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MBE Advance Access published online on October 25, 2006
Molecular Biology and Evolution, doi:10.1093/molbev/msl160
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© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Accepted September 29, 2006

Research Article

The Complex Evolutionary History of Gorillas: Insights From Genomic Data

O. Thalmann 1 *, A. Fischer 1, F. Lankester 2, S. Pääbo 1, and L. Vigilant 1

1 Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig 04103, Germany
2 Limbe Wildlife Centre, PO Box 878, Limbe, SWP, Cameroon

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
O. Thalmann, E-mail: thalmann{at}eva.mpg.de


  Abstract

Relatively little is known about the evolutionary and demographic histories of gorillas, one of our closest living relatives. In this study we used samples from both western (Gorilla gorilla) and eastern (G. beringei) gorillas to infer the timing of the split between these geographically disjunct populations and to elaborate the demographic history of gorillas. Here we present DNA sequences from 16 non-coding autosomal loci from 15 western gorillas and three eastern gorillas, including two non-invasively sampled free-ranging individuals. We find that the genetic diversity of gorillas is similar to that of chimpanzees, but almost twice as high as that of bonobos and humans. A significantly positive Fu & Li's D was observed for western gorillas, suggesting a complex demographic history with a constant, long-term population size and ancestral population structure. Among different population split scenarios, our data suggest a complex history of western and eastern gorillas including an initial population split at around 0.9 - 1.6 million years ago and subsequent, primarily male-mediated gene flow until approximately 80,000 - 200,000 years ago. Furthermore, simulations revealed more gene flow took place from eastern to western gorilla populations than vice versa.

Keywords: gorilla; ancestral population structure; demography; population split; nuclear sequences; fecal samples.
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