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Polymorphism and selection at exon 2 of the class II beta chain of the major histocompatibility complex in Forpus passerinus

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Date Issued:
2006
Summary:
Female mate choice has been proposed to be a major force acting to maintain the polymorphism of the MHC, the most genetically variable genes known. I genotyped seventy-two individuals from a free-living population of the parrot, Forpus passerinus, in order to determine whether disassortative mating is the mode of selection acting at this locus. Both the high rate of nonsynonymous amino acid changes at the peptide binding regions of exon 2 of the class II beta gene and the unprecedented number of alleles found in this population provided strong evidence for the operation of selection. Despite this, a chi-square test revealed no evidence of disassortative mating for this sample, X2=0.569, n.s. I propose that natural selection, not sexual selection, must be operating at this locus to maintain the degree of variation found in 270 base-pairs of this gene.
Title: Polymorphism and selection at exon 2 of the class II beta chain of the major histocompatibility complex in Forpus passerinus.
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Name(s): Walbroehl, Jaclyn M.
Florida Atlantic University, Degree Grantor
Hughes, Colin, Thesis Advisor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 2006
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 53 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: Female mate choice has been proposed to be a major force acting to maintain the polymorphism of the MHC, the most genetically variable genes known. I genotyped seventy-two individuals from a free-living population of the parrot, Forpus passerinus, in order to determine whether disassortative mating is the mode of selection acting at this locus. Both the high rate of nonsynonymous amino acid changes at the peptide binding regions of exon 2 of the class II beta gene and the unprecedented number of alleles found in this population provided strong evidence for the operation of selection. Despite this, a chi-square test revealed no evidence of disassortative mating for this sample, X2=0.569, n.s. I propose that natural selection, not sexual selection, must be operating at this locus to maintain the degree of variation found in 270 base-pairs of this gene.
Identifier: 9780542920646 (isbn), 13405 (digitool), FADT13405 (IID), fau:10255 (fedora)
Note(s): Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2006.
Subject(s): Immunogenetics
Genetic polymorphisms
Major histocompatibility complex--Genetic aspects
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13405
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
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Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.