Abstract
Natural populations of Fundulus heteroclitus show extensive spatial variation in gene frequencies at four unlinked polymorphic loci. Large clinal changes in gene frequencies were found for Ldh-B, Mdh-A, and Gpi-B, whereas the spatial variation for the Pgm-B locus was small. Since the geographical area over which these clines are found is characterized by a steep thermal gradient, the clines in gene frequency are correlated with a directional change in mean water temperature. Maximum gene diversity of these four loci was correlated with annual fluctuations in water temperature. Temporal stability of the allelic frequencies was established for a 2–4 year period.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ayala, F. J., and Valentine, J. W. (1974). Genetic variability in the cosmopolitan deep-water ophiuran Ophiomusium lymanz. Mar. Biol. 2751.
Ayala, F. J., Valentine, J. W., Hedgecock, D., and Barr, L. G. (1975). Deep-sea asteriods: High genetic variability in a stable environment. Evolution 29203.
Bigelow, H. H., and Schroeder, W. C. (1953). Fishes of the Gulf of Maine, U.S. Fish. Wildl. Serv., Fish. Bull. 53, 577 p.
Bryant, E. H. (1974). On the adaptative significance of enzyme polymorphisms in relation to environmental variability. Am. Nat. 1081.
Christiansen, F. F., and Frydenberg, O. (1974). Geographical patterns of four polymorphisms in Zoarces viviparus as evidence of selection. Genetics 77765.
Clarke, B. (1973). Neutralists vs. selectionists. Science 180600.
Crow, J. F., and Kimura, M. (1970). An Introduction to Population Genetics Theory Harper and Row, New York.
Dobzhansky, T. (1951). Genetics and the Origin of Species Columbia University Press, New York.
Felsenstein, J. (1976). The theoretical population genetics of variable selection and migration. Ann. Rev. Genet. 10253.
Fisher, R. A. (1937). The wave of advance of an advantageous gene. Ann. Eugen. 7355.
Frydenberg, O., Gyldenholm, A. O., Hjorth, J. P., and Simonsen, V. (1973). Genetics of Zoarces populations. III. Geographic variations in the esterase polymorphism EstIII. Hereditas 73233.
Haldane, J. B. S. (1948). The theory of a cline. J. Genet. 48277.
Hedrick, P. W., Ginevan, M. E., and Ewing, E. P. (1976). Genetic polymorphism in heterogeneous environments. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 71.
Hill, W. G. (1974). Estimation of linkage disequilibrium in randomly mating populations. Heredity 33229.
Hjorth, J. P., and Simonsen, V. (1975). Genetics of Zoarces populations. VIII. Geographic variation common to the polymorphic loci HbI and EstIII. Hereditas 81173.
Huxley, J. S. (1939). Clines: An auxiliary method in taxonomy. Bijdr. Dierk. 27491.
Johnson, F., and Schaffer, H. (1973). Isozyme variability in species of the genus Drosophila. VII. Genotype-environment relationships in populations of D. Melanogaster from the eastern U.S. Biochem. Genet. 10149.
Johnson, G. B. (1976). Polymorphism and predictability at the α-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase locus in Colias butterflies: Gradients in allele frequency within single populations. Biochem. Genet. 14403.
Johnson, M. S. (1971). Adaptative lactate dehydrogenase variation in the crested blenny, Anoplarchus. Heredity 27205.
Johnson, M. S. (1974). Comparative geographic variation in Menidia. Evolution 28607.
Johnson, M. S. (1977). Association of allozymes and temperature in the crested blenny Anoplarchus purpurescens. Mar. Biol. 41147.
Kimura, M., and Maruyama, T. (1971). Pattern of neutral polymorphism in a geographically structured population. Genet. Res. 18125.
Kimura, M., and Ohta, T. (1971). Protein polymorphism as a phase of molecular evolution. Nature 229467.
Koehn, R. K. (1969). Esterase heterogeneity: Dynamics of a polymorphism. Science 163943.
Koehn, R. K., and Rasmussen, D. I. (1967). Polymorphic and monomorphic serum esterase heterogeneity in catostomid fish populations. Biochem. Genet. 1131.
Koehn, R. K., Perez, J. E., and Merritt, R. B. (1971). Esterase enzyme function and genetical structure of populations of the fresh water fish, Notropis stramineus. Am. Nat. 10551.
Leim, A. H., and Scott, W. B. (1966). Fishes of the Atlantic coast of Canada. Fish. Res. Bd. Can. Bull., p. 155.
Levins, R. (1968). Evolution in Changing Environments Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J.
Lewontin, R. C. (1974). The Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change Columbia University Press, New York.
Lotrich, V. A. (1975). Summer home range and movements of Fundulus heteroclitus (Pisces: Cyprinodontidae) in a tidal creek. Ecology 56191.
Merritt, R. B. (1972). Geographical distribution and enzymatic properties of lactate dehydrogenase allozymes in the fathead minnow. Pimaphales promelas. Am. Nat. 106173.
Miller, S., Pearcy, R. W., and Berger, E. (1975). Polymorphism at the α-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase locus in Drosophila melanogaster. I. Properties of adult allozymes. Biochem. Genet. 13175.
Mitton, J. B., and Koehn, R. K. (1975). Genetic organization and adaptive response of allozymes to ecological variables in Fundulus heteroclitus. Genetics 7997.
Nei, M. (1975). Molecular Population Genetics and Evolution. American Elsevier, New York.
Nei, M., and Roychoudhury, A. K. (1974). Sampling variances of heterozygosity and genetic distance. Genetics 76379.
Nevo, E. (1976). Adaptative strategies of genetic systems in constant and varying environments. In Karlin, S., and Nevo, E. (eds.), Population Genetics and Ecology Academic Press, New York, pp. 141–158.
Nixon, S. W., and Oviatt, C. A. (1973). Ecology of a New England salt marsh. Ecol. Monogr. 43463.
Ohta, T., and Kimura, M. (1970). Development of associative over-dominance through linkage disequilibrium in finite populations. Genet. Res. 16165.
Place, A. R., and Powers, D. A. (1977). Liver LDH allozymes of Fundulus heteroclitus: A selective adaptation or genetic drift? Fed. Proc. 36738.
Place, A. R., and Powers, D. A. (1978). Genetic bases for protein polymorphism in Fundulus heteroclitus (L.). I. Lactate dehydrogenase (Ldh-B), malate dehydrogenase (Mdh-A), glucosephosphate isomerase (Gpi-B), and phosphoglucomutase (Pgm-A). Biochem. Genet. 16576.
Powell, J. R. (1971). Genetic polymorphisms in varied environments. Science 1741035.
Powell, J. R. (1975). Protein variation in natural populations of animals. In Dobzhansky, T., Hecht, M. K., and Steere, W. C. (eds.), Evolutionary Biology, Vol. 8, Plenum Press, New York, pp. 79–113.
Powers, D. A. (1972). Enzyme kinetics in predicting gene frequencies of natural populations. Am. Soc. Ichthyol. Herpetol. 5277.
Powers, D. A., and Powers, D. (1975). Predicting gene frequencies in natural populations: A testable hypothesis. In Markert, C. (ed.), The Isozymes, Vol. IV. Academic Press, New York, pp. 63–84.
Powers, D. A., Place, A. R., and Haedrick, R. Genetic variability in marine fish communities. II. Deep ocean fishes. In preparation.
Prosser, C. L. (1967). Molecular Mechanisms of Temperature Adaptation American Association Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C.
Prosser, C. L. (1973). Comparative Animal Physiology 3rd ed., Saunders, Philadelphia.
Schopf, T., and Gooch, J. J. (1971). Gene frequencies in a marine ectoproct: A cline in natural populations related to sea temperature. Evolution 25286.
Somero, G. N., and Soulé, M. (1974). Genetic variation in marine fishes as a test of the niche-variation hypothesis. Nature 249670.
Utter, F. M., Hodgins, H. O., and Allendorf, F. W. (1974). Biochemical genetic studies of fishes: Potentialities and limitations. In Malins, P. C., and Sargent, J. R. (eds.), Biochemical and Biophysical Perspectives in Marine Biology, Vol. 1, Academic Press, New York, pp. 213–238.
Valiela, I., Wright, J. E., Teal, J. M., and Volkman, S. B. (1977). Growth, production and energy transformations in the salt-marsh killifish, Fundulus heteroclitus. Mar. Biol. 40135.
Whitt, G. S. (1970). Developmental genetics of the lactate dehydrogenase isozymes of fish. J. Exp. Zool. 1751.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This work was supported by NSF Grants GB37548 and DEB 76-19877 and by a grant from the National Geographic Society. A. R. P. is an NIH trainee supported by a training grant (No. HD00139) to the Department of Biology.
This is contribution No. 960 of the Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Powers, D.A., Place, A.R. Biochemical genetics of Fundulus heteroclitus (L.). I. Temporal and spatial variation in gene frequencies of Ldh-B, Mdh-A, Gpi-B, and Pgm-A . Biochem Genet 16, 593–607 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00484222
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00484222