Tandemly repeated sequences in mtDNA control region of whitefish,Coregonus lavaretus

Abstract

Length variation of the mitochondrial DNA control region was observed with PCR amplification of a sample of 138 whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus). Nucleotide sequences of representative PCR products showed that the variation was due to the presence of an approximately 100-bp motif tandemly repeated two, three, or five times in the region between the conserved sequence block-3 (CSB-3) and the gene for phenylalanine tRNA. This is the first report on the tandem array composed of long repeat units in mitochondrial DNA of salmonids.Key words: Coregonus lavaretus, D-loop mitochondrial DNA, tandemly repeated sequences.