African village dogs genetically much more diverse than modern reeds.Byline: ANI Washington, August 5 (ANI): A DNA DNA: see nucleic acid. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid One of two types of nucleic acid (the other is RNA); a complex organic compound found in all living cells and many viruses. It is the chemical substance of genes. based analysis has determined that African village dogs have directly descended from an ancestral pool of indigenous dogs, and are more genetically diverse than modern breeds. The genetic analysis of hundreds of semi-feral African village dogs was done by a team from Cornell University Cornell University, mainly at Ithaca, N.Y.; with land-grant, state, and private support; coeducational; chartered 1865, opened 1868. It was named for Ezra Cornell, who donated $500,000 and a tract of land. With the help of state senator Andrew D. . That means that village dogs from most African regions are genetically distinct from non-native breeds and mixed-breed dogs. They also are more genetically diverse because they have not been subjected to strict breeding, which artificially selects genes and narrows breeds' gene pools. The study sheds light on the poorly understood history of dog domestication domestication Process of hereditary reorganization of wild animals and plants into forms more accommodating to the interests of people. In its strictest sense, it refers to the initial stage of human mastery of wild animals and plants. . Future work may help explain the timing and locations of dog domestication and how dogs have adapted to the African environment, human settlements and dietary shifts. "The genes of modern breeds all cluster together in one little group, but the African village dogs we sampled show much greater diversity genetically," said lead author Adam Boyko, a research associate in the lab of Carlos Bustamante Carlos José Bustamante (born 1951 in Lima, Peru) is an American scientist. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Biography Bustamante is professor of molecular and cell biology, physics, and chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, a position he , the research paper's senior author and a professor of biological statistics and computational biology. Field researchers from the University of California-Davis, who are part of the Cornell-based Village Dog Genetic Diversity Project, and others, including local veterinarians Veterinarians and veterinary surgeons (vets) are medical professionals who operate exclusively on animals. Well-known and notable veterinarians include:
They also looked at breed dogs, including those reputed to be from Africa, Puerto Rican dogs and mixed-breed dogs from the United States. Researchers and veterinarians also collected photos and information on weight, age, coat color coat color the overall or main color of the animal. If the points are distinctively colored that is also noted, e.g. black with white points. cat coat color and body measurements and sent blood samples for analysis to the Canine DNA Bank at the Baker Institute for Animal Health, part of Cornell's College of Veterinary Medicine veterinary medicine, diagnosis and treatment of diseases of animals. An early interest in animal diseases is found in ancient Greek writings on medicine. Veterinary medicine began to achieve the stature of a science with the organization of the first school in the , which maintains a growing DNA archive of dogs worldwide. Boyko, Bustamante and colleagues used a computer program to track genetic diversity in the samples. They found that the African village dogs are a mosaic of indigenous dogs descended from early migrants to Africa and non-native mixed-breed dogs. Such reputed African breeds as Pharaoh hounds and Rhodesian ridgebacks clustered with non-native dogs, suggesting they originated from outside of Africa. A previous study of village dog genetics confirmed that domesticated do·mes·ti·cate tr.v. do·mes·ti·cat·ed, do·mes·ti·cat·ing, do·mes·ti·cates 1. To cause to feel comfortable at home; make domestic. 2. To adopt or make fit for domestic use or life. 3. a. dogs likely originated from Eurasian wolves some 15,000 to 40,000 years ago, and reported that East Asian village dogs had more genetic diversity than any others sampled for the study, suggesting that dogs were first domesticated in East Asia. But the African village dogs analyzed in this study revealed similar genetic diversity, which raises doubt on the claim that dogs were first domesticated in East Asia. (ANI) Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency. (ANI) - All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
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