A genetic linkage map of the mimetic butterfly Heliconius melpomene.

ABSTRACT: Heliconius melpomene is a mimetic butterfly that exhibits great geographic variation in color pattern. We present here a genetic linkage map based on analysis of genetic markers in 73 individuals from a single F(2) family, offspring of a cross between H. m. cythera from western Ecuador and H. m. melpomene from French Guiana. A novel "three-step method" is described for the analysis of dominant markers in an F(2) cross, using outbred parental strains and taking advantage of the lack of crossing over in female Lepidoptera. This method is likely to prove useful for future mapping studies in outbred species with crossing over restricted to one sex, such as the Lepidoptera and Drosophila. The resulting linkage map has 21 linkage groups corresponding to the 21 chromosomes of H. melpomene and inc

SUBMITTER: Jiggins CD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1456771 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature