The mitochondrial ancestor of bonobos and the origin of their major haplogroups

PLoS One. 2017 May 3;12(5):e0174851. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0174851. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

We report here where the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of bonobos (Pan paniscus) ranged and how they dispersed throughout their current habitat. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) molecular dating to analyze the time to MRCA (TMRCA) and the major mtDNA haplogroups of wild bonobos were performed using new estimations of divergence time of bonobos from other Pan species to investigate the dispersal routes of bonobos over the forest area of the Congo River's left bank. The TMRCA of bonobos was estimated to be 0.64 or 0.95 million years ago (Ma). Six major haplogroups had very old origins of 0.38 Ma or older. The reconstruction of the ancestral area revealed the mitochondrial ancestor of the bonobo populations ranged in the eastern area of the current bonobos' habitat. The haplogroups may have been formed from either the riparian forests along the Congo River or the center of the southern Congo Basin. Fragmentation of the forest refugia during the cooler periods may have greatly affected the formation of the genetic structure of bonobo populations.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • DNA, Mitochondrial / genetics*
  • Evolution, Molecular*
  • Haplotypes*
  • Pan paniscus / genetics*
  • Phylogeny

Substances

  • DNA, Mitochondrial

Grants and funding

This research was supported by the Ministry of the Environment, Japan (D-1007) (to TF); the Global Environment Research Fund (F-061) of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan (to Nishida); Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Grants-in-aid for Scientific Research (17255005 and 22255007, to TF); the JSPS Asia-Africa Science Platform Program (2009–2011, 2012–2014, 2014-2017 to TF); the JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research (19657074 to HT); the JSPS Primate Origins of Human Evolution (HOPE) Project (#8 to Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University); US Fish and Wildlife (2007–2009, 2010–2011, to Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation); Arcus Foundation (2007–2008, 2010, 2012, to Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation); Wood Tiger Foundation (2010, 2012, to Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation); Full Circle Foundation (2011, to Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation); the US Fish and Wildlife Service Assistance Award (96200-0-G017, to African Wildlife Foundation); Arcus Foundation, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and Barron Wall (to AWF); the L.L. Leakey Foundation (to AKC); the Congo Basin Forest Partnership/USAID-WWF (623-A-00-06-00072-00, to ZSM); Susan McConnell and Richard Scheller (Wildlife Conservation Network) (to ZSM); the AZA Ape TAG Conservation Initiative (to ZSM); WWF Belgium, WWF Netherlands, Belgian Cooperation funding for co-financing; and CARPE program (USAID) for program coordination, for WWF bonobo project in the Lac Tumba Landscape. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.