The fitness consequences of inbreeding and outbreeding have intrigued biologists for a long time. Recently a measure of relatedness of parental haplotypes has been proposed called mean d(2). This measure is based on a stepwise mutational process and therefore is tailored to microsatellite genetic markers. Theoretical work suggests that mean d(2) typically is less suited for measuring fitness co...

Through social interactions, individuals can affect one another's phenotype. The heritable effect of an individual on the phenotype of a conspecific is known as an indirect genetic effect (IGE). Although IGEs can have a substantial impact on heritable variation and response to selection, little is known about the genetic architecture of traits affected by IGEs. We studied IGEs for survival in d...

Genetic mapping studies in the mouse and other model organisms are used to search for genes underlying complex phenotypes. Traditional genetic mapping studies that employ single-generation crosses have poor mapping resolution and limit discovery to loci that are polymorphic between the two parental strains. Multiparent outbreeding populations address these shortcomings by increasing the density...

Selection by inbreeding depression should favour mating biases that reduce the risk of fertilization by related mates. However, equivocal evidence for inbreeding avoidance questions the strength of inbreeding depression as a selective force in the evolution of mating biases. Lack of inbreeding avoidance can be because of low risk of inbreeding, variation in tolerance to inbreeding or high costs...

The present study aimed to estimate juvenile body measurements in indigenous Uttara (U) chicken and comparisons of their estimates with Rhode Island Red (RIR), Kadaknath (K) Australorp (A) breed chickens using 400 day-old chicks. parameters were estimated for weight was recorded on an electronic balance the morning before feeding 0 20 week at 2 weeks intervals. growth rate is higher than that b...

The continuing decline of many natural plant and animal populations emphasizes the importance conservation strategies. Hybridization as a management tool has proven successful in introducing gene flow to small, inbred populations, but can be also associated with health risks. For example, hybridization change susceptibility infection either direction due heterosis (hybrid vigor) outbreeding dep...

Abstract Targeted gene flow is an emerging conservation approach which involves introducing a cohort of individuals with particular traits to locations where they can produce benefit. This technique being proposed adapt recipient populations known threat, but questions remain surrounding how best maximize outcomes during periods continuous directional environmental change. Here we introduce new...

Computational models of evolutionary processes are increasingly required to incorporate multiple and diverse sources of data. A popular feature to include in population genetics models is spatial extension, which reflects more accurately natural populations than does a mean field approach. However, such models necessarily violate the mean field assumptions of classical population genetics, as d...