Cloning and molecular characterization of telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) and telomere length analysis of Peromyscus leucopus.

Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) is the catalytic subunit of telomerase complex that regulates telomerase activity to maintain telomere length for all animals with linear chromosomes. As the Mus musculus (MM) laboratory mouse has very long telomeres compared to humans, a potential alternative animal model for telomere research is the Peromyscus leucopus (PL) mouse that has telomere lengths close to the human range and has the wild counterparts for comparison. We report the full TERT coding sequence (pTERT) from PL mice to use in the telomere research.

Evolution of Peromyscus leucopus mice in response to a captive environment.

Many wildlife species are propagated in captivity as models for behavioral, physiological, and genetic research or to provide assurance populations to protect threatened species. However, very little is known about how animals evolve in the novel environment of captivity. The histories of most laboratory strains are poorly documented, and protected populations of wildlife species are usually too small and too short-term to allow robust statistical analysis.

Effects of inbreeding on skeletal size and fluctuating asymmetry of Peromyscus polionotus mice.

Measurements of size and asymmetry in morphology might provide early indications of damaging effects of inbreeding or other genetic changes in conservation breeding programs. We examined the effects of inbreeding on size and fluctuating asymmetry (FA) in skull and limb bone measurements in experimental populations of three subspecies of Peromyscus polionotus mice that had previously been shown to suffer significant reductions in reproductive success when inbred. Inbreeding caused significant depression in mean size in two of the subspecies (P.

Effects of genetic captive-breeding protocols on sperm quality and fertility in the white-footed mouse.

Mice (Peromyscus leucopus noveboracensis) from a captive-breeding program were used to test the effects of three genetic breeding protocols (minimizing mean kinship [MK], random breeding, and selection for docility [DOC]) and inbreeding levels on sperm traits and fertility. Earlier, in generation 8, one DOC replicate went extinct because of poor reproductive success. By generation 10, spermatozoa from DOC mice had more acrosome and midpiece abnormalities, which were shown to be strong determinants of fertility, as well as lower sperm production and resistance to osmotic stress.

HIERARCHICAL ANALYSIS OF INBREEDING DEPRESSION IN PEROMYSCUS POLIONOTUS.

The severity of inbreeding depression appears to vary among taxa, but few ecological or other patterns have been identified that predict accurately which taxa are most sensitive to inbreeding. To examine the causes of heterogeneity in inbreeding depression, the effects of inbreeding on reproduction, survival, and growth were measured in three replicate experimental stocks for each of three subspecies of Peromyscus polionotus mice. Inbreeding of the dam reduced the probability of breeding, the probability of producing a second litter, and litter size.