Microsatellites reveal clear genetic boundaries among Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) populations from the Barents and White seas, northwest Russia

Abstract

Fourteen microsatellite loci were employed to study the genetic structure of 34 Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) populations from the White and Barents seas area, the last major European region where the species has remained in its natural state. The populations were separated into four distinct clusters (Atlantic Ocean and western Barents Sea, Kola Peninsula, western White Sea, and eastern Barents Sea) within which genetic divergence varied between 0.02 and 0.10 as estimated with FST. When this structuring was contrasted with previously identified mtDNA-based groupings, a remarkable similarity was observed, implying that these four groups can be considered as a good starting point for defining management units in the region. Indeed, several approaches for assessing every population's conservation value suggested that conservation of populations from each observed cluster would maximize preservation of the region's genetic diversity. Furthermore, each unit may require differing management strategies, as distinct patterns of genetic diversity and divergence characteristics were detected. In addition, individual assignment success within a region was high (87%-96%), indicating that the data can be used as a baseline to differentiate individuals caught in offshore fisheries on a regional level with a relatively high degree of accuracy.Résumé : Quatorze locus microsatellites nous ont servi à étudier la structure génétique de 34 populations de saumons atlantiques (Salmo salar) des environs de la mer Blanche et de la mer de Barents, la dernière grande région d'Europe où l'espèce est demeurée dans son état naturel. Les populations se divisent en quatre regroupements distincts (Atlantique et mer de Barents occidentale, péninsule de Kola, mer Blanche occidentale et mer de Barents orientale) au sein desquels la divergence génétique, estimée par F ST , varie de 0,02 à 0,10. Une comparaison de cette structure avec des groupements basés sur l'ADNmt identifiés précédemment montre une remarquable similarité, ce qui indique que ces quatre groupes forment un bon point de départ pour l'identification des unités de gestion dans la région. En effet, plusieurs méthodes utilisées pour évaluer la valeur de conservation de chaque population indiquent que la conservation de populations de chaque groupement observé permettrait de maximiser la conservation de la diversité génétique dans la région. De plus, il se peut que chaque unité nécessite des stratégies de gestion différentes puisqu'on détecte des patrons distincts de diversité généti-que et des caractéristiques de divergence particulières. Enfin, le succès de l'attribution des individus à un groupement particulier est élevé (87 % -96 %) dans une même région, ce qui indique que nos données peuvent servir de base pour l'identification des individus récoltés dans les pêches du large avec un degré relativement élevé d'exactitude à l'échelle ré-gionale.[Traduit par la Rédaction]

Genetic structure of freshwater Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) populations from the lakes Onega and Ladoga of northwest Russia and implications for conservation

“…1) indicates that the most likely explanation is that relative force of genetic drift outweighs that of migration (Hutchison and Templeton 1999). Our results are in contrast with the observations reported by other authors for salmonid populations and particularly for anadromous Atlantic salmon (Moran et al 1995;Hansen and Mensberg 1998;Knutsen et al 2001;King et al 2001;Koljonen 2001;Tonteri et al 2009). However in many of these studies the within-region signal of IBD was almost negligible over distances of more than 100 km (e.g.…”

“…Genomic DNA was extracted from tissue samples according to Elphinstone et al (2003) with modifications as described in Tonteri et al (2009). The polymerase chain reactions (PCR's) for 14 microsatellites were performed in three multiplexes according to Tonteri et al (2009).…”

“…The polymerase chain reactions (PCR's) for 14 microsatellites were performed in three multiplexes according to Tonteri et al (2009). PCR products of each of the three multiplexes were pooled together and genotyped using an ABI Prism 3130xl (Applied Biosystems).…”

“…About 8% of salmon individuals were genotyped twice to check the genotype repeatability. Genotypes for the same 14 microsatellite markers were available for eight anadromous populations from rivers flowing to the White and Barents seas (Titovka, Drozdovka, Ponoi Lebyazhya, Kitsa, Pulonga, Severnaya Dvina Padoma, and Pechora Pizhma) (Tonteri et al 2009). …”

High Gyrodactylus salaris infection rate in triploid Atlantic salmon Salmo salar

“…After the examination of the parasite, host DNA was extracted from 111 Atlantic salmon specimens using the right pectoral fin clips according to Elphinstone et al (2003), with slight modifications as described in Tonteri et al (2009). Three separate multiplex polymerase chain reactions (PCR) were used to amplify 14 polymorphic Atlantic salmon microsatellites as described in Tonteri et al (2009).…”