SSCP (single-strand conformation polymorphism) analyses of ubiquitin genes were used to investigate evolutionary relationships within the subgenus Orinocarabus of the genus Carabus. After SSCP electrophoresis of PCR-amplified ubiquitin copies, population-specific band patterns were obtained. Ubiquitin-SSCP-analyses of the six central European Orinocarabus species, including three subspecies and thirteen populations, resulted in a dendrogram that differed from that based on morphology. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) did not support the SSCP dendrogram, but was in good accordance with the taxonomy based on morphological characters. The reason for the discrepancies seems to be evolutionary conservation of the ubiquitin genes. The time that elapsed since the evolution of the closely related Orinocarabus species is too short for concerted evolution of the ubiquitin genes.
Using passive hair traps to obtain genetic material from wild mammals is an effective form of testing the abundance of animal populations. Based on genetic analysis of collected hair, it is possible to estimate the number and sex of individuals present in a given area. The aim of this study was to confirm the success of the method of collecting hair from beavers in a non-invasive way, as well as to determine the effectiveness of using passive hair traps as sampling tools that can be applied in different regions. The study was carried out in the area of Stobrawa Landscape Park (southwestern Poland) between December 2017 and May 2018. For 17 control days, 12 samples were obtained, which gave the result of 0.7 samples per control day. This study shows that the proposed method, due to its simplicity and efficiency, could be a cost-effective way of collecting hair from free-ranging beavers without the need for capturing individuals.
The present study devises two techniques for visualizing biological sequence data clusterings. The Sequence Data Density Display (SDDD) and Sequence Likelihood Projection (SLP) visualizations represent the input symbolical sequences in a lower-dimensional space in such a way that the clusters and relations of data elements are preserved as faithfully as possible. The resulting unified framework incorporates directly raw symbolical sequence data (without necessitating any preprocessing stage), and moreover, operates on a pure unsupervised basis under complete absence of prior information and domain knowledge.
South African clinids are a major component of the temperate intertidal regions that are also known to participate in life cycles and transmission of several groups of parasites. However, the knowledge of trematode diversity of these fishes is incomplete. In this study, two species of Clinus Cuvier, the super klipfish Clinus superciliosus (Linnaeus) and the bluntnose klipfish Clinus cottoides Valenciennes, were collected from six localities along the South African coast and examined for the presence of trematodes. Metacercariae of Cardiocephaloides Sudarikov, 1959 were found in the eye vitreous humour and brain of C. superciliosus and in the eye vitreous humour of C. cottoides. Detailed analyses integrating morphological and molecular sequence data (28S rDNA, ITS2 rDNA-region, and COI mtDNA) revealed that these belong to two species, Cardiocephaloides physalis (Lutz, 1926) and an unknown species of Cardiocephaloides. This study provides the first report of clinid fishes serving as intermediate hosts for trematodes, reveals that the diversity of Cardiocephaloides in South Africa is higher than previously recorded, and highlights the need for further research to elucidate the life cycles of these trematode species. The broad geographical distribution of Cardiocephaloides spp. was confirmed in the present study based on molecular sequence data. The host-parasite interactions between clinid fishes and metacercariae of Cardiocephaloides are yet to be explored.
Tématem příspěvku je nová analýza dostupných poznatků o hrobech K1 a K2 v lodi předrománské rotundy sv. Víta, které byly objeveny již v roce 1911 a připisovány několika přemyslovským knížatům. Provedena byla zejména revize antropologických poznatků, analýzy stabilních izotopů uhlíku (δ13C) a dusíku (δ15N), analýza DNA a radiouhlíkové datování. Získaná data nedávají dohromady konzistentní obraz. Archeologie vylučuje připsání ostatků knížeti Bořivoji I. († asi 888/889), antropologie pak knížeti Boleslavu I. († 972). Oba obory by dovolovaly připsat s určitou pravděpodobností kosterní ostatky knížeti Boleslavu II. († 999), tomu ale neodpovídá radiokarbonové datování. Navržena je možnost připsat ostatky písemně doloženému jménem neznámému synovi knížete Boleslava I., který zemřel před rokem 972. Analýza DNA z K2 připsala ostatky ženě, pravděpodobně tedy manželce osoby K1. and The subject of the article is a new analysis of available information on graves K1 and K2 in the nave of the pre-Romanesque St. Vitus Rotunda; discovered in 1911, the graves have been attributed to various Přemyslid princes. The main work involved a review of anthropological findings, analyses of stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes, a DNA analysis and radiocarbon dating. Taken together, obtained data do not provide a consistent image. Archaeology rules out the attribution of the remains to Prince Bořivoji I († c. 888/889), while anthropology eliminates the possibility of the burial of Boleslav I († 972). With a high degree of probability, both of these scientific disciplines would permit the identification of the individual as Prince Boleslav II († 999), but this possibility is then eliminated by radiocarbon dating. The author suggests the possibility of attributing the remains to a son of Prince Boleslav I, an individual whose name is not documented in written sources and who died before 972. A DNA analysis revealed that the remains in grave K2 belonged to a woman, i.e. probably the wife of the individual buried in grave K1.
Dějiny lidských populací (změny v počtu obyvatel a jejich původu) jsou jednou z domén biologické antropologie, resp. archeogenetiky. Za poslední desetiletí došlo k významnému rozvoji molekulárně-genetických a biostatistických postupů, jejichž prostřednictvím bylo možné rekonstruovat demografické změny minulých populací v nejrůznějších částech světa. V době, kdy se genetické postupy při rekonstrukci pravěku utvářely, jsme vycházeli z limitovaného množství vzorků a studia jen části lidské genetické variability. Dnes se ocitáme v éře genomiky, a měli bychom tedy mluvit spíše o archeogenomice, která pracuje s nepoměrně větším počtem dat a dosahuje mnohem spolehlivějších výsledků. Nepochybujeme ale o tom, že v následujícím období se bude rekonstrukce populačních dějin ještě přepisovat a doplňovat, např. i díky novým poznatkům v oblasti epigenomiky a mikrobiomu. V tomto příspěvku bychom chtěli přiblížit přístupnou formou současné výsledky genetických studií pravěku Evropy, jež spolu s kulturními dějinami vytvářejí ucelenější obraz naší sdílené, ale nikým nezapsané minulosti. and History of human populations (changes in the number of inhabitants and their origin) represent one of the domains of biological anthropology, or more precisely archaeogenetics. The recent decade has seen significant advances in molecular-genetic and biostatistical methods that allowed reconstruction of demographic changes in past populations in different parts of the world. At the time of development of genetic methods for reconstruction of prehistory, we had at our disposal a limited number of samples enabling us to study only certain parts of human genetic variability, while today we find ourselves in the era of genomics, and we should therefore rather refer to archaeogenomics, working with incomparably bigger amount of data and achieving far more reliable results. Furthermore, there is no doubt that the upcoming periods will complete the population history reconstruction, e.g. with new knowledge achieved in the fields of epigenomics and microbiome. This article nonetheless aims to present in a reader-friendly way the recent results of genetic studies of European prehistory, which together with the cultural history give a more complete picture of our shared yet unwritten past.