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Mitochondrial inheritance
Genome Biology volume 2, Article number: spotlight-20010906-01 (2001)
In the September 6 Nature, Berlin and Ellegren from Uppsala University, Sweden, examine the controversial clonal inheritance theory for vertebrate mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) by following co-inheritance of a female-specific nuclear DNA marker (Nature 2001, 413:37-38). They examined the avian W chromosome, most of which is non-recombining and therefore clonally transmitted by females. A polymorphic (CA)n repeat, NVHfp49, on the W chromosome of 53 female peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) and 1,625 bp of mtDNA sequence were followed. The patterns of divergence of mtDNA and W-chromosome sequences were completely concordant. These data support the hypothesis of clonal inheritance of mtDNA from mothers to daughters without recombination.
References
Nature, [http://www.nature.com]
Uppsala University, [http://www.uu.se]
Linkage disequilibrium and recombination in hominid mitochondrial DNA
Evolution of the avian sex chromosomes and their role in sex determination.
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Weitzman, J.B. Mitochondrial inheritance. Genome Biol 2, spotlight-20010906-01 (2001). https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.1186/gb-spotlight-20010906-01
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DOI: https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.1186/gb-spotlight-20010906-01