Establishment of a microsatellite set for noninvasive paternity testing in free-ranging Macaca mulatta tcheliensis in Mount Taihangshan area, Jiyuan, China

Abstract

Background: Within multi-male and multi-female mammalian societies, paternity assignment is crucial for evaluating male reproductive success, dominance hierarchy, and inbreeding avoidance. It is, however, difficult to determine paternity because of female promiscuity during reproduction. Noninvasive molecular techniques (e.g., fecal DNA) make it possible to match the genetic father to his offspring. In the current study, a troop of free-ranging Taihangshan macaques (Macaca mulatta tcheliensis) in Mt. Taihangshan area, Jiyuan, China, was selected for studying the paternity. We successfully screened a set of microsatellite loci from fecal DNA and evaluated the efficiency of these loci for paternity testing using clearly recorded data of maternity. Results:The results showed that: 1) ten loci out of 18 candidate microsatellite loci were amplified successfully in the fecal samples of Taihangshan macaques. The error probability in maternity assignments and paternity testing was very low as indicated by their power of discrimination (0.70 to 0.95), power of exclusion (0.43 to 0.84), and the values of polymorphic information content ranging from 0.52 to 0.82; 2) the combined probability of exclusion in paternity testing for ten qualified loci was as high as 99.999%, and the combined probability of exclusion reached 99.99% when the seven most polymorphic loci were adopted; 3) the offspring were assigned to their biological mother correctly and also matched with their genetic father. Conclusions:We concluded that the ten polymorphic microsatellite loci, especially a core set of seven most polymorphic loci, provided an effective and reliable tool for noninvasive paternity testing in free-ranging rhesus macaques.

Microsatellite Markers for Bearded Capuchins (Sapajus libidinosus): Transferability and Characterization

“…The values of the paternity exclusion index (Q) in our study show the reliability of the loci for paternity test use (Wang et al 2015). Studies previously conducted for other primates consider indexes around 0.9660 and 0.9999 as being powerful for paternity testing (Chambers et al 2004, Stevanovic et al 2010, Wang et al 2015. In our study, these values varied among localities and showed good power of exclusion.…”

Paternity data and relative testes size as measures of level of sperm competition in the Cercopithecoidea

“…References: 1, Teichroeb, Wikberg, Ting, and Sicotte (); 2, Fox (); 3, Guo, Ji, Li, Chang, and Li (); 4, Xiang et al (); 5, Launhardt, Borries, Hardt, Epplen, and Winkler (); 6, Liu et al (); 7, Roberts, Nikitopoulos, and Cords (); 8, Ohsawa, Inoue, and Takenaka (); 9, Sukmak, Wajjwalku, Ostner, and Schülke (); 10, Keane, Dittus, and Melnick (); 11, Soltis et al (); 12, Hayakawa (); 13, De Ruiter, Van Hooff, and Scheffrahn (); 14, Engelhardt et al (); 15, Wang, Wang, Tian, Cui, and Lu (); 16, Kümmerli and Martin (); 17, Brauch et al (); 18, Charpentier et al (); 19, Snyder‐Mackler, Alberts, and Bergman (); 20, Altmann et al (); 21, Alberts, Buchan, and Altmann (); 22, Yamane, Shotake, Mori, Boug, and Iwamoto (); 23, Huchard et al (, ). W/FR: W, Wild; FR, free‐ranging; W/FR, in natural habitat with some degree of restriction of movement due to isolated or fragmented habitats.…”

Dietary diversity of an ecological and macronutritional generalist primate in a harsh high‐latitude habitat, the Taihangshan macaque (Macaca mulatta tcheliensis)

“…We followed a group of Taihangshan macaques comprising 100 individuals, including 28 adult females, 7 adult males, and 65 juveniles. This group (WW-1) has been studied since 2005 and is habituated to observers allowing observations at close range (ca 2 m; B. S. Wang, Wang, Tian, Cui, & Lu, 2015). From March 2016 to February 2017, focal animal sampling and continuous recording were combined to record the feeding behavior and diets of 10 adult females and 6 adult males.…”