“藏羚羊种群瓶颈后遗传多样性恢复”一文在《Scientific Reports》上发表

　　2016年10月14日，《Scientific Reports》在线发表了郭松长研究组题为Microsatellite Loci Analysis Reveals Post-bottleneck Recovery of Genetic Diversity in the Tibetan Antelope的研究论文（http://www.nature.com/articles/srep35501），揭示藏羚羊种群瓶颈后（Post-bottleneck）的遗传多样性正呈恢复态势。 

　　藏羚羊是青藏高原的旗舰物种之一，在上世纪曾遭受严重的种群瓶颈。种群瓶颈后的遗传多样性丧失已在许多物种中得到证实。过去10余年中，尽管藏羚羊种群规模经历了瓶颈后的持续增长，但其遗传多样性丧失或恢复缺乏及时、有效的评估。 

　　为明晰藏羚羊种群瓶颈后的遗传丧失/恢复趋势，课题组基于自主开发的微卫星引物，对15个微卫星座位的遗传变异进行了分析。结果显示，在遭受严重的种群瓶颈后，藏羚羊种群仍具有丰富的遗传多样性；且在较短的11年的时间范围内，藏羚羊遗传多样性呈显著上升态势。研究首次明确了藏羚羊遗传多样性恢复这一态势，提示藏羚羊保护措施与努力尚未为晚。 

　　该研究得到青海省应用基础研究计划项目的资助。 

　　Abstract: The Tibetan antelope (chiru, Pantholops hodgsoni) is one of the most endangered mammals native to the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The population size has rapidly declined over the last century due to illegal hunting and habitat damage. In the past 10 years, the population has reportedly been expanding due to conservation efforts. Several lines of evidence suggest that the Tibetan antelope has undergone a demographic bottleneck. However, the consequences of the bottleneck on genetic diversity and the post-bottleneck genetic recovery remain unknown. In this study, we investigate the genetic variation of 15 microsatellite loci from two Tibetan antelope populations sampled in 2003 (Pop2003) and 2013 (Pop2013). A higher level of genetic diversity (NA, 13.286; He, 0.840; PIC, 0.813; I, 2.114) was detected in Pop2013, compared to Pop2003 (NA, 12.929; He, 0.818; PIC, 0.789; I, 2.033). We observe that despite passing through the bottleneck, the Tibetan antelope retains high levels of genetic diversity. Furthermore, our results show significant or near significant increases in genetic diversity (He, PIC and I) in Pop2013 compared with Pop2003, which suggests that protection efforts did not arrive too late for the Tibetan antelope.