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Allozyme Variation and Population Genetic Structure in the Carpet Shell Clam Ruditapes decussatus Across the Siculo-Tunisian Strait

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Abstract

This study reports on the polymorphism of 15 allozyme loci in Ruditapes decussatus clams collected from 11 locations along the Tunisian coasts. We concentrated our sampling effort around the Siculo-Tunisian region to verify if any population structuring exists in this region and to identify the factors that have shaped this structure. Measurements of genetic diversity were quantified both within and between populations, and the geographic variability of gene frequencies was analyzed. Our study shows that the Siculo-Tunisian Strait is an important genetic boundary between eastern and western regions, which agrees with findings for a variety of other species. We suggest that vicariance is a predominant factor shaping the current distribution of genetic diversity of R. decussatus, and the mixing of divergent gene pools from the eastern and western regions still seems to be limited by some physical and/or biological factors.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Mohamed Nejib Medhioub and to Abderrahman Saidan for the assistance in the collection of the samples from Kneiss and from Kerkenna, respectively. This study was supported by a grant from the Tunisian Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche Scientifique.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unité de Recherche Génétique, Biodiversité et Valorisation des Bioressources, UR03ES09, Institut Supérieur de Biotechnologie de Monastir, Université de Monastir, Av. Tahar Haddad, 5000, Monastir, Tunisia

    Aicha Gharbi, Rym Zitari-Chatti, Khaled Said & Noureddine Chatti

  2. Station de Biologie Marine du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, BP225, 29900, Concarneau, France

    Aicha Gharbi, Alain Van Wormhoudt & Françoise Denis

  3. Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer (INSTM), Salammbô, Tunisia

    Mohamed Naceur Dhraief

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  1. Aicha Gharbi
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  2. Rym Zitari-Chatti
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  7. Noureddine Chatti
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Correspondence to Noureddine Chatti.

 

 

Appendix I Allele frequencies at nine polymorphic loci in 11 populations of Ruditapes decussatus
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Gharbi, A., Zitari-Chatti, R., Van Wormhoudt, A. et al. Allozyme Variation and Population Genetic Structure in the Carpet Shell Clam Ruditapes decussatus Across the Siculo-Tunisian Strait. Biochem Genet 49, 788–805 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10528-011-9450-8

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