Numerous insertions of mitochondrial DNA in the genome of the northern mole vole, Ellobius talpinus.

BACKGROUND: Ellobius talpinus is a subterranean rodent representing an attractive model in population ecology studies due to its highly special lifestyle and sociality. In such studies, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is widely used. However, if nuclear copies of mtDNA, aka NUMTs, are present, they may co-amplify with the target mtDNA fragment, generating misleading results. The aim of this study was to determine whether NUMTs are present in E. talpinus. METHODS AND RESULTS: PCR amplification of the putative mtDNA CytB-D-loop fragment using 'universal' primers from 56 E. talpinus samples produced multiple double peaks in 90% of the sequencing chromatograms. To reveal NUMTs, molecular cloning and sequencing of PCR products of three specimens was conducted, followed by phylogenetic analysis. The pseudogene nature of three out of the seven detected haplotypes was confirmed by their basal positions in relation to other Ellobius haplotypes in the phylogenetic tree. Additionally, 'haplotype B' was basal in relation to other E. talpinus haplotypes and found present in very distant sampling sites. BLASTN search revealed 195 NUMTs in the E. talpinus nuclear genome, including fragments of all four PCR amplified pseudogenes. Although the majority of the NUMTs studied were short, the entire mtDNA had copies in the nuclear genome. The most numerous NUMTs were found for rrnL, COXI, and D-loop. CONCLUSIONS: Numerous NUMTs are present in E. talpinus and can be difficult to discriminate against mtDNA sequences. Thus, in future population or phylogenetic studies in E. talpinus, the possibility of cryptic NUMTs amplification should always be taken into account.

Choose Wisely: Great Variation among Genotypes of Promising Paludiculture Crop Phragmites australis.

Measures mitigating the climate crisis, such as paludiculture, which is the agriculture on rewetted peatlands, are urgently needed. The cosmopolitan species Phragmites australis has the potential to be used in paludiculture worldwide but is known for its high intraspecific variation. This raises the questions of whether (i) P. australis genotypes differ even at a regional scale, making them differently well suited for paludiculture and (ii) P. australis performance can be predicted by linking the variation in genotypes to strategies in the plant economics spectrum. Five P. australis genotypes from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania were cultivated in two 10-month mesocosm experiments along gradients of water level and nutrient addition. We compared growth, morphology (height, growing density), above- and belowground biomass, functional and ecophysiological traits (SLA, LDMC, SRL, RDMC, root porosity, photosynthetic rate) as well as gene expression. Our results demonstrate a high variability of P. australis genotypes even at a regional scale, revealing genotype-specific productivity, morphology, and gene expression and implying that the selection of suitable genotypes will be crucial for the success of a paludiculture. However, trait covariation did not indicate distinct plant economic strategies to predict genotype performance. Instead, large-scale genotype trials are needed to select suitable genotypes for paludiculture.