Molecular Population Genetics of Japanese Wild Animal Species

众所周知，日本的动物区系包括许多特有种和亚种，反映了其生物地理状况。可以说，从动物地理学的角度来看，日本是世界上最有趣的地区之一。过去，我们只能依靠形态或生物统计分析以及生态或行为特征来估计种群之间的差异。通过这些技术很难获得发生在这些种群之间的基因流动的信息，因为这些性状的遗传基础既不清楚也不简单。近二十年来生化和分子技术的进步使我们修改了许多传统的系统学概念。在许多例子中，形态所揭示的分化与生殖隔离的存在或不存在或其背后的遗传变异的数量不匹配。在本项目中，我们从不同的门中挑选了几个动物物种，并试图研究它们的种内变异和与相关物种的进化关系。我们旨在比较不同生态特征物种的起源和物种形成模式。许多实验动物，如家鼠、纽鸟、日本青竹、海胆和被囊物种都是日本本土动物。群体遗传学研究可以为从这些物种中开发实验室菌株提供许多信息。

It is well known that the fauna of Japan includes many endemic species and subspecies reflecting its biogeographic situation. It can be said that Japan is one of the most interesting area in the world from zoogeographical point of view.In the past, we had to rely solely on morphological or biometrical analyses and on ecological or behavioral characterization to estimate the divergence between populations. It was very difficult by means of those techniques to obtain information on gene flow taking place between those populations, since the genetic basis for such characters is not clear nor simple.The progress of biochemical and molecular techniques in the last two decades have led us to revise many traditional concepts of systematics. This has been documented by the numerous instances where the differentiation revealed by morphology does not fit with those the presence or absence of reproductive isolation, or the amount of genetic variation underlying it.In the present project we picked up several animal species from different phyla, and tried to examine their intraspecific variation and evolutionary relationships to related species. We intended to compare the origins and the modes of speciation between species with different ecological characteristics.Many experimental animals, such as the house mouse, newt, Japanese medaka, sea urhins and tunicate species are native to Japan. Population genetic study can provide many information to develop laboratory strains from these species.