Originally published as Genetics Published Articles Ahead of Print on September 1, 2006.

Genetics, Vol. 174, 1081-1094, November 2006, Copyright © 2006
doi:10.1534/genetics.106.063180

Doubly Uniparental Inheritance Is Associated With High Polymorphism for Rearranged and Recombinant Control Region Haplotypes in Baltic Mytilus trossulus

Artur Burzyski^*,1, Magorzata Zbawicka^*, David O. F. Skibinski and Roman Wenne^*

^* Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Department of Genetics and Marine Biotechnology, Sopot 81-712, Poland and School of Medicine, University of Swansea, Swansea SA2 8PP, United Kingdom

¹ Corresponding author: Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Department of Genetics and Marine Biotechnology, Sopot 81-712, Poland. 
E-mail: burzynski{at}cbmpan.gdynia.pl

Many bivalve species, including mussels of the genus Mytilus, are unusual in having two mtDNA genomes, one inherited maternally (the F genome) and the other inherited paternally (the M genome). The sequence differences between the genomes are usually great, indicating ancient divergence predating speciation events. However, in Mytilus trossulus from the Baltic, both genomes are similar to the F genome from the closely related M. edulis. This study analyzed the mtDNA control region structure in male and female Baltic M. trossulus mussels. We show that a great diversity of structural rearrangements is present in both sexes. Sperm samples are dominated by recombinant haplotypes with M. edulis M-like control region segments, some having large duplications. By contrast, the rearranged haplotypes that dominate in eggs lack segments from this M genome. The rearrangements can be explained by a combination of tandem duplication, deletion, and intermolecular recombination. An evolutionary pathway leading to the recombinant haplotypes is suggested. The data are also considered in relation to the hypothesis that the M. edulis M-like control region sequence is necessary to confer the paternal role on genomes that are otherwise F-like.

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