Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout
The Ohrid trout, <i>Salmo letnica</i>, is an endemic species of Lake Ohrid, one of Europe’s oldest lakes, located on the Albania-North Macedonia border. This species exhibits distinct morphotypes—<i>Salmo letnica typicus</i>, <i>Salmo letnica aestivalis</i>, <i...
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2025-01-01
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| author | Anila Hoda Chiara Locci Ilenia Azzena Noemi Pascale Ilaria Deplano Roland Kristo Arian Demiri Fabio Scarpa Marco Casu Daria Sanna |
| author_facet | Anila Hoda Chiara Locci Ilenia Azzena Noemi Pascale Ilaria Deplano Roland Kristo Arian Demiri Fabio Scarpa Marco Casu Daria Sanna |
| author_sort | Anila Hoda |
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| description | The Ohrid trout, <i>Salmo letnica</i>, is an endemic species of Lake Ohrid, one of Europe’s oldest lakes, located on the Albania-North Macedonia border. This species exhibits distinct morphotypes—<i>Salmo letnica typicus</i>, <i>Salmo letnica aestivalis</i>, <i>Salmo letnica balcanicus</i>, and <i>Salmo letnica lumi</i>—that differ in morphology and spawning behaviour. However, the extent of their genetic differentiation remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the genetic variability and population structure of <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes using the mitochondrial Control Region as molecular marker. We obtained 127 sequences from <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes and compared them with sequences from other species within the genus <i>Salmo</i>. Phylogenetic and clustering analyses revealed no significant genetic structuring among the four morphotypes, suggesting an ecological differentiation not (yet) fixed at mitochondrial level. Additionally, our findings suggest that the modern <i>Salmo letnica</i> population likely originated in Lake Ohrid from <i>Salmo farioides</i> founders through evolutionary differentiation, potentially driven by environmental changes. Future studies incorporating a larger number of samples from both <i>Salmo letnica</i> and <i>Salmo farioides</i> are essential to fully understand the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| series | Life |
| spelling | doaj-art-8f556819c75e45aebf8fde55c6efeb762025-01-24T13:38:35ZengMDPI AGLife2075-17292025-01-011515210.3390/life15010052Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid TroutAnila Hoda0Chiara Locci1Ilenia Azzena2Noemi Pascale3Ilaria Deplano4Roland Kristo5Arian Demiri6Fabio Scarpa7Marco Casu8Daria Sanna9Department of Animal Sciences, Agricultural University of Tirana, Kodër Kamëz, 1029 Tirana, AlbaniaDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43b, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sassari, Via Vienna 2, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43b, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43b, 07100 Sassari, ItalyMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Blvd Deshmoret e Kombit, Nr. 2, 1001 Tirana, AlbaniaDirectory of Fishery and Aquaculture Services, Blvd Deshmoret e Kombit, Nr. 2, 1001 Tirana, AlbaniaDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43b, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sassari, Via Vienna 2, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43b, 07100 Sassari, ItalyThe Ohrid trout, <i>Salmo letnica</i>, is an endemic species of Lake Ohrid, one of Europe’s oldest lakes, located on the Albania-North Macedonia border. This species exhibits distinct morphotypes—<i>Salmo letnica typicus</i>, <i>Salmo letnica aestivalis</i>, <i>Salmo letnica balcanicus</i>, and <i>Salmo letnica lumi</i>—that differ in morphology and spawning behaviour. However, the extent of their genetic differentiation remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the genetic variability and population structure of <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes using the mitochondrial Control Region as molecular marker. We obtained 127 sequences from <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes and compared them with sequences from other species within the genus <i>Salmo</i>. Phylogenetic and clustering analyses revealed no significant genetic structuring among the four morphotypes, suggesting an ecological differentiation not (yet) fixed at mitochondrial level. Additionally, our findings suggest that the modern <i>Salmo letnica</i> population likely originated in Lake Ohrid from <i>Salmo farioides</i> founders through evolutionary differentiation, potentially driven by environmental changes. Future studies incorporating a larger number of samples from both <i>Salmo letnica</i> and <i>Salmo farioides</i> are essential to fully understand the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of <i>Salmo letnica</i> morphotypes.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/1/52Lake OhridKorani troutmitochondrial DNAControl region<i>Salmo l. typicus</i><i>Salmo l. aestivalis</i> |
| spellingShingle | Anila Hoda Chiara Locci Ilenia Azzena Noemi Pascale Ilaria Deplano Roland Kristo Arian Demiri Fabio Scarpa Marco Casu Daria Sanna Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout Life Lake Ohrid Korani trout mitochondrial DNA Control region <i>Salmo l. typicus</i> <i>Salmo l. aestivalis</i> |
| title | Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout |
| title_full | Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout |
| title_fullStr | Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout |
| title_short | Exploring Mitochondrial Evolutionary Pathways: Insights into the Origin of the Endemic Ohrid Trout |
| title_sort | exploring mitochondrial evolutionary pathways insights into the origin of the endemic ohrid trout |
| topic | Lake Ohrid Korani trout mitochondrial DNA Control region <i>Salmo l. typicus</i> <i>Salmo l. aestivalis</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/1/52 |
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