Resumen de Observaciones sobre la diversidad genética de la foca leopardo (Hydrurga leptonyx) a partir del análisis de ADN mitocondrial, en la costa de Danco, península Antártica
Laura Valentina Hernández Ardila, Dalia C. Barragán Barrera, Javier Negrete, Sebastián Poljak, Federico G. Riet- Sapriza, Susana Caballero
- español
La foca leopardo (Hydrurga leptonyx) es una especie poco estudiada a nivel genético. Con el fin de realizar la primera evaluación de la diversidad genética de esta especie en la costa de Danco (Península Antártica), se secuenció 423 pb de la Región Control del ADN mitocondrial (ADNmt-CR) de 13 muestras de sangre colectadas en la Base Primavera (62º15’S, 58º39’W) durante el verano austral 2011-2012. Los resultados mostraron una alta diversidad de haplotipos (h = 0.99), con varios haplotipos divergentes. Nuestros hallazgos genéticos sugieren que las focas leopardo de la costa de Danco podrían representar diferentes filogrupos; sin embargo, es necesario incluir más marcadores genéticos para confirmar esta hipótesis.
- English
The leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) has a wide distribution throughout the Antarctic circumpolar region. This species has solitary habits, haul out on pack ice for long period, and individuals tend to congregate in the same areas during the mating season. The leopard seal shows site fidelity to reproductive sites, which may imply restricted gene flow between groups. In order to conduct the first assessment of genetic diversity of leopard seals in waters around Danco Coast in the Antarctic Peninsula, we amplified mitochondrial DNA Control Region (mtDNA-CR, 423 bp) from DNA extracted from 13 blood samples collected in Primavera Base (62º15'S, 58º39'W) during 2011-2012 austral summer. Our results showed high haplotype diversity (h = 0.989), represented in one unique haplotype for each sample, and only one haplotype shared between two samples. Network analyses confirmed high diversity with some divergent haplotypes. Our genetic findings suggest that individuals sampled belong to one population. Due to ice dynamic as a consequence of climate change, many individuals are shifting their diet habits, showing dietary specializations that may have the potential to promote genetic differentiation in the long-term. However, given the lack of leopard seals genetic studies, this hypothesis cannot be tested. Research studies using mitochondrial and nuclear markers are needed to assess the genetic status of leopard seals and their population structure in relation with other populations, particularly to determine restrictions to gene flow likely related to dietary specialization among leopard seals populations.
