Complete genomes reveal signatures of demographic and genetic declines in the woolly mammoth.

ABSTRACT: The processes leading up to species extinctions are typically characterized by prolonged declines in population size and geographic distribution, followed by a phase in which populations are very small and may be subject to intrinsic threats, including loss of genetic diversity and inbreeding. However, whether such genetic factors have had an impact on species prior to their extinction is unclear; examining this would require a detailed reconstruction of a species' demographic history as well as changes in genome-wide diversity leading up to its extinction. Here, we present high-quality complete genome sequences from two woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius). The first mammoth was sequenced at 17.1-fold coverage and dates to ∼4,300 years before present, representing one of the last survi

SUBMITTER: Palkopoulou E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4439331 | biostudies-literature | 2015 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature