Population Genetics of Atlantic and Shortnose Sturgeon, Collaboration with Laboratory of Isaac Wirgin, New York University School of Environmental Medicine (by John Waldman)
I continue to collaborate with Dr. Wirgin’s laboratory to explore the population genetics and stock structure of two sturgeons found on the east coast of North America, the anadromous Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus, and the amphidromous shortnose sturgeon A. brevirostrum. As of late, this work has focused on sequence analysis of the rapidly-evolving mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region. Prior publications (Stabile et al. 1996, Waldman et al. 1996a, Wirgin et al. 2000) give the results of a rangewide analysis of some 477 specimens of A. oxyrinchus oxyrinchus from 13 river systems between Canada and Georgia and 141 individuals of A. o. desotoi from 8 Gulf of Mexico rivers. However, an earlier study (Waldman et al. 1996) characterized specimens of A. o. oxyrinchus using RFLP analysis and then used the haplotype frequencies of these reference samples to conduct mixed stock analysis of collections (N = 112) made in the ocean off New Jersey. This study found an overwhelming contribution (~99%) by the Hudson River population. Sequencing of mtDNA also was used to evaluate genetic divergence between the two subspecies of A. oxyrinchus (Ong et al. 1996).
The haplotype data from A. o. oxyrinchus later was used to compare with haplotype data from archived specimens from Europe of putative A. sturio. Remarkably, there is strong genetic (and morphological) evidence for A. o. oxyrinchus having occurred in the Baltic Sea over the past millennium, before recently becoming extinct there (Ludwig et al. 2002).
The rangewide population genetics of shortnose sturgeon (N = 275) from 11 locations also was assessed via sequencing of the mtDNA control region (Walsh et al. 2001, Grunwald et al. 2002). We compared our data from A. brevirostrum and both subspecies of A. oxyrinchus to examine how differences in life history characteristics and Pleistocene zoogeography influenced genetic stock structure and gene flow (Waldman et al. 2002). Mitochondrial DNA data for A. oxyrinchus also were compared with nuclear DNA microsatellites data (Wirgin et al. 2002) for some of the same samples to evaluate the relative sensitivities of the two approaches.
Forthcoming work includes an expanded (N = 487) rangewide analysis of A. brevirostrum (Wirgin et al. 2005), an expanded rangewide analysis of A. o. oxyrinchus (N = 697), and close examinations of the question of the existence of a relict Delaware River population and at mtDNA variation among southeastern U.S. populations, in particular that of the Altamaha River. Of particular interest, temporal instability of mtDNA haplotypes was observed among collections made over several years in the Delaware River suggesting that on occasion it hosts subadult sturgeon that were spawned elsewhere.
Other work on sturgeon conservation that has touched on genetic issues includes Waldman (1995), Birstein et al. (1997), Wirgin et al. (1997), Waldman and Wirgin (1998), Secor and Waldman (1999), Bain et al. (2000), and Waldman (2000).
References (in chronological order):
Waldman, J.R., J.T. Hart, and I.I. Wirgin. 1996. Stock composition of the New York Bight Atlantic sturgeon fishery based on analysis of mitochondrial DNA. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 125:364-371.
Ong, T.-L., J. Stabile, I. Wirgin, and J.R. Waldman. 1996. Genetic divergence between Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus and A. o. desotoi as assessed by mitochondrial DNA sequencing analysis. Copeia 1996:464-469.
Waldman, J.R., K. Nolan, J. Hart, I.I. Wirgin. 1996. Genetic differentiation of three key anadromous fish populations of the Hudson River. Estuaries 19:759-768.
Stabile, J., J.R. Waldman, F. Parauka, and I. Wirgin. 1996. Stock structure and homing fidelity of Gulf sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi) based on restriction fragment length polymorphism and sequence analyses of mitochondrial DNA. Genetics 144:767-775.
Birstein, V.J., W.E. Bemis, and J.R. Waldman. 1997. The threatened status of acipenseriform species: a summary. Environmental Biology of Fishes 48:427-435.
Wirgin, I.I., J.E. Stabile, and J.R. Waldman. 1997. Molecular analysis in the conservation of sturgeons and paddlefish. Environmental Biology of Fishes 48:385-398.
Waldman, J.R., and I.I. Wirgin. 1998. Restoration options and prospects for Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus in North America. Conservation Biology 12:631-638.
Secor, D.H., and J.R. Waldman. 1999. Historical abundance of Delaware Bay Atlantic sturgeon and potential rate of recovery. American Fisheries Society Symposium 23:203-216.
Wirgin, I., J.R. Waldman, J. Rosko, R. Gross, M.R. Collins, S.G. Rogers, and J. Stabile. 2000. Genetic structure of Atlantic sturgeon populations based on mitochondrial DNA control region sequences. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 129:476-486.
Waldman, J.R. 2000. Restoring Acipenser sturio L., 1758 in Europe: lessons from the Acipenser oxyrinchus Mitchill, 1815 experience in North America. Boletín. Instituto Español de Oceanografía 16:237-244.
Bain, M., N. Haley, D. Peterson, J. Waldman, and K. Arend. 2000. Harvest and habitats of Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus Mitchill, 1815 in the Hudson River estuary: lessons for sturgeon conservation. Boletín. Instituto Español de Oceanografía 16:43-53.
Walsh, M.G., M.B. Bain, T. Squiers, Jr., J.R. Waldman, and I. Wirgin. 2001. Morphological and genetic variation among shortnose sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum from adjacent and distant rivers. Estuaries 24:41-48.
Grunwald, C., J. Stabile, J.R. Waldman, R. Gross, and I.I. Wirgin. 2002. Population genetics of shortnose sturgeon, Acipenser brevirostrum, based on sequencing of the mitochondrial DNA control region. Molecular Ecology 11:1885-1898.
Ludwig, A., L. Debus, D. Lieckfeldt, I. Wirgin, N. Benecke, I. Jenneckens, P. Williot, J.R. Waldman, and C. Pitra. 2002. When the American sea sturgeon swam east. Nature 419:447-448.
Waldman, J.R., C. Grunwald, J. Stabile, and I.I. Wirgin. 2002. Impacts of life history and biogeography on the genetic stock structure of Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus, Gulf sturgeon A. o. desotoi, and shortnose sturgeon A. brevirostrum. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 18:509-518.
Wirgin, I., J. Stabile, J. Waldman, B. Lubinski, and T. King. 2002. Comparison of mitochondrial DNA control region sequence and microsatellite analyses in determining population structure and homing fidelity in Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 18:313-319.
Wirgin, I., C. Grunwald, E. Carlson, J. Stabile, D.L. Peterson, and J. Waldman. 2005. Range-wide population structure of shortnose sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum based on sequence analysis of the mitochondrial DNA control region. Estuaries (In press, June).
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