Inter-specific RFLP variation
of deer mitochondrial DNA
The restriction map
of a White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus
virginianus) from Savannah River, South Carolina, includes
33 restriction sites from 10 different restriction
endonucleases (abbreviated as letters a, b,
c, e, f, h, j, x, y,
& z). Comparison with the restriction map of a Black-Tailed Deer (O.
hemionus columbianus) from Hopland in northern California,
shows 20 restriction site polymorphisms. There are nine
additional sites present (letters above the line)and 11
sites absent (letters below the line) in comparison with the
white-tailed deer restriction map. Gain or loss of a
restriction site is due to the mutation of a single nucleotide
in each site (SNP variation).
Comparison of the fraction of sites shared between maps therefore
permits an estimate of the DNA sequence divergence between
the two species. [Carr
et al. 1986. Proc Natl Acad Aci 83:9576]
