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Nuclear integrations of mitochondrial DNA in gorillas
Author(s) -
JensenSeaman Michael I.,
Sarmiento Esteban E.,
Deinard Amos S.,
Kidd Kenneth K.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
american journal of primatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.988
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1098-2345
pISSN - 0275-2565
DOI - 10.1002/ajp.20047
Subject(s) - mitochondrial dna , nuclear dna , evolutionary biology , biology , computational biology , genetics , gene
Great ape systematics, particularly at the species level and below, is currently under debate, due in part to the recent influx of molecular data. The phylogenies of previously published mitochondrial control region (or D‐loop) DNA sequences in gorillas show deep splits within West African gorillas ( Gorilla gorilla gorilla ), and very high levels of nucleotide diversity in this subspecies. Here we demonstrate that several previously reported D‐loop haplotypes from West African gorillas are in all likelihood nuclear integrations of mitochondrial DNA. Revised estimates of the amount and pattern of mitochondrial DNA diversity in gorillas are provided, revealing two reciprocally monophyletic and highly divergent groups of gorillas, concurrent with their geographic distribution. Am. J. Primatol. 63:139–147, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.