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Estimates of genetic load in small populations suggest extensive purging of deleterious alleles

View ORCID ProfileTom van der Valk, Marc de Manuel, Tomas Marques-Bonet, Katerina Guschanski
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/696831
Tom van der Valk
1Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18D, 752 36, Uppsala, Sweden
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  • ORCID record for Tom van der Valk
  • For correspondence: tom.vandervalk@ebc.uu.se katerina.guschanski@ebc.uu.se
Marc de Manuel
2Institute of Evolutionary Biology (UPF-CSIC), PRBB, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
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Tomas Marques-Bonet
2Institute of Evolutionary Biology (UPF-CSIC), PRBB, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
3Catalan Institution of Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), Passeig de Lluís Companys, 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain
4CNAG-CRG, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Baldiri i Reixac 4, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
5Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
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Katerina Guschanski
1Department of Ecology and Genetics, Animal Ecology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18D, 752 36, Uppsala, Sweden
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  • For correspondence: tom.vandervalk@ebc.uu.se katerina.guschanski@ebc.uu.se
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Abstract

Declining populations are expected to experience negative genetic consequences of inbreeding, which over time can drive them to extinction. Yet, many species have survived in small populations for thousands of generations without apparent fitness effects, possibly due to genetic purging of partially deleterious recessive alleles in inbred populations. We estimate the abundance of deleterious alleles in a range of mammals and find that conversely to current conservation thinking species with historically small population size and low genetic diversity generally have lower genetic load compared to species with large population sizes. Rapid population declines will thus disproportionally affect species with high diversity, as they carry many deleterious alleles that can reach fixation before being removed by genetic purging.

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Posted July 09, 2019.
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Estimates of genetic load in small populations suggest extensive purging of deleterious alleles
Tom van der Valk, Marc de Manuel, Tomas Marques-Bonet, Katerina Guschanski
bioRxiv 696831; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/696831
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Estimates of genetic load in small populations suggest extensive purging of deleterious alleles
Tom van der Valk, Marc de Manuel, Tomas Marques-Bonet, Katerina Guschanski
bioRxiv 696831; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/696831

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