Mediterranean Biochemical Network

Mithocondrial DNA analysis of some ovicaprines from different Mediterranean islands

Another scientific interest is consistent with the assessment of a map on molecular biodiversity of species, and for elucidating evolutionary relationships among vertebrate by means of a study at the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) level. Variability of the mtDNA is widely studied in human and non-human populations for evolutionary purposes because of its special features such as the unilinear maternal transmission, the absence of recombination, and the high mutational rate.
Our interest in the study of variation in mtDNA within different species of mammals (and in particular of ovicaprines) is threefold:
(A) to determine whether the mtDNA variation in Ovis is geographically structured;
(B) whether evolutionary lineages revealed by mtDNA analysis are concordant with conventional subspecies boundaries; and
(C) whether there is any agreement with the available data on other biochemical and cytogenetic polymorphisms such as blood proteins, blood group systems, chromosome analysis, ecc.

The literature contains conflicting information on the taxonomy of the Mediterranean mouflon and earlier authors often classified these insular caprines as specific or subspecific geographic forms, almost entirely on the basis of arbitrary criteria and of the examination of scattered materials. Moreover, although the origin of the modern sheep (Ovis aries) remains uncertain, the close genetic similarity of wild mouflon (O. gmelini musimon) and domestic sheep is well documented. For these reason our attention will be devoted to the characterization of both wild mouflon and domestic sheep mtDNA living in different Mediterranean areas which are object of studies at the Hb level.
Direct sequencing of the amplified product of the whole D-loop region will be carried out by means of the cycle sequencing procedure with dideoxy terminator method and automated fluorescent DNA sequencer. RFLP analysis will be employed numerous endonucleases, including enzymes with four base pair recognition sites, and will be carried out by PCR amplification of the mtDNA in well-defined or overlapping fragments endonuclease digestion.
Statistical analyses will be performed using the most recent programs available for population genetics and databases available via World Wide Web at the different addresses. Following this line of research, the team of scientists from the University of Sassari and the Ministry of Interior (Game Fund) of Nicosia (Cyprus) recently reported the complete nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial control region (D-loop) of some ovicaprines (sheep, mouflon, goat) from various flocks that live in different Mediterranean islands such as Sardinia, Cyprus, Corsica and Chios.

Universities involved in this project:

University of Sassari - Italy

Prof. Bruno Masala
Prof. Laura Manca

Ministry of Interior (Game Funds) of Nicosia (Cyprus)

Dr. Elefterios Hadjisterkotis