[Genetic differentiation of pink salmon oncorhynchus gorbuscha Walbaum in the Asian part of the range].

Genetic variation at 19 allozyme (including 11 polymorphic) and 10 microsatellite loci was examined in the population samples of odd- and even-broodline pink salmon from the southern part of Sakhalin Island, Southern Kuril Islands, and the northern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk. The estimates of relative interpopulation component of genetic variation over the allozyme loci, per broodline, were on average 0.43% (GST), while over the microsatellite loci it was 0.26% (the theta(ST) coefficient, F-statistics based on the allele frequency variance), and 0.90% (the rho(ST) coefficient, R-statistics based on the allele size variance). The values of interlinear component constituted 2.34, 0.31, and 1.05% of the total variation, respectively. Using the allozyme loci, statistically significant intralinear heterogeneity was demonstrated among the regions, as well as among the populations of Southern Sakhalin Island. Multivariate scaling based on the allozyme data demonstrated regional clustering of the sample groups, representing certain populations during the spawning run or in different years. Most of the microsatellite loci examined were found to be highly polymorphic (mean heterozygosity > 0.880). The estimates of interlinear, interregional, and interpopulation variation over these loci in terms of theta(ST) values were substantially lower than in terms of rho(ST) values. Regional genetic differentiation, mostly expressed at the allozyme loci among the populations from the northern and southern parts of the Sea of Okhotsk (i.e., between the Sakhalin and Kuril populations), was less expressed at the microsatellite loci. The differentiation between these regions observed can be considered as the evidence in favor of a large-scale isolation by distance characterizing Asian pink salmon. It is suggested that in pink salmon, low genetic differentiation at neutral microsatellite loci can be explained by extremely high heterozygosity,of the loci themselves, as well as by the migration gene exchange among the populations (the estimate of the genetic migration coefficient inferred from the "private" allele data constituted 2.6 to 3.4%), specifically, by the ancient migration exchange, which occurred during postglacial colonization and colonization of the range.

[Population genetic study of Russian cosmonauts and test subjects: genetic demographic parameters and immunogenetic markers].

Genetic demographic characteristics and immunogenetic markers (blood groups ABO, Rhesus, MNSs, P, Duffy, Kidd, and Kell) have been studied in a group of 132 Russian cosmonauts and test subjects (CTSG). Analysis of pedigrees has shown a high exogamy in the preceding generations: almost half of the subjects have mixed ethnic background. According to the results of genetic demographic analysis, a sample from the Moscow population was used as control group (CG). Comparison between the CTSG and CG has demonstrated significant differences in genotype frequencies for several blood group systems. The CTSG is characterized by a decreased proportion of rare interlocus genotypic combinations and an increased man heterozygosity. Analysis of the distributions of individual heterozygosity for loci with codominant expression of alleles has shown that highly heterozygous loci are more frequent in the CTSG. Taking into account that the CTSG has been thoroughly selected from the general population, it is concluded that heterozygosity is related to successful adaptation to a space flight.

[Genetic divergence in pink salmon introduced into the European north of Russia: microsatellite and allozyme variation analysis].

The 1985 introduction into the European North of Russia resulted in the formation of a large stock of pink salmon of the odd-year breeding line. To assess the divergence of the new population and the role of various microevolutionary factors, variation of four microsatellite loci and fifteen genes encoding proteins (allozymes) in samples of fish, running for spawning in rivers of the new area, and in samples from the donor population of the Ola River (Magadan oblast). In the generations 8 and 9 of the introduced pink salmon of the odd-year line, the genetic diversity (the number of alleles and the mean heterozygosity) both at allozyme and at microsatellite loci was significantly lower, than that in the donor population. The explanations of the decline in diversity are discussed. The first evidence for spatial genetic divergence in transplanted fish within the new area has been obtained; the divergence level may be comparable with that characteristic of native populations.

[Allozyme polymorphism of Swiss stone pine Pinus cembra L. in mountainous populations of the Alps and the Eastern Carpathians].

Swiss stone pine Pinus cembra L. is a species with fragmented range, occurring in the Alpine-East Carpathian mountain system. Seeds of P. cembra are dispersed by nutcrackers, which offers potential possibilities for gene exchange among populations. Using isozyme analysis, we have examined five samples from two parts of the Swiss stone pine range: the Alps (Switzerland and Austria) and the Carpathians (two samples from the northern macroslope of the Gorgany Ridge, Eastern Carpathians, Ivano-Frankovsk oblast and one sample from Trans-Carpathian oblast of Ukraine). The allele frequencies of 30 isozyme loci, coding for enzymes ADH, FDH, FEST, GDH, GOT, IDH, LAP, MNR, MDH, PEPCA, 6PGD, PGI, PGM, SDH, SKDH, SOD, were analyzed using cluster analysis and methods of principal components. Two clusters, corresponding to the isolated Alpine and Carpathian parts of the range, were found. The main contribution to these differences were made by loci Adh-1, Adh-2, Fest-2, Lap-3, Mdh-4, and Sod-4. The interpopulation differentiation proved to be somewhat higher than that typical for pines (F(ST) = 7.4%), but within the limits characteristic for taxonomically close species. Thus, isolation of the populations did not lead to their marked differentiation, which may be explained by gene flow and balancing selection, which equalizes gene frequencies across the fragmented species area. Interlocus F(ST) heterogeneity (from 0.003 to 0.173) suggests adaptive significance of some of the allozyme polymorphisms or linkage of some loci with adaptive genes. The Carpathian populations were shown to have higher gene diversity than the Alpine ones (expected heterozygosities 0.095-0.114 and 0.060-0.080, respectively). A deficit of heterozygotes (as compared to the Hardy-Weinberg proportions), observed in the embryo sample, was probably explained by inbreeding. The reduction in the area of Carpathian pine forests in Holocene, caused by the global climatic changes and the anthropogenic impact, is hazardous for the gene pool of the species. The maintenance of genetic uniqueness of both Carpathian populations of P. cembra in general, and individual stands in particular, requires special measures for protection of Swiss stone pine in the Eastern Carpathians.

[Population genetic analysis of the association between the BRCA1 and P53 gene polymorphisms and the risk of sporadic breast cancer].

Polymorphism of two tumor-suppressor genes, BRCA1 and P53, was examined. DNA was extracted from blood leukocytes of the women affected with breast cancer (N = 151) and of the women with no clinical symptoms of tumor diseases (N = 191). Typing of the polymorphic variants was performed using PCR-RFLP method. It was demonstrated that the genetic structure of the patient group (taking into consideration BRCA1 and P53 polymorphic variants) differed from that of the control group. The group of genotypes, found exclusively among the patients, as well as the group of "resistant" genotypes revealed predominantly among the controls, was described. Detection of the genotype A1A1 B1B1 S1S1 C1C1 F1F1 J2J2, whose frequency in control group was eight times higher than in the patient group, was an additional confirmation of the existence of "resistant" genotypes. These findings point to the association between the combinations of the BRCA1 and P53 allelic variants and the risk of breast cancer.

[Hybridization between Atlantic salmon Salmo salar L. and brown trout S. trutta l. upon artificial propagation]. / Gibridizatsiia atlanticheskogo lososia (Salmo salar L.) i kumzhi (S. trutta L.) pri isskustvennom vosproizvodstve.

Samples of Salmo salar and S. trutta were examined in 12 Russian fish hatcheries. With protein markers, hybrids of the two species were found in three hatcheries of the Baltic Sea basin. Some fishes had a phenotype intermediate between the S. salar and S. trutta phenotypes by morphological traits, but did not differ genetically from one of the parental species. Possible consequences of hybridization and ways to prevent it are discussed.

[Interspecific genetic variability of the oyster mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus as revealed by allozyme gene analysis]. / Vnutrividovoe gennoe raznoobrazie veshenki ustrichnoi, Pleurotus ostreatus, izuchennoe po sovokupnosti allozimnykh genov.

Allozyme variation in natural populations of basidiomycetes fungus Pleurotus ostreatus (88 individuals) from three regions of central Russia was studied. The species was shown to have 92.86% of polymorphic allozyme loci and expected heterozygosity He = 0.49. The mean number of alleles per locus was 3.5. The genetic differences among populations were supported by F-statistics (FST = 0.750). The low level of inbreeding (FIS = 0.018) suggests that the P. ostreatus populations are panmictic, and the main reproduction mode involves basidiospores dispersing at long distances. Using cluster analysis, geographically isolated populations and intersterile groups were differentiated within the complex P. ostreatus species.

[Far Eastern mullet Mugil soiuy Basilewsky (Mugilidae, Mugiliformes): the genetic structure of populations and its change under acclimatization]. / Dal'nevostochnyi pilengas Mugil soiuy Basilewsky (Mugilidae, Mugiliformes): geneticheskaia struktura populiatsii i ee izmeneniia pri akklimatizatsii.

The introduction of Far Eastern mullet (pilengas) in the Azov Sea in the 1970s-1980s has resulted in the formation of a self-reproducing commercial population. We have carried out a comparative population-genetic analysis of the mullet from the native (Primorye, the Sea of Japan basin) and the new (The Azov Sea basin) ranges. Genetic characteristics of three Primorye and three Azov local samples were studied using electrophoretic analysis of 15 enzymes encoded by 21 gene loci. In the Azov mullet, the initial heterozygosity characteristic of the donor population was preserved while the genotype and the allele compositions changed; the changes included a 1.9-fold reduction in the percentage of polymorphic loci and 1.5-fold reduction in the mean number of alleles per locus. The genetic differences between the Azov and the Primorye sample groups were highly significant. In the native range, no genetic differentiation among the mullet samples from different areas was found (Gst = 0.42%), whereas in the Azov Sea basin, the samples from spatially isolated populations (ecological groups) exhibited genetic differences (Gst = 1.38). The genetic divergence of the subpopulations and the excess of heterozygotes at some loci in the Azov mullet suggest selection processes that formed genetically divergent groups associated with the areas of different salinity in the new range. The salinity level is assumed to be the most probable factor of local differentiating selection during fast adaptation and naturalization of the introduced mullet.

[Acclimatization of salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha (Walbaum) in the European north: data from restriction analysis of mtDNA]. / Akklimatizatsii gorbushi Oncorhynchus gorbuscha (Walbaum) na evropeiskom severe: dannye restriktsionnogo analiza mtDNK.

Pink salmon spawners introduced into the White Sea basin (the Umba River) were compared to the spawners from the basin of the Sea of Okhotsk (the Ola River) using restriction analysis of two fragments of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). One of the fragments included genes ND5/ND6, the other, the cytochrome b gene and the control region. It was found that mtDNA variation and diversity at the earlier examined nuclear allozyme genes significantly decreased in the odd broodline of pink salmon 8 years after the introduction. The haplotype diversity in the even broodline was considerably lower than in the odd broodline exhibiting virtually no change two generations after the introduction. Based on the results obtained, a possible role of these changes in adaptation of White Sea pink salmon from the odd broodline to the new environment is discussed.

[Genetic changes in pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha Walbaum during acclimatization in the White sea basin]. / Geneticheskie izmeneniia u gorbushi Oncorhynchus gorbusha (Walbaum) v khode akklimatizatsii v basseine Belogo moria.

Genetic parameters of pink salmon introduced into the White Sea basin in 1985 and 1998 were compared to the corresponding parameters of the donor population from the Ola River (Magadan oblast). The detected genetic differences indicate that colonization of a new area is accompanied by impoverishment of the gene pool of the native population. This effect was particularly marked in the odd-year line of pink salmon introduced in 1985. The probable causes of these genetic changes are discussed.

[DNA polymorphism in population genetics]. / Polimorfizm DNK v populiatsionnoi genetike.

In the review, the literature evidence on DNA polymorphism obtained in the last 10-15 years using various molecular-genetic methods is summarized. All main types of DNA variation are considered but attention is focused on those extensively used in population genetics. The areas of using DNA markers are outlined and the limitations of their potential in analyzing genetic processes in populations are discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on the relationship between the earlier developed biochemical genetics based on protein polymorphism analysis and modern molecular population genetics based on DNA polymorphism. The possible role of selection in maintaining DNA variation is considered.

[Monomorphic species specific DNA, detected by polymerase chain reaction with random primers]. / Monomorfnaia vidospetsifichnaia DNK, vyiavliaemaia v polmeraznoi tsepnoi reaktsii so sluchainymi praimerami.

Intra- and interspecific variability of total DNA isolated from haploid megagametophytes of coniferous species was examined using polymerase chain reaction with random primers. Based on this technique, one can with certainty detect heterozygosity at gene loci carrying null alleles and thus reveal cryptic intraspecific genetic variation. Large population samples were used. Along with random amplified polymorphic DNA, i.e., widely known fragments (amplicons) polymorphic within a species, we found invariant loci lacking individual or geographic variability but differentiating species within genera and other taxa. This DNA was termed RAMD (random amplified monomorphic DNA) to distinguish it from polymorphic DNA. Our findings suggest that genetic monomorphism of species and the dual structure of the eukaryotic genome can be detected at the DNA level as was previously shown for protein gene markers.

[Genetic dynamics of population systems represented by small subpopulations: analytical modeling and numeric results]. / Geneticheskaia dinamika populiatsionnykh sistem, predstavlennykh malymi subpopuliatsiiami: analiticheskoe modelirovanie i chislennye rezul'taty.

Genetic dynamics of population systems consisting of a finite number of small (Ne < 10(2)) semiisolated subpopulations was studied. A method of quantitative estimation of statistical parameters was developed for different types of population systems and different directions or intensities of selection. The following regularities were established: (1) optimal numbers of subpopulations, their effective size and rates of gene migration promoting continuous maintenance of genetic diversity can be chosen; (2) the genetic process in a population system is stationary only in the case of a specific structure of gene migrations corresponding to Wright's island model; (3) cyclic dynamics can stabilize the population system at high levels of gene diversity in a heterogeneous environment if gene migration and subpopulation size change in time. Similarities and differences between the concept of population system and the concept of metapopulation, which have been simultaneously proposed in Russia and abroad, are discussed in the final section.

[Allozyme heterozygosity, sexual maturation rate, and longevity]. / Allozimnaia geterozigotnost', skorost' polovogo sozrevaniia i prodolzhitel'nost' zhizni.

Humans, animals, and plants are shown to have a universal polygenic system maintained by stabilizing selection, which underlies highly significant correlations between multilocus allozyme heterozygosity, the sexual maturation rate, and longevity. For 77 animal and 30 plant species, it was demonstrated that allozyme genomic heterozygosity (1) is positively correlated with rate of sexual maturity (2) (r12 = 0.815, P < 0.001) and negatively correlated with longevity; (3) (r13 = -0.793, P < 0.001). These relationships are significantly affected by the genotype-environment interactions that modify the structure of the metabolism related to growth and development. An increase in the number of heterotic genes involved in growth and development increases the energy expenditure in this ontogenetic period, accelerates the sexual maturation rate, and shortens the life span.

[Hereditary biochemical diversity in the processes of evolution and individual development]. / Nasledstvennoe biokhimicheskoe raznoobrazie v protsessakh évoliutsii i individual'nogo razvitiia.

Results of long-term studies of Russian authors on regularities of expression of hereditary biochemical diversity in evolution and development are reviewed. Primary attention is given to the concepts of genetic monomorphism and genetic stability of population systems, principles of adaptive gene pool structure and optimum genetic diversity, historical and conservation genetics, the concept of the multilevel gene expression, and temporal regulation of ontogenetic functioning of gene clusters coding for enzymes. A universal genetic approach to the problems of evolution and ontogeny is proposed. A population is regarded as a superorganism whose key property is the hierarchic structure of its genetic stability from the stability of monomorphic genes via stability of polymorphic gene frequencies in a multilevel population system to the stability of the total amount of gene diversity in this system. A multicellular organism is also regarded as a developing hierarchical system of populations of cells and genes interacting in a nonrandom fashion. This maintains stability of metabolic processes and is expressed in consistent correlations between monogenic and polygenic morphophysiological characters. Properties of both organisms are determined by the adaptive heterozygosity optimum, the disturbance of which has negative consequences for both individuals and populations. On the basis of these results and the concept on the common nature of evolutionary and ontogenetic processes, the following conclusions are drawn: genetic processes can be either favorable or adverse for developing organisms and populations; the state of genetic processes can be determined by analysis of gene diversity and their deviations from the optimum, taking into account the adaptive gene pool structure; and negative hazardous consequences of extreme external effects at both the individual and population levels can be detected by methods of biochemical genetics in specially planned monitoring programs. Knowledge of normal processes of realization of hereditary information in evolution of populations and in ontogeny opens up new perspectives in detection of unfavorable processes and their correction. This approach proved promising both for preventive and clinical medicine and for exploitation and artificial reproduction of biological resources.

[Intraspecific genetic diversity: monitoring and principles of conservation]. / Vnutrividovoe geneticheskoe raznoobrazie: monitoring i printsipy sokhraneniia.

Genetic differentiation of a species, estimated on average according to the aggregate of allozyme loci, corresponds to a selectively neutral process. Such evolution is traditionally regarded as Markov's chain, in which the genetic dynamics of a population cannot be predicted for more than one generation. According to the concept of population systems, however, intraspecific differentiation can be interpreted as a process with memory, which retains information about the genetic structure of the ancestral population. This memory is maintained due to the organizing effect of gene immigration whose intensity is the higher, the lower the effective size of the local population. The ratio between intra- and inter-population components of gene diversity is maintained at a stable (optimal) level. Consequently, it can be regarded as the basic "reference point" in genetic monitoring of subdivided populations that have evolved under anthropogenic pressure. Such influences, altering established systemic links, distort the balance between differentiation and integration of the species gene pool and lead to adverse effects. Depending on the predominance of the inter- or intra-population component of gene diversity, these influences may be equivalent to outbreeding with an increased segregational load or to inbreeding, respectively. In the first case, the genetic process is adaptive, and, provided the negative influence is terminated in due time, it is possible to restore the genetic structure and normalize reproduction of gene pools in populations. In the second case, the genetic process is maladaptive and leads to degradation of populations. If one knows principles of the systemic organization of a species, it is possible to develop an approach to solving the problem of conservation of biological diversity by organizing non-exhaustive wildlife management.