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Xenarthra is a superorder of placental mammals constituted by extant armadillos, sloths, anteaters and their fossil relatives. Considering the biogeographic abundance, the two species included in the Tamandua genus are the most expressive among the anteaters, being found of the north of Central America to the south of South America. Tamandua tetradactyla stand out as the most expressive species of anteater, with often records in Brazilian biological collections. However, the absence of sexual dimorphism in the external morphology of T. tetradactyla and other anteaters contributes to that sexing mistakes are frequently observed in museum specimens. Thus, evolutionary, anatomical, ecological and pathological issues related to the sex of T. tetradactyla remain mostly unknown. Here, we investigate the use of PCR amplification of the SRY gene obtained from muscular tissues of T. tetradactyla in the sexual identification of museum specimens. In addition, we used the molecular data to reveal possible intraspecific sexual variations in the skeleton of the analyzed samples. The results indicate that the anatomical data are concordant with the molecular analysis in this study, with the appendicular bones of the specimens of T. tetradactyla presented marked patterns of sexual distinctions. The molecular-morphological integration is probably a useful tool in the recognition of intraspecific variation still unknown in museum specimens of Xenarthra.

The current population of Colombia has a genetic heterogeneity resulting from different migrations from other continents and within the country. In addition, there are small groups in their territory that have remained isolated and therefore have a different genetic pool in relation to that of the neighbouring urban populations. This population stratification must be considered in forensic analysis, being more complex for markers with marked intercontinental differentiation. In this study, population differentiation in Colombian admixed, native, and Afro-descendant populations was evaluated for a group of 38 indels described for forensic use. Allelic frequencies and parameters of forensic relevance were determined in each of the groups defined based on population differentiation analyses. In addition to the differences found between population groups, the results show that the set of 38 indels analysed could be useful in studies of individual identification in Colombia. The exclusion power presented by this set of markers suggests the need for joint use with other markers, being able to complement the STRs in paternity cases. High levels of both power of discrimination and exclusion were found when complementing the 38 HID-indels with a second multiplex, for a total of 83 indels.

Made available in DSpace on 2020-12-12T00:58:33Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2020-01-01 Anaesthetics Research Society The use of Y-chromosomal genetic markers in forensic investigations demands the establishment of reliable and representative DNA databases of different reference populations. The genetic characterization of the Y chromosome variation in human populations requires the analyses of haplotype frequencies allied to haplogroup determination. The present study aimed to contribute to the Brazilian database by providing 1,382 Yfiler Plus individual profiles, from 11 Brazilian states. The Yfiler Plus markers showed high haplotype diversities in all Brazilian populations (>0.9970), allowing high intra-population discrimination in forensic investigations. Pairwise genetic distances showed a homogeneity between Brazilian populations (FST ≤ 0.0043; non-differentiation p-values ≥ 0.0212), indicating that admixed populations from Brazil can be represented in a single Yfiler Plus haplotype database, for forensic purposes. The performance of Haplogroup Predictor and NevGen software in haplogroup prediction based on Yfiler Plus and Yfiler haplotypes was evaluated in a subset of 416 Brazilian samples that were also genotyped for 51 Y-SNPs. In 25% of the samples, no classification or errors were found for at least one of the prediction tools or marker sets. NevGen presented lower error rates (5.52% and 8.65% with Yfiler Plus and Yfiler, respectively) than Haplogroup Predictor (16.11% with Yfiler Plus and 13.70% with Yfiler). In conclusion, both haplogroup prediction tools can be useful to direct the SNP typing, but present large error rates to be used in forensic analysis, especially in predicting African haplogroups in admixed South American populations. DNA Diagnostic Laboratory (LDD) State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) Laboratory of Human and Molecular Genetics Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul Laboratório de Biologia e DNA Forense Superintendência de Polícia Técnico-Científica do Estado de Goiás UNESP-Universidade Estadual Paulista Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas Laboratório de Investigação de Paternidade-NAC Coordenadoria de Perícias em Biologia Molecular POLITEC – Perícia Oficial e Identificação Técnica Faculdade Pitágoras Departamento de Medicina Legal Ética Médica e Medicina Social e do Trabalho da Faculdade de Medicina da USP Universidade de São Paulo (USP) IPATIMUP-Institute of Pathology and Molecular Immunology from the University of Porto I3S-Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde Universidade do Porto Postgraduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology Laboratory of Human and Medical Genetics Federal University of Pará Secretaria de Defesa Social Pernambuco Serviço de Endocrinologia e Metabologia do Hospital Universitário da Universidade Federal do Maranhão UNESP-Universidade Estadual Paulista Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas Laboratório de Investigação de Paternidade-NAC Anaesthetics Research Society: 304413/2015-1

The New World marmosets of the sub-family Callitrichinae includes genera of marmosets, tamarins, and lion tamarins. They are small, arboreal, diurnal, insectivore/frugivores inhabiting forested, rural, and urban areas of tropical Central and South America. About 23 species are currently recognized. The marmosets are currently divided into four genera. With several threatened species, marmosets conservation is constantly under debate. Several management plans and actions are now in course although a precise delimitation of the operational management units is still open. Here we analyzed and discussed the molecular identification of some callithrichin marmosets based on previously published sequences under a DNA barcoding perspective.

The Tetraodontidae is the most speciose family within the order Tetraodontiformes, being characterized by beak-like jaws and the presence of powerful neurotoxins Tetrodotoxin/Saxitoxin associated with soft tissues, inflation behavior under stress, a condition shared with its accepted sister-family Diodontidae. Although several studies, including both morphological and molecular analyses have been conducted in the last decade the phylogeny and biogeography of Tetraodontidae and its species remain under debate. Several fatal intoxication cases had been observed in the last years related with the ingestion of Tetraodontidae species all around the world. Although recent technological advances have facilitated the sequencing of an entire mitogenome (∼16Kb), increasing the use of mtDNA as a phylogenetic marker, several studies primarily focusing on small mtDNA regions are continuously conducted. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the molecular identification and the cross-atlantic genetic divergence patterns observed from the mitochondrial COI gene of the poisonous genus Sphoeroides based on newly determined and previously published sequences from both North and South Atlantic Oceans.

The Elasmobranchii comprises the diverse and important group of sharks and rays. The Selachii or sharks clade includes some of the ocean's largest predatory fishes, being commercially overexploited due to unsustainable fishing activities for their meat and fins. Overfishing has resulted in significant population declines and several Selachii species are now considered under high threat and facing extinction, with about 93% of its nominal species included in the IUCN Red List. Molecular data has provided important information about these species, allowing the management of natural stocks and their decline. Population genetics, connectivity data, and their population genetics knowledge are now available and play an important role on establishing conservation policies. However, despite the ecological, commercial and conservation importance, no molecular method is available to identify sharks in a forensic analytic context. As a first step in the construction of a reliable method for shark identification, we carried out a molecular systematic analysis using 85 previously published mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene sequences obtained from the NCBI database. We found that indels in the 16S rRNA gene can be used to distinguish almost all the analyzed shark species, including some of the most threatened according to IUCN Red List. The regions selected in this study can be used for the construction of molecular assays for shark identification in a forensic context.