Asexuality Associated with Marked Genomic Expansion of Tandemly Repeated rRNA and Histone Genes.

ABSTRACT: How does asexual reproduction influence genome evolution? Although is it clear that genomic structural variation is common and important in natural populations, we know very little about how one of the most fundamental of eukaryotic traits-mode of genomic inheritance-influences genome structure. We address this question with the New Zealand freshwater snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum, which features multiple separately derived obligately asexual lineages that coexist and compete with otherwise similar sexual lineages. We used whole-genome sequencing reads from a diverse set of sexual and asexual individuals to analyze genomic abundance of a critically important gene family, rDNA (the genes encoding rRNAs), that is notable for dynamic and variable copy number. Our genomic survey of rDNA in P.

SUBMITTER: McElroy KE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8382920 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature