 units: linkage group I-17 loci (22 markers) spanning 44 units; linkage group II-20 loci (21 markers) spanning 80 units; linkage group III-17 loci spanning 32 units.

[Munstermann L, Craig G (1979) Genetics of Aedes aegypti. Journal of Heredity 70:291-296.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1979 70:86-89
© The American Genetic Association

Allozyme polymorphisms detected in mature needle tissue of ponderosa pine

J. B. Mitton Department of Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309; Department of Botany, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS.

Y. B. Linhart Department of Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309; Department of Botany, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS.

K. B. Sturgeon Department of Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309; Department of Botany, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS.

J. L. Hamrick Department of Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309; Department of Botany, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS.

A method for extraction of enzymes from mature leaves of a diversity of trees is described. The methods of tissue preparation allow samples to be collected at any time of year regardless of the reproductive state of the plant. We have used this method to detect six enzyme polymorphisms in ponderosa pine and we present evidence to show that the genes coding for these proteins are simple Mendelian loci.

[Mitton J, Linhart Y, Sturgeon K, Hamrick J (1979) Allozyme polymorphisms detected in mature needle tissue of ponderosa pine. Journal of Heredity 70:86-89.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1979 70:301-308
© The American Genetic Association

The Wilhelmine E. Key 1978 Invitational Lecture

Destabilizing selection as a factor in domestication

D. K. Belyaev International Genetics Federation

[Belyaev D (1979) Destabilizing selection as a factor in domestication. Journal of Heredity 70:301-308.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1980 71:303-310
© The American Genetic Association

Evolutionary genetics of birds

Comparative molecular evolution in New World warblers and rodents

John C. Avise Department of Molecular and Population Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602

John C. Patton Department of Molecular and Population Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602

Charles F. Aquadro Department of Molecular and Population Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602

The American wood warblers (Parulidae) exhibit considerable diversity in breeding plumage coloration, song, behavior, ecology, and general life history. Nonetheless, a comparison of 28 species representing 12 genera discloses a very conservative pattern of protein differentiation as gauged by standard electrophoretic procedures. We define conservative to mean simply that at equivalent levels of the taxonomic hierarchy, parulids exhibit far smaller genetic distances than do most other organisms surveyed. This observation is documented and dramatized by comparison of results with those obtained in the same laboratory, using similar electrophoretic conditions, on a group of American rodents of even lower taxonomic rank–the Cricetinae. Our study represents an extension and elaboration of similar findings, earlier reported by Barrowclough and Corbin, on parulid warblers.One possible explanation for this conservative pattern is that warbler speciations have been very recent. However, estimated divergence times for Parulidae, read from protein clocks calibrated for nonavian vertebrates and invertebrates, are much lower than estimates derived from a prevailing view of parulid zoogeography and evolution. It appears likely that protein evolution is decelerated in the wood warblers. If protein clocks generally prove to exhibit organism dependent calibration, their usefulness in determining absolute divergence times for species with a poor fossil record will be compromised.

[Avise J, Patton J, Aquadro C (1980) Evolutionary genetics of birds. Journal of Heredity 71:303-310.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1980 71:33-40
© The American Genetic Association

Genetics of allozyme variants in loblolly pine

W. T. Adams Department of Forest Science, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331; Institute of Natural and Environmental Resources, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire 03824

R. J. Joly Department of Forest Science, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331; Institute of Natural and Environmental Resources, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire 03824

It was demonstrated that allozyme variants in 10 enzyme systems are encoded by at least 17 loci, using megagametophytes and embryos of wind-pollinated and control-crossed families of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) seed from seed orchard clones. The segregation of allozymes in megagametophytes of heterozygous clones reveals that the single zone of activity on gels stained for glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6PGD) is each controlled by a single locus. The segregation of allozymes in two zones of activity for leucine aminopeptidase (LAP), phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI), phosphoglucomutase (PGM), and glutamateoxaloacetate transaminase (GOT) shows that two loci control each of these enzymes. A third locus, coding GOT variants, seems to be active only in embryos. Acid phosphatase (AP) and malate dehydrogenase (MDH) reveal two zones of activity. In the lower zone of both of these enzymes, single-banded variants occur in megagametophytes, and allozyme segregation supports single-locus control for each. The upper zone of AP, segregating for both single- and double-banded variants, may also be controlled by a single locus. The upper zone of MDH, as well as the single zones of activity observed for ACO and IDH, were each invariant for a single band, but indirect evidence inferred from studies in the closely related pitch pine suggests single-locus control for each. In eight loci where embryo band patterns could be interpreted, the same locus was found to code allozymes in embryos and megagametophytes. However, embryo expression in MDH and GOT demonstrate that a gene may not necessarily be detectable in both tissues. Segregation distortions were observed for three heterozygous combinations, and in each case, the deficiency of a particular allele was consistent over several parents.

[Adams W, Joly R (1980) Genetics of allozyme variants in loblolly pine. Journal of Heredity 71:33-40.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1980 71:392-396
© The American Genetic Association

The genetics of chloroplast enzymes

Norman F. Weeden Department of Genetics, University of California, Davis, California 95616

L. D. Gottlieb Department of Genetics, University of California, Davis, California 95616

Plastid enzymes (isozymes) were identified in Clarkia williamsonii (phosphoglucose isomerase) and Pisum sativum (phosphoglucomutase, aspartate aminotransferase, shikimic dehydrogenase and fructose 1,6-diphosphate aldolase). Genetic tests demonstrated that all these enzymes are coded by independent genes on nuclear DNA. Genes coding plastid isozymes were shown not to be linked with genes coding the cytoplasmic form of the same enzyme. Linkage for pairs of genes specifying various plastic enzymes were also tested.

[Weeden N, Gottlieb L (1980) The genetics of chloroplast enzymes. Journal of Heredity 71:392-396.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1980 71:187-190
© The American Genetic Association

New mouse dw allele: Genetic location and effects on lifespan and growth hormone levels

Eva M. Eicher Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME 04609

Wesley G. Beamer Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME 04609

We have reported the finding of a new mutation at the dwarf locus, named dwarf-J, gene symbol dwJ, in the C3H/HeJ inbred mouse strain. The C3H/HeJ-dwJ/dwJ mice are like DW/J-dw/dw mice in that both homozygotes are virtually devoid of GH in either pituitary glands or serum. Lifespan of dwJ/dwJ mice was not reduced. Linkage experiments designed lo assign the dw gene, together with another gene weaver (wv). were successful in that both were found to be on chromosome 16. The dw locus is probably more proximally located on chromosome 16 than the wv locus.

[Eicher E, Beamer W (1980) New mouse dw allele: Genetic location and effects on lifespan and growth hormone levels. Journal of Heredity 71:187-190.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1981 72:281-283
© The American Genetic Association

NOTES

BIOSYS-1: a FORTRAN program for the comprehensive analysis of electrophoretic data in population genetics and systematics

David L. Swofford Department of Genetics and Development at the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801

Richard B. Selander Department of Genetics and Development at the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801

BIOSYS-1 is a FORTRAN IV program designed to aid biochemical population geneticists and systematists in the analysis of electrophoretically detectable allelic variation. It can be used to compute allele frequencies and genetic variability measures, to test for deviation of genotype frequencies from Hardy-Weinberg expectations, to calculate F-statistics, to perform heterogeneity chi-square analysis, to calculate a variety of similarity and distance coefficients, and to construct dendrograms using cluster analysis and Wagner procedures. The program, documentation, and test data are available from the authors.

[Swofford D, Selander R (1981) BIOSYS-1: a FORTRAN program for the comprehensive analysis of electrophoretic data in population genetics and systematics. Journal of Heredity 72:281-283.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1982 73:197-204
© The American Genetic Association

Genetic control of isozyme variation in Camellia japonica L.

J. F. Wendel Department of Botany, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

C. R. Parks Department of Botany, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Procedures are described for the extraction and electrophoretic separation of enzymes from seed and leaves of the tannin-rich evergreen Camellia japonica L. Seventeen enzyme systems have been resolved, and of these all but three were polymorphic. Crosses were performed between parents bearing dissimilar allelomorphs in order to discern the genetic control of the resolved enzymes. Based on the segregation ratios observed, 12 of the zones of staining for eight enzyme systems were postulated to be codominantly inherited single-gene traits. Tests of joint segregation for 58 out of 66 possible pairwise combinations for the 12 postulated loci suggested that two pairs of genes are linked: AAT-1 with PGM-3 (r = 0.29 ± 0.03), and 6-PGD-2 with PGM-2 (r = 0.17 ± 0.02).

[Wendel J, Parks C (1982) Genetic control of isozyme variation in Camellia japonica L.. Journal of Heredity 73:197-204.]

[Full Text]

Journal of Heredity 1983 74:265-272
© The American Genetic Association

Linkage map of Arabidopsis thaliana

M. Koornneef Department of Genetics, Agricultural University, Generaal Foulkesweg 53, 6703 BM Wageningen, The Netherlands

J. van Eden Department of Genetics, Agricultural University, Generaal Foulkesweg 53, 6703 BM Wageningen, The Netherlands

C. J. Hanhart Department of Genetics, Agricultural University, Generaal Foulkesweg 53, 6703 BM Wageningen, The Netherlands

P. Stam Department of Genetics, Agricultural University, Generaal Foulkesweg 53, 6703 BM Wageningen, The Netherlands

F. J. Braaksma Department of Genetics, University of Groningen Biological centre, Kerklaan 30, 9751 NN Haren, The Netherlands

W. J. Feenstra Department of Genetics, University of Groningen Biological centre, Kerklaan 30, 9751 NN Haren, The Netherlands

For Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. (2n = 10), 76 loci have now been assigned to five linkage groups, corresponding to the five chromosomes. From a large number of estimated recombination percentages internally consistent linkage maps were constructed, ranging in genetic length from 51 cM (chromosome 2) to 123 cM (chromosome 1). Map lengths and centromere positions agree well with cytological observations of previous authors.

[Koornneef M, van Eden J, Hanhart C, Stam P, Braaksma F, Feenstra W (1983) Linkage map of Arabidopsis thaliana. Journal of Heredity 74:265-272.]

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Journal of Heredity 1983 74:203-204
© The American Genetic Association

LINKAGE-1 : A PASCAL computer program for the detection and analysis of genetic linkage

Karl A. Sulter Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27514; NC State University, Department of Entomology, 840 Method Road - Unit 1, Raleigh, NC 27607

Jonathan F. Wendel Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

J. Stephen Case Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

LINKAGE-1 is a PASCAL computer program designed to aid the geneticist in the detection and estimation of linkage in segregating progenies. Loci segregating for both dominant and codominant genes can be simultaneously analyzed. Goodness-of-fit to expected ratios for single-factor segregations are tested by chi-square analyses. Contingency chi-square analyses are used to test for independent assortment between all pairs of jointly segregating loci. If significant deviation is detected, recombination percentages and their standard errors are calculated. The program and instructions for its use are available from the authors.

[Sulter K, Wendel J, Case J (1983) LINKAGE-1 : A PASCAL computer program for the detection and analysis of genetic linkage. Journal of Heredity 74:203-204.]

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Journal of Heredity 1984 75:34-40
© The American Genetic Association

Genetic control of allozyme variants in mature tissues of white spruce trees

W. M. Cheliak Petawawa National Forestry Institute, Chalk River, Ontario, Canada KOJ IJO

J. A. Pitel Petawawa National Forestry Institute, Chalk River, Ontario, Canada KOJ IJO

A method for extracting enzymes from mature tissues of coniferous species was applied to 280 progeny from a controlled mating scheme involving five white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) trees. Formal analysis of the genetic control of allozyme polymorphisms at six loci was made with this material. Numerous other loci lacking variation among parental trees also were investigated. Genotypic expression of isozyme loci in two types of diploid tissues and one source of haploid tissue from these plants was consistent for those enzyme loci that were common to all tissue types.

[Cheliak W, Pitel J (1984) Genetic control of allozyme variants in mature tissues of white spruce trees. Journal of Heredity 75:34-40.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:431-435
© The American Genetic Association

Isozyme characterization of sexual and asexual Phytophthora infestans populations

P. W. Tooley Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853; USDA, ARS, Ft. Detrick Bldg. 1301, Frederick, MD 21701

W. E. Fry Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853

M. J. Villarreal Gonzalez Coordinator Nacional Del Programa de Papa, Apartado Postal 195, Toluca, Mexico

We assayed mycelium of Phytophthora infestans for activity of 38 enzymes using starch gel electrophoresis. Activity was detected for 17 enzymes and 24 loci were resolved. The isozyme diversity found in P. infestans sampled from an asexual population (representing the United States, Canada, and Europe) was compared to that found in isolates from Mexico, where the sexual stage of the fungus exists. Both populations were monomorphic and identical at 11 enzyme loci. We obtained information for only 4 of 13 polymorphic loci due to inadequate resolution of the other 9 loci. The sexual and asexual populations ware polymorphic at the Gpi-1 (glucosephosphate isomerase) and Pep (peptidase) loci, while the sexual population alone was polymorphic at the Me (malic enzyme) and Xdh (xanthine dehydrogenase) loci. Observed banding patterns were consistent with the hypothesis that P. infestans has a diploid vegetative stage. Fifteen genotypic classes existed in the sexual population, while four classes existed in the asexual population. At the Gpi-1 and Pep loci, genotypic distributions in the sexual population were consistent with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, while those in the asexual population were not. This suggests the occurrence of random mating in the Mexican population of P. infestans.

[Tooley P, Fry W, Gonzalez M (1985) Isozyme characterization of sexual and asexual Phytophthora infestans populations. Journal of Heredity 76:431-435.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:447-450
© The American Genetic Association

F₁ hybrid weakness in the common bean

Differential geographic origin suggets two gene pools in cultivated bean germplasm

P. Gepts Department of Horticulture, University of Wisconsin, 1575 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706

F. A. Bliss Department of Horticulture, University of Wisconsin, 1575 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706

The geographic origin of cultivars involved in F₁ hybrid weakness was established using phaseolin type, as determined by one-dimensional SDS/PAGE. In all cases investigated, F₁ weakness arose in crosses between an ‘S’ phaseolin, small-seeded parent of Middle American origin and a ‘T’ or a ‘C’ phaseolin, large-seeded parent of Andean origin. The appearance of F₁ hybrid weakness reflects the geographical isolation of common bean cultivars of the two regions and points to the existence of two separate gene pools in cultivated common bean germplasm.

[Gepts P, Bliss F (1985) F₁ hybrid weakness in the common bean. Journal of Heredity 76:447-450.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:78-81
© The American Genetic Association

Use of biotin-labeled probes to map specific DNA sequences on wheat chromosomes

A. L. Rayburn Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

B. S. Gill Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

A biotin-labeling technique was used to map a 120 bp rye DNA probe by in situ hybridization to somatic metaphase chromosomes of common wheat. Twenty-tour hybridization sites were revealed on 11 chromosomes including 4A, 2D, 3D, 5D, and the seven B-genome chromosomes. The observed results were similar to those of previous studies that used isotope labeling. Biotin labeling was found to be a rapid, consistent, and reliable technique to detect repeated DNA sequences by in situ hybridization in wheat and should be a useful technique for the physical mapping of DNA sequences on plant chromosomes.

[Rayburn A, Gill B (1985) Use of biotin-labeled probes to map specific DNA sequences on wheat chromosomes. Journal of Heredity 76:78-81.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:146-154
© The American Genetic Association

Linkage of the major histocompatibility (B) complex and the nucleolar organizer in the chicken

Assignment to a microchromosome

Stephen E. Bloom Department of Poultry and Avian Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853

Larry D. Bacon U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Regional Poultry Research Laboratory, East Lansing, MI 48823

The linkage relationship and chromosomal locations of the major histocompatibility (B) complex and nucleolar organizers (18S + 28S ribosomal RNA genes) were studied in normal and aneuploid chickens. The B alloantigens were defined by hemagglutination, using monospecific alloantisera. A chicken having three B haplotypes was detected and used in test matings to normal disomic chickens. Additional cases of birds having three different haplotypes were generated in the progeny of such matings. Analysis of the segregation patterns of B haplotypes suggested that the chickens with an additional haplotype were trisomics. Chickens having three B haplotypes also displayed a maximum of three nucleoli in somatic cells instead of the normal two nucleoli of diploids. This indicated the presence of an additional nucleolus organizing region (NOR). Cytogenetic and cytochemical studies were performed on cells of normal and putative trisomic chickens. All chickens displayed a normal array of chromosomes for pairs 1 through 9. Silver staining differentiated Ag-NORs on the long arms of two and three microchromosomes in disomic and trisomic types, respectively. Viable tetrasomic chickens, produced from inter se matings of trisomics, displayed four nucleoli and four Ag-NORs in somatic cell preparations. These results indicate that the DNA sequences encoding the B histocompatibility antigens and the 18S + 28S ribosomal RNAs are linked on a acrocentric microchromosome in the domestic chicken.

[Bloom S, Bacon L (1985) Linkage of the major histocompatibility (B) complex and the nucleolar organizer in the chicken. Journal of Heredity 76:146-154.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:177-181
© The American Genetic Association

Production of androgenetic diploid rainbow trout

James E. Parsons Clear Springs Trout Company, P.O. Box 712, Buhl, Idaho, 83316; and the Department of Zoology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164

Gary H. Thorgaard Clear Springs Trout Company, P.O. Box 712, Buhl, Idaho, 83316; and the Department of Zoology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164

Haploid androgenesis was induced in rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) when eggs were irradiated with 60Co gamma radiation prior to fertilization. Diploidy was restored to the androgenetic haploid zygotes by suppression of first cleavage division using hydrostatic pressure. Peak survival in the androgenetic diploid lots (32.5–38.9 percent of control) occurred when a pressure shock of 9000 pounds per square inch lasting from one to three minutes was applied to the eggs 345 minutes post-fertilization. Chromosomal analysis confirmed diploidy in the androgenetic individuals and suggested that YY rainbow trout are viable to at least the “eyed stage” of development. Inheritance patterns at two loci confirmed all-paternal inheritance. The relatively high yields of completely homozygous androgenetic rainbow trout and the potential for the use of androgenesis in the production of inbred lines and in genetic studies indicate that androgenesis may become a valuable tool in fish research and breeding.

[Parsons J, Thorgaard G (1985) Production of androgenetic diploid rainbow trout. Journal of Heredity 76:177-181.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:321-324
© The American Genetic Association

Maternal inheritance of mitochondrial DNA during backcrossing of two species of mice

Ulf Gyllensten Department of Biochemistry, the University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, and the Department of Genetics, the University of Stockholm, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden

Dan Wharton New York Zoological Society, Bronx Zoo, Bronx, NY 10460, and the Department of Biological Science, Fordham University, Bronx, NY 10458

Allan C. Wilson Department of Biochemistry, the University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720

As judged by restriction analysis, mitochondrial DNA shows strictly maternal inheritance during 6–8 generations of backcrossing in both directions between Mus domesticus and Mus spretus. The average number of paternal mitochondrial genomes contributed to the next generation is estimated to be no more than one per thousand maternal mitochondrial genomes contributed. Despite the estimated accumulation of over 2000 mutational differences between M. spretus and M. domesticus mtDNAs since their divergence from a common ancestor, each of these mitochondrial DNAs, whether on a M. spretus or a M. domesticus nuclear background, allows mice to develop with seemingly normal viability and fertility.

[Gyllensten U, Wharton D, Wilson A (1985) Maternal inheritance of mitochondrial DNA during backcrossing of two species of mice. Journal of Heredity 76:321-324.]

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Journal of Heredity 1985 76:436-440
© The American Genetic Association

Confidence limits for estimates of gene linkage based on analysis of recombinant inbred strains

Jonathan Silver Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20205

Recombinant inbred (RI) strains are extremely useful for genetic mapping. This paper presents a simple method for determining confidence intervals for linkage estimates based on analysis of RI strains. The results show that such confidence intervals are usually large with the currently available numbers of RI strains. Therefore, map positions based only on analysis of RI strains should be interpreted with caution. To facilitate interpretation of linkage data derived from RI strains, a table is presented giving the 95 percent and 99 percent confidence intervals for all possible linkages detected with up to 45 RI strains.

[Silver J (1985) Confidence limits for estimates of gene linkage based on analysis of recombinant inbred strains. Journal of Heredity 76:436-440.]

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Wheat-rye translocations

Detection of chromosome breakpoints by in situ hybridization with a biotin-labeled DNA probe

N. L. V. Lapitan Department of Agronomy, Throckmorton Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

R. G. Sears Department of Agronomy, Throckmorton Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

A. L. Rayburn Department of Plant Pathology Throckmorton Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

B. S. Gill Department of Plant Pathology Throckmorton Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506

In situ hybridization with a biotin-labeled DNA probe was used to detect wheat-rye translocations. The probe containing a 120-bp repetitive DNA sequence from rye, hybridized to the entire length of all rye chromosomes, but only to a few sites in 14 wheat chromosomes. The overall distribution of this DNA probe in the rye chromosomes has not been detected previously with the use of radioactively labeled probes. As a result of the formation of a brown precipitate over sites of hybridization in this technique, the rye chromosomes were entirely brown in color, whereas the wheat chromosomes appeared blue. The distinguishable appearance of the wheat and rye chromosomes resulted in an efficient and sensitive method of detecting translocations.

[Lapitan N, Sears R, Rayburn A, Gill B (1986) Wheat-rye translocations. Journal of Heredity 77:415-419.]

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Gene map of the cow: Conservation of linkage with mouse and man

James E. Womack Department of Veterinary Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Texas A&M University and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, College Station, Texas 77843

Yvonne D. Moll Department of Veterinary Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Texas A&M University and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, College Station, Texas 77843

Cattle-hamster hybrid somatic cells segregating cattle chromosomes have been analyzed by cellulose-acetate electrophoresis for 28 enzyme gene products including the previously unassigned loci for GAPD, ITPA, ADA, ACO1, GDH, GUK, CAT, and GLO1. These 28 loci are organized into 21 independent syntenic groups bringing the composite bovine gene map to 35 loci on 24 syntenic groups. Thirty-two homologous genes now have been mapped in humans, mice, and cattle. Conservation of cattle and human linkage groups is evidenced by only three linkage discordancies among these 32 loci as contrasted to nine discordancies among the same loci in the human and mouse maps.

[Womack J, Moll Y (1986) Gene map of the cow: Conservation of linkage with mouse and man. Journal of Heredity 77:2-7.]

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Size polymorphism and heteroplasmy in the mitochondrial DNA of lower vertebrates

Eldredge Bermingham Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; NMFS/CZES, Genetics, 2725 Montlake Blvd. E., Seattle, WA 98112

Trip Lamb Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29801

John C. Avise Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602

The mitochondrial DNA of the bowfin fish and each of two species of treefrogs displays large-scale size variation. Within each species, mitochondrial genomes span more than a 700 base pair range, and the size polymorphism is localized to one portion of the genome. In addition, about 5 percent of the total 357 individuals surveyed were observed to carry two size classes of mtDNA. These findings are among the few documented instances of extensive within-species mtDNA size polymorphism and individual heteroplasmy, and constitute exceptions to previously reached generalizations about the molecular basis of mtDNA variation.

[Bermingham E, Lamb T, Avise J (1986) Size polymorphism and heteroplasmy in the mitochondrial DNA of lower vertebrates. Journal of Heredity 77:249-252.]

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New mutation causing hereditary hepatitis in the laboratory rat

M. C. Yoshida Chromosome Research Unit, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo

R. Masuda Chromosome Research Unit, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo

M. Sasaki Chromosome Research Unit, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo

N. Takeichi Laboratory of Pathology, Cancer Institute, Hokkaido University School of Medicine

H. Kobayashi Laboratory of Pathology, Cancer Institute, Hokkaido University School of Medicine

K. Dempo Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical College, Sapporo, Japan

M. Mori Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical College, Sapporo, Japan

A new mutant causing hereditary hepatitis associated with severe jaundice has been discovered in the LEC strain of rats. Hepatitis appears suddenly in adult rats three to four months after birth. The clinical signs of hepatitis are characterized by severe jaundice, subcutaneous bleeding, oliguria, and loss of body weight. The affected rats showed a high lethality and histological changes of the liver with focal necrosis of enlarged hepatocytes without inflammatory cell response. Genetic tests indicate that at least a single autosomal recessive gene is responsible for the major cause of hepatitis. Furthermore, liver cancer appears in long survived rats after recovery from jaundice as well as a few asymptomatic rats without jaundice. The LEC rats thus provide an animal model useful for the basic and clinical studies of hepatitis and liver cancer, including their pathogenesis, prevention, and treatment.

[Yoshida M, Masuda R, Sasaki M, Takeichi N, Kobayashi H, Dempo K, Mori M (1987) New mutation causing hereditary hepatitis in the laboratory rat. Journal of Heredity 78:361-365.]

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Genetic Changes Associated with the Evolution of Adaptedness in Cultivated Plants and Their Wild Progenitors

R. W. Allard From the Departments of Genetics and Agronomy and Range Science, University of California, Davis

The results of long-term studies of changes in adaptedness in a number of experimental populations of annual plants are summarized. Measurements made of quantitative traits showed that cumulative increases in reproductive capacity continued in these experimental populations for more than 50 generations. Highly significant allelic frequency changes also occurred for marker loci governing morphological variants, disease resistance, allozymes, and rDNA restriction fragments. Individual effects of the marker loci on quantitative traits were determined by extensive progeny testing of selfed families descended from single plants isolated from various generations of the experimental populations. Comparisons between homozygotes and heterozygotes of marker loci for quantitative trait expression revealed that all the marker loci studied had statistically significant additive effects on several to many quantitative traits; thus, each Mendelian locus, in addition to being a locus for its discrete descriptive effect, was also a locus for several quantitative traits. Consistent associations were found between superior reproductive capacity (e.g., larger numbers of kernels per plant) and the alleles of marker loci that increased in frequency over generations; no other quantitative traits measured were clearly and consistently associated with alleles that increased in frequency. Multilocus analyses based on canonical correlation, log linear, and cluster analysis procedures showed that highly significant associations developed in early generations among alleles of different loci in all the predominantly selfing populations studied. Dynamic changes featuring amalgamations of alleles into fewer clusters involving larger numbers of loci continued into the late generations. Patterns of ecogenetic differentiation that developed under predominant selfing were found to be fine-scaled overlays of environmental heterogeneity. The picture of evolutionary change that emerges is one in which the incorporation of increasing numbers of favorably interacting alleles into large synergistic complexes was accompanied in inbreeding populations by increases in adaptedness to the local environment and also by striking ecogenetic differentiation among local populations that occupy unlike habitats, including differentiation between cultivated plants and their wild progenitors. Selfing appears to promote the development and maintenance of adaptedness within populations and at the same time to facilitate the development of spatial differentiation by retarding gene flow between populations. Patterns of adaptive change in outbreeding populations, although similar to those of inbreeders in most particulars, featured less distinct multilocus structural organization within, as well as much less distinct ecogeographical differentiation among, populations.

[Allard R (1988) Genetic Changes Associated with the Evolution of Adaptedness in Cultivated Plants and Their Wild Progenitors. Journal of Heredity 79:225-238.]

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On Simple Repeated GA_CTA Sequences in Animal Genomes: A Critical Reappraisal

J. T. Epplen From the Junior Research Unit, Max-Planck-Institut für Psychiatrie, Munich, Federal Republic of Germany

Simple tandemly organized GA_CTA sequences occurred in all eukaryotic genomes investigated. The amount and organization of individual GA_CTA sequences or derivatives thereof vary considerably in animal DNAs and can be assessed by simple but specific hybridization procedures with chemically pure oligonucleotide probes. In several animal species, including humans, GA_CTA sequences show extensive polymorphism, thus allowing individual-specific “DNA fingerprints.” In selected rodents the sex-chromosomal organization of GA_CTA sequences is being studied extensively, revealing rapid evolutionary changes. In addition, insight can be expected into the sequences involved in obligatory meiotic crossing over between the X and Y chromosomes, into unequal crossing-over events, and into the linkage of GA_CTA elements to male-specific as well as to male-determining genes on the Y chromosome. The exact provenance of GA_CTA sequences in present-day eukaryotes cannot be pin-pointed, but evolutionary conservation and several modes of de novo generation are discussed. Among these are unequal recombination, slipped strand mispairing, and other unspecified mechanisms. The latter include inherent properties that are responsible for the “selfish” or “ignorant” nature of simple repeats. Expression, if any, of GA_CTA sequences is critical to the overall significance of these ubiquitously interspersed simple repeats.

[Epplen J (1988) On Simple Repeated GA_CTA Sequences in Animal Genomes: A Critical Reappraisal. Journal of Heredity 79:409-417.]

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BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS

A Series of FORTRAN Computer Programs for Estimating Plant Mating Systems

K. Ritland From the Department of Botany, University of Toronto, Canada

[Ritland K (1990) A Series of FORTRAN Computer Programs for Estimating Plant Mating Systems. Journal of Heredity 81:235-237.]

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Physical Mapping of the 5S rRNA Multigene Family in Common Wheat

Y. Mukai From the Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan; Osaka Kyoiku University, Osaka, Japan

T. R. Endo From the Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan; Nara University, Nara, Japan

B. S. Gill From the Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan

In situ hybridization in conjunction with deletion mapping was used to physically map the 5S rRNA multigene family in Triticum aestivum L. cv. ‘Chinese Spring.’ Twelve 5S rRNA loci were mapped on chromosomes of homoeologous group 1 (arms 1AS, 1BS, and 1DS) and group 5 (arms 5AS, 5BS, and 5DS). The 5S rRNA loci were mapped (traction of the distance from the centromere) at positions 0.77, 0.96, 0.76, 0.63, and 0.64 on arms 1AS, 1DS, 5AS, 5BS, and 5DS, respectively. The 5S rRNA locus on 1BS was mapped at position ca. 0.5 of the satellite length. Deletions were used to further map the 5S rRNA loci to chromosome bands 1AS12, 1BS32, 1DS22, 5AS22, 5BS22, and 5DS22. The 5S rRNA loci were not associated with major C-bands on arms 1BS, 1DS, and 5BS. The mapped 5S rRNA loci on the chromosomes of homoeologous group 1 are designated 5S-Rrna-A1, 5S-Rrna-B1, and 5S-Rrna-D1, and the homoeologous group 5 set are designated 5S-Rrna-A2, 5S-Rrna-B2, and 5S-Rrna-D2. The 5S rRNA locus in 1AS is a new finding in Chinese Spring wheat.

[Mukai Y, Endo T, Gill B (1990) Physical Mapping of the 5S rRNA Multigene Family in Common Wheat. Journal of Heredity 81:290-295.]

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Fat (fat) and Tubby (tub): Two Autosomal Recessive Mutations Causing Obesity Syndromes in the Mouse

D. L. Coleman From The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

E. M. Eicher From The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609

This report describes the development of obesity syndromes in mice caused by two autosomal recessive mutations, fat (fat), located on chromosome 8, and tubby (tub), located on chromosome 7. Both mutations cause slowly developing but ultimately severe obesity conditions. Although hyperinsulinemia, hyperactivity of the ß cell of the islets of Langerhans, and ß-cell degranulation are consistent features, these obesity syndromes do not progress to severe diabetes. The many different single-gene mutations in the mouse that produce obesity-diabetes syndromes of varying degrees of severity make the mutant mouse a powerful tool for analyzing the number and nature of the primary defects than can cause obesity states.

[Coleman D, Eicher E (1990) Fat (fat) and Tubby (tub): Two Autosomal Recessive Mutations Causing Obesity Syndromes in the Mouse. Journal of Heredity 81:424-427.]

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COMPUTER NOTES

A Program for Calculating Nei's Genetic Distances and Their Jackknifed Confidence Intervals

H. A. Lessios From the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama

[Lessios H (1990) A Program for Calculating Nei's Genetic Distances and Their Jackknifed Confidence Intervals. Journal of Heredity 81:490-490.]

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Analytical DNA Fingerprinting in Lions: Parentage, Genetic Diversity, and Kinship

D. A. Gilbert From the Biological Carcinogenesis and Development Program, Program Resources, Inc./DynCorp, NCl-Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center, Frederick, Maryland

C. Packer Department of Ecology & Behavior Biology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

A. E. Pusey Department of Ecology & Behavior Biology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

J. C. Stephens Laboratory of Viral Carcinogenesis, National Cancer Institute, Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center, Frederick, MD 21702-1201

S. J. O'Brien Laboratory of Viral Carcinogenesis, National Cancer Institute, Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center, Frederick, MD 21702-1201

The application of hypervariable minisatellite genomic families to the reconstruction of population genetic structure holds great promise in describing the demographic history and future prospects of free-ranging populations. This potential has not yet been realized due to unforeseen empirical constraints associated with the use of heterologous species probes, to theoretical limitations on the power of the procedure to track genic heterozygosity and kinship, and to the absence of extensive field studies to test genetic predictions. We combine here the technical development of feline-specific VNTR (variable number tandem repeat) families of genetic loci with the long-term demographic and behavioral observations of lion populations of the Serengeti ecosystem in East Africa. Minisatellite variation was used to quantify the extent of genetic variation in several populations that differed in their natural history and levels of inbreeding. Definitive parentage, both maternal and paternal, was assessed for 78 cubs born in 11 lion prides, permitting the assessment of precise genealogical relationships among some 200 lions. The extent of DNA restriction fragment sharing between lions was empirically calibrated with the coefficient of relatedness, r, in two different populations that had distinct demographic histories. The results suggest that reliable estimates of relative genetic diversity, of parentage, and of individual relatedness can be achieved in free-ranging populations, provided the minisatellite family is calibrated in established pedigrees for the species.

[Gilbert D, Packer C, Pusey A, Stephens J, O'Brien S (1991) Analytical DNA Fingerprinting in Lions: Parentage, Genetic Diversity, and Kinship. Journal of Heredity 82:378-386.]

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Conditional Male Fertility in Chalcone Synthase-Deficient Petunia

L. P. Taylor From the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture and the Program in Plant Physiology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6414

R. Jorgensen DNA Plant Technology Corporation, Oakland, California, and the Department of Vegetable Crops and Department of Environmental Horticulture, University of California, Davis

Transgenic petunia plants with suppressed chalcone synthase gene expression produce abnormal anthers devoid of flavonoid pigments. Although viable pollen is produced, pollen germination and tube growth are severely reduced both in vivo and in vitro. This results in plants that are self-sterile. Pollen from the transgenic plants is partially rescued by inbred V26 stigmas, resulting in seed set that is approximately 30% of normal. Female fertility in the transgenic petunia is unaffected by the lack of flavonoids. We propose the term conditional male fertility (CMF) to describe the state in which viable but flavonoid-deficient pollen does not function in self-crosses and is partially functional on wild-type stigmas. Although this condition has attributes of both male sterility and self-incompatibility, it is clearly different. This observation in petunia has similarities to the earlier report of Coe et al. (1981) that most pollinations made with chalcone synthase (CHS)-deficient maize pollen were unsuccessful. The possibility that normal development of the male gametophyte requires flavonoid synthesis in many or all higher plants is discussed. The dominant CHS deficiency and male sterility in petunia, taken together with the recessive CHS deficiency and male sterility in maize, suggest that flavonoid synthesis in the sporophyte rather than the gametophyte is required for fertility.

[Taylor L, Jorgensen R (1992) Conditional Male Fertility in Chalcone Synthase-Deficient Petunia. Journal of Heredity 83:11-17.]

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Extensive Conservation of Linkage Relationships Between Pea and Lentil Genetic Maps

N. F. Weeden From the Department of Horticultural Sciences, Cornell University, Geneva, NY 14456

F. J. Muehlbauer USDA-ARS, Washington State University

G. Ladizinsky Faculty of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

A 560-cM linkage map consisting of 64 morphological, isozyme, and DNA markers, has been developed from an interspecific cross (Lens ervoides×L. culinaris). In addition, nine markers were scored that assorted independently of any of the multilocus linkage groups. Comparison of this map with that established previously for Pisum sativum reveals eight regions in which linkages among marker loci appear to have been conserved since the divergence of the two genera. These conserved linkage groups constitute at least 250 cM, or approximately 40% of the known linkage map for Lens. The two genera represent disparate lineages within the legume tribe Viceae, indicating that all members of this tribe may possess linkage groups similar to those identified in Lens and Pisum. Instances where the Pisum and Lens maps differed included the regions surrounding the 45S ribosomal tandem repeats and the position and distribution of the genes encoding the small subunit of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase. We also found a highly repeated sequence unique to Lens that maps within a linkage group shared between the two genera and a cDNA sequence that displays significant variation in copy number within the genus Lens.

[Weeden N, Muehlbauer F, Ladizinsky G (1992) Extensive Conservation of Linkage Relationships Between Pea and Lentil Genetic Maps. Journal of Heredity 83:123-129.]

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COMPUTER NOTE

REAP: An Integrated Environment for the Manipulation and Phylogenetic Analysis of Restriction Data

D. McElroy From the Department of Zoology, the Migratory Fish Research Institute, and the Center for Marine Studies, University of Maine

P. Moran From the Department of Zoology, the Migratory Fish Research Institute, and the Center for Marine Studies, University of Maine

E. Bermingham Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama

I. Kornfield From the Department of Zoology, the Migratory Fish Research Institute, and the Center for Marine Studies, University of Maine

[McElroy D, Moran P, Bermingham E, Kornfield I (1992) REAP: An Integrated Environment for the Manipulation and Phylogenetic Analysis of Restriction Data. Journal of Heredity 83:157-158.]

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Signal, Noise, and Reliability in Molecular Phylogenetic Analyses

D. M. Hillis From the Department of Zoology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712

J. P. Huelsenbeck From the Department of Zoology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712

DNA sequences and other molecular data compared among organisms may contain phylogenetic signal, or they may be randomized with respect to phylogenetic history. Some method is needed to distinguish phylogenetic signal from random noise to avoid analysis of data that have been randomized with respect to the historical relationships of the taxa being compared. We analyzed 8,000 random data matrices consisting of 10–500 binary or four-state characters and 5–25 taxa to study several options for detecting signal in systematic data bases. Analysis of random data often yields a single most-parsimonious tree, especially if the number of characters examined is large and the number of taxa examined is small (both often true in molecular studies). The most-parsimonious tree inferred from random data may also be considerably shorter than the second-best alternative. The distribution of tree lengths of all tree topologies (or a random sample thereof) provides a sensitive measure of phylogenetic signal: data matrices with phylogenetic signal produce tree-length distributions that are strongly skewed to the left, whereas those composed of random noise are closer to symmetrical. In simulations of phylogeny with varying rates of mutation (up to levels that produce random variation among taxa), the skewness of tree-length distributions is closely related to the success of parsimony in finding the true phylogeny. Tables of critical values of a skewness test statistic, g1, are provided for binary and four-state characters for 10–500 characters and 5–25 taxa. These tables can be used in a rapid and efficient test for significant structure in data matrices for phylogenetic analysis.

[Hillis D, Huelsenbeck J (1992) Signal, Noise, and Reliability in Molecular Phylogenetic Analyses. Journal of Heredity 83:189-195.]

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Chromosome Conservation in the Bovidae

D. S. Gallagher From the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-4463

J. E. Womack From the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-4463

The chromosomes of 12 bovid species were harvested from fibroblast cultures after incorporation of bromodeoxyuridine into early replicating DNA. Q-band karyotypes were constructed, and, when possible, autosomal arms were numbered according to the cattle standard karyotype. Diploid chromosome number ranged from 30 to 60, yet, based on band similarity, chromosome-arm homologies were extensive. Employing the cattle karyotype as the standard, autosomal-arm differences indicative of possible syntenic disruption were noted for only chromosomes 3, 9, and 14. While chromosome-arm homologies were extensive, shared homologous biarmed chromosomes were rare. The commonness of monobrachially homologous biarmed chromosomes among some bovids (e.g., Antilopinae) suggested that reproductive isolation and speciation in some instances might have resulted from centric fusion events.

[Gallagher D, Womack J (1992) Chromosome Conservation in the Bovidae. Journal of Heredity 83:287-298.]

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COMPUTER NOTE

Two Programs to Estimate Significance of ?2 Values Using Pseudo-Probability Tests

D. V. Zaykin From the Laboratory of Genetics, Institute of Marine Biology, Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok 690041, Russia

A. I. Pudovkin From the Laboratory of Genetics, Institute of Marine Biology, Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok 690041, Russia

[Zaykin D, Pudovkin A (1993) Two Programs to Estimate Significance of ?2 Values Using Pseudo-Probability Tests. Journal of Heredity 84:152-152.]

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The Mutational Meltdown in Asexual Populations

M. Lynch From the Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403

R. Bürger Institut für Mathematik, Universität Wien, Vienna, Austria

D. Butcher From the Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403

W. Gabriel Department of Physiological Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Limnology, Plön Germany

Loss of fitness due to the accumulation of deleterious mutations appears to be inevitable in small, obligately asexual populations, as these are incapable of reconstituting highly fit genotypes by recombination or back mutation. The cumulative buildup of such mutations is expected to lead to an eventual reduction in population size, and this facilitates the chance accumulation of future mutations. This synergistic interaction between population size reduction and mutation accumulation leads to an extinction process known as the mutational meltdown, and provides a powerful explanation for the rarity of obligate asexuality. We give an overview of the theory of the mutational meltdown, showing how the process depends on the demographic properties of a population, the properties of mutations, and the relationship between fitness and number of mutations incurred.

[Lynch M, Bürger R, Butcher D, Gabriel W (1993) The Mutational Meltdown in Asexual Populations. Journal of Heredity 84:339-344.]

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Classification of Hypotheses on the Advantage of Amphimixis

A. S. Kondrashov From the Section of Ecology and Systematics, Corson Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853

A classification of hypotheses on the advantage of amphimixis over apomixis is presented. According to “Immediate Benefit” hypotheses, amphimixis is advantageous regardless of reciprocal gene exchange, because either it directly increases fitness of the progeny, reduces the deleterious mutation rate, or makes selection more efficient. In contrast, “Variation and Selection” hypotheses attribute the advantage of amphimixis to the reciprocal gene exchange that alters genetic variability and response to selection among the progeny. Most such hypotheses assume that amphimixis increases variability and efficiency of selection, but some claim that amphimixis decreases response to selection. Variation and Selection hypotheses require that some factor, either random drift or epistatic selection, makes distributions of different alleles nonindependent, while another factor, either changes of the genotype fitnesses or deleterious mutations, makes overrepresented genotypes nonoptimal. Numerous Variation and Selection hypotheses, dealing with either unstructured or spatially structured populations, are reviewed. Two of them seem most plausible: better responsiveness of the amphimictic population to widely fluctuating selection, and lower mutation load in the amphimictic population under synergistic selection against deleterious mutations. In both cases the large advantage of amphimixis requires rather stringent conditions, which could be falsified by careful experiment. Further progress in understanding the evolution of amphimixis will depend mostly on such experimental work.

[Kondrashov A (1993) Classification of Hypotheses on the Advantage of Amphimixis. Journal of Heredity 84:372-387.]

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Elephant Seal Genetic Variation and the Use of Simulation Models to Investigate Historical Population Bottlenecks

A. R. Hoelzel From the Department of Genetics, Downing Street, Cambridge, U.K.; NERC, Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College, Ascot, Berks, U.K.; National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Viral Carcinogenesis, Frederick, MD 21702

J. Halley NERC, Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College, Ascot, Berks, U.K.

S. J. O'Brien National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Viral Carcinogenesis, Frederick, MD 21702

C. Campagna Centro Nacional Patagonico, Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina

T. Arnbom British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, U.K. and Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

B. Le Boeuf Department of Biology and Institute of Marine Science, University of California, Santa Cruz

K. Ralls National Zoological Park, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

G. A. Dover From the Department of Genetics, Downing Street, Cambridge, U.K.

Because the northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostrus) was heavily exploited during the 19th century, it experienced an extreme population bottleneck. Since then, under legislative protection in the United States and Mexico, northern elephant seals have recovered dramatically in number, although their genomic diversity was greatly reduced, apparently as a consequence of the bottleneck. In this study we investigated DNA sequence diversity in two mtDNA regions (the control region and 16S RNA) and found low genetic variation in the northern elephant seal: there were only two control region haplotypes (sequence difference = 1%), which was consistent with an extreme founder event in the recent history of the northern species. We also reaffirmed the lack of allozyme diversity in this species. In contrast, the southern elephant seal (M. leonina), which though similarly exploited never fell below 1,000 animals, had 23 control region mtDNA haplotypes (average sequence difference = 2.3%). To investigate the extent of the founder event in the northern elephant seal we devised a simulation model based on extensive demographic data. This allowed a statistical analysis of the likely outcome of bottlenecks of different size and duration. Given these historical data, our results indicate (within 95% confidence) a bottleneck of less than 30 seals and 20-year duration, or, if hunting was the primary pressure on the population, a single-year bottleneck of less than 20 seals.

[Hoelzel A, Halley J, O'Brien S, Campagna C, Arnbom T, Le Boeuf B, Ralls K, Dover G (1993) Elephant Seal Genetic Variation and the Use of Simulation Models to Investigate Historical Population Bottlenecks. Journal of Heredity 84:443-449.]

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ARCTICLE

Molecular Marker Linkage Map for Apple

M. Hemmat From the Department of Horticultural Sciences, Cornell University, Geneva, New York 14456

N. F. Weeden From the Department of Horticultural Sciences, Cornell University, Geneva, New York 14456

A. G. Manganaris National Agricultural Research Foundation, Pomology Institute, 59200 Naoussa, Greece

D. M. Lawson From the Department of Horticultural Sciences, Cornell University, Geneva, New York 14456

Linkage maps for two apple clones, White Angel and Rome Beauty, were constructed using isozyme and DNA polymorphisms segregating in a population produced from a Rome Beauty × White Angel cross. The linkage map for White Angel consists of 253 markers arranged in 24 linkage groups and extends over 950 cM. The Rome Beauty map contains 156 markers on 21 linkage groups. The White Angel map was taken as the standard, and we were able to identify linkage groups in Rome Beauty homologous to 13 White Angel linkage groups. The location of several genes not segregating in the Rome Beauty × White Angel population could be determined on the basis of known linkages with segregating markers. Hence, the standard map for apple now contains about 360 markers, with most linkage groups saturated at 10–15 cM. The double pseudotestcross format of the mapping population permitted the comparison of recombination frequencies in male and female parents in certain regions of the genome where appropriate markers were available. The recombination frequencies observed for the approximately 170 cM that were comparable gave no indication that a sex-related difference in recombination rate was characteristic of apple.

[Hemmat M, Weeden N, Manganaris A, Lawson D (1994) Molecular Marker Linkage Map for Apple. Journal of Heredity 85:4-11.]

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COMPUTER NOTES

GENEPOP (Version 1.2): Population Genetics Software for Exact Tests and Ecumenicism

M. Raymond From the Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, URA CNRS 327, Laboratoire de Génétique et Environnement, Université de Montpellier II (CC 065), Place E. Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier cedex 05, France

F. Rousset From the Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, URA CNRS 327, Laboratoire de Génétique et Environnement, Université de Montpellier II (CC 065), Place E. Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier cedex 05, France

[Raymond M, Rousset F (1995) GENEPOP (Version 1.2): Population Genetics Software for Exact Tests and Ecumenicism. Journal of Heredity 86:248-249.]

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COMPUTER NOTE

FSTAT (Version 1.2): A Computer Program to Calculate F-Statistics

J. Goudet From the School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales, Bangor, U.K., and Institut de Zoologie et d'Ecologie Animale, Bât. Biologie, Université de Lausanne, Lausanne CH-1015, Switzerland

[Goudet J (1995) FSTAT (Version 1.2): A Computer Program to Calculate F-Statistics. Journal of Heredity 86:485-486.]

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COMPUTER NOTES

HAPLO: A Program Using the EM Algorithm to Estimate the Frequencies of Multi-site Haplotypes

M. E. Hawley From the Department of Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510-8005

K. K. Kidd From the Department of Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510-8005

[Hawley M, Kidd K (1995) HAPLO: A Program Using the EM Algorithm to Estimate the Frequencies of Multi-site Haplotypes. Journal of Heredity 86:409-411.]

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The Deletion Stocks of Common Wheat

T. R. Endo From the Laboratory of Genetics, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto 631, Japan

B. S. Gill Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506-5502

Chromosomal breaks occurred in the progeny of a common wheat (Triticum aestivum L. em Thell; 2n = 6x = 42, genome formula AABBDD) cultivar Chinese Spring with a monosomic addition of an alien chromosome from Aegilops cylindrica Host (2n = 4x = 28, CCDD) or A. triuncialis L. (2n = 4x = 28, UUCC) or a chromosomal segment from A. speltoides Tausch (2n = 2x = 14, SS). We identified 436 deletions by C-banding. The deletion chromosomes were transmitted stably to the offspring. We selected deletion homozygotes in the progeny of the deletion heterozygotes and established homozygous lines for about 80% of the deletions. We failed to establish homozygous lines for most of the deletions in the short arm of chromosome 2A and for all deletions in the short arm of chromosome 4B, because plants homozygous for these deletions were sterile. We could not obtain any homozygotes for larger deletions in the long arms of chromosomes 4A, 5A, 5B, and 5D. The deletion stocks showed variations in morphological, physiological, and biochemical traits, depending on the size of their chromosomal deficiency, and are powerful tools for physical mapping of wheat chromosomes.

[Endo T, Gill B (1996) The Deletion Stocks of Common Wheat. Journal of Heredity 87:295-307.]

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Review Article

Launching Microsatellites: A Review of Mutation Processes and Methods of Phylogenetic Inference

D. B. Goldstein From the Department of Zoology, South Parks Road, University of Oxford, Oxford OXI 3PS, England

D. D. Pollock Department of Mathematical Biology, National Institute for Medical Research, London, England

[Goldstein D, Pollock D (1997) Launching Microsatellites: A Review of Mutation Processes and Methods of Phylogenetic Inference. Journal of Heredity 88:335-342.]

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Separating the Wheat From the Chaff: Patterns of Genetic Differentiation in High Gene Flow Species

R. S. Waples From the Conservation Biology Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 2725 Montlake Boulevard East, Seattle, WA 98112

In many marine species, high levels of gene flow ensure that the genetic signal from population differentiation is weak. As a consequence, various errors associated with estimating population genetic parameters that might normally be safely ignored assume a relatively greater importance. This fact has important implications for the use of genetic data to address two common questions in fishery conservation and management: (1) How many stocks of a given species are there? and (2) How much gene flow occurs among stocks? This article discusses strategies to maximize the signal:noise ratio in genetic studies of marine species and suggests a quantitative method to correct for bias due to a common sampling problem. For many marine species, however, genetic methods alone cannot fully resolve these key management questions because the amount of migration necessary to eliminate most genetic evidence of stock structure (only a handful of individuals per generation) will generally be inconsequential as a force for rebuilding depleted populations on a time scale of interest to humans. These limitations emphasize the importance of understanding the biology and life history of the target species– first, to guide design of the sampling program, and second, so that additional information can be used to supplement indirect estimates of migration rates based on genetic data.

[Waples R (1998) Separating the Wheat From the Chaff: Patterns of Genetic Differentiation in High Gene Flow Species. Journal of Heredity 89:438-450.]

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Distortion of Allele Frequency Distributions Provides a Test for Recent Population Bottlenecks

G. Luikart From the Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812; Laboratoire de Biologie des Populations d'Altitude, CNRS, Université Joseph Fourier, BP 53 F-38041, Genoble Cedex 9, France

F. W. Allendorf From the Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812

J.-M. Cornuet Laboratoire de Modelisation et de Biologie Evolutive, I.N.R.A./U.R.L.B., Montpellier, France

W. B. Sherwin School of Biological Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

We use population genetics theory and computer simulations to demonstrate that population bottlenecks cause a characteristic mode-shift distortion in the distribution of allele frequencies at selectively neutral loci. Bottlenecks cause alleles at low frequency (<0.1) to become less abundant than alleles in one or more intermediate allele frequency class (e.g., 0.1–0.2). This distortion is transient and likely to be detectable for only a few dozen generations. Consequently only recent bottlenecks are likely to be detected by tests for distortions in distributions of allele frequencies. We illustrate and evaluate a qualitative graphical method for detecting a bottleneck-induced distortion of allele frequency distributions. The simple novel method requires no information on historical population sizes or levels of genetic variation; it requires only samples of 5 to 20 polymorphic loci and approximately 30 individuals. The graphical method often differentiates between empirical datasets from bottlenecked and nonbottlenecked natural populations. Computer simulations show that the graphical method is likely (P > .80) to detect an allele frequency distortion after a bottleneck of =20 breeding individuals when 8 to 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci are analyzed.

[Luikart G, Allendorf F, Cornuet J, Sherwin W (1998) Distortion of Allele Frequency Distributions Provides a Test for Recent Population Bottlenecks. Journal of Heredity 89:238-247.]

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