Líffræðifélag Íslands - biologia.is
Líffræðiráðstefnan 2021
Erindi/veggspjald / Talk/poster V53
Höfundar / Authors: Erna Sól Sigmarsdóttir (1), Laia Bosch De Basea (2), Eva Charlotte Halapi (3), Kristinn Pétur Magnússon (2,3)
Starfsvettvangur / Affiliations: 1. Háskóli Íslands, 2. Náttúrufræðistofnun Íslands, 3. Háskólinn á Akureyri
Kynnir / Presenter: Erna Sól Sigmarsdóttir
Many bird species do not display male/female-specific differences in coloration or morphometrics. So Instead, an avian molecular gender determination is applied based on the difference in length of the CHD-Z and CHD-W genes on the respective sex chromosomes, using PCR and electrophoresis. Unfortunately, this molecular method has not worked for horned grebe. In this study, we have designed a novel sex-determining assay for horned grebe. Our horned grebe genome, generated with whole-genome sequencing (WGS) with next-generation sequencing (NGS), revealed the nucleotide sequence of the CHD genes on the sex chromosomes. Analysis showed a two nucleotide difference, making it possible to separate the PCR amplified gene products in agarose gel electrophoresis. Based on the genome sequence, we designed a chromosome real-time-qPCR assay with primer pair enabling amplifying the CHD gene from both chromosomes and specific probes for each chromosome. We successfully tested this novel gender assay on DNA samples from 18 horned grebe birds, including sexually dimorphic adults. This high-throughput assay will greatly value wildlife research of horned grebe and even related bird species.