Title

Transient Linkage Disequilibrium in Drosophila

Authors

Stephen J. O'Brien, Cornell UniversityFollow
Ross J. MacIntyre, Cornell University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-2-1971

Publication Title

Nature

ISSN

0028-0836

Volume

230

Issue/No.

5292

First Page

335

Last Page

336

Abstract

THE results of some applications of biochemical techniques to population genetics apparently contradict certain basic tenets of evolutionary theory. Thus by the use of gel electrophoresis for soluble proteins, to estimate genetic variation within natural populations, levels of variability much greater than those predicted by the genetic load theory have been found^1–3. Second, the rate of allele substitution calculated from data on amino-acid substitutions in the primary structures of certain homotogous proteins⁴ turns out to be two or three orders of magnitude greater than the productions of the genetic load theory for species of the appropriate evolutionary separation. Among the explanations so far proposed for these discrepancies are the selective neutrality per se of numerous isoallelles^4,7–9, frequency dependent selection^10,11 and selectively maintained linkage disequilibria^12–14. Although there have been many theoretical discussions of linkage disequilibria^12–14, experimental evidence of their frequency and importance in natural populations has been sparse^15,16. We now describe a transient linkage disequilibrium between two allozyme loci in a laboratory population of Drosophila melanogaster.

Comments

©1971 Nature Publishing Group

NSUWorks Citation

O'Brien, Stephen J. and Ross J. MacIntyre. 1971. "Transient Linkage Disequilibrium in Drosophila." Nature 230, (5292): 335-336. doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/230335a0.

ORCID ID

0000-0001-7353-8301

ResearcherID

N-1726-2015

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1038/230335a0