Abstract Detail

Genetics Section

Merritt, Ben [1], Culley, Theresa [2], Avanesyan, Alina [3], Stokes, Richard [4], Brzyski, Jessica [5].

An emperical review: Characteristics of plant microsatellite markers that confer greater levels of genetic variation.

Microsatellite markers continue to be developed in many plant species to capture detectable levels of genetic variation for a wide variety of applications, including mating system estimates and surveys of genetic diversity and structure. Markers are not readily available for many species which, compounded with limits on cross species amplification, necessitates the development of markers de novo, incurring costly and resource intensive time commitments. While anecdotal evidence has accumulated over the years regarding specific marker traits that confer greater levels of genetic variation, we examined these assumptions with an empirical review surveying over 6,000 microsatellite markers published from 2007-2012. To aid researchers in choosing markers conferring greater levels of genetic variation, we examined relationships between heterozygosity (H_e or H_o) and allele number (A) with repeat type, motif length, repeat frequency, and microsatellite size to. We also examined variation across taxa to identify whether certain families are associated with greater levels of genetic variation, or are disproportionately represented in the primer literature. We found that while there were no significant differences in genetic variation between imperfect and perfect motifs, dinucleotide repeats exhibit significantly higher A, H_e, and H_o than most other motif lengths. Repeat frequency was positively correlated with A, H_e, and H_o, however correlations with microsatellite size were minimal or non-significant. Certain taxa were found to be disproportionately represented in the literature and relationships of genetic variation across taxa showed inconsistent patterns. Our review suggests that instead of haphazardly selecting markers, researchers should carefully consider their options of marker selection, specific to the desired applications. If researchers aim to find high levels of genetic variation, dinucleotide motif lengths with large repeat frequencies are recommended.

1 - University of Cincinnati, Department of Biological Sciences, 614 Rieveschl Hall, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
2 - University Of Cincinnati, Department Of Biological Sciences, 614 Rieveschl Hall, Cincinnati, OH, 45221-0006, USA
3 - Iowa State University, 1317 Illinois Ave, Ames, IA, 50014, USA
4 - University of Illinois at Springfield, One University Plaza, MS HSB 224 , Springfield, IL, 62703, USA
5 - Seton Hill University, Department of Biology, 1 Seton Hill Drive, Greensburg, PA, 15601, USA

Keywords:
genetic variation
heterozygosity
microsatellite
plants
taxonomy.

Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Sections
Session: P
Location: Hall D/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2015
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: PGN015
Abstract ID:1215
Candidate for Awards:Genetics Section Poster Award