A Phylogenomic Analysis Of The Trumpeter (Cygnus buccinator) And Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus columbianus)

Date

2014-10-21

Authors

Yesmont, Christopher Kenneth

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Abstract

High-throughput or Next-Generation sequencing (NGS) has proven to be a time-efficient and cost-effective technique for the sequencing of whole-genomes. Despite its benefits, high-throughput sequencing is remaining a relatively nascent technique for phylogenetic analyses (McCormack 2013). We performed sequence assembly and analysis of genomic reads from a wild Tundra Swan (C. columbianus) and a wild Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator). The reads were assembled into Contigs that were later run through a custom Perl script designed to extract the differences between sequences. We also performed further analysis of the genetic relatedness between swan species using sequences of nuclear gene encoding the chromo-helicase-DNA binding domain (CHD) and associated introns that involved alignments and phylogenetic tree construction. Additionally, polymorphisms in the mitochondrial control region (D-loop) of Trumpeters, Tundra Swans, and hybrids were used for phylogenetic trees analysis. The phylogenetic analysis of the nuclear gene (CHD), D-loop, and genomic sequences indicates strong introgression between the two species due to extensive hybridization.

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Keywords

Trumpeter swan, Tundra swan, Introgression, Hybridization, Phylogenomics, Next-generation sequencing

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