| Summary: | European cisco (Coregonus albula L.) is one of the
most precious species of the European lake ichtyofauna,
however, due to progressive eutrophication of water,
the range of its occurrence has decreased. Deteriorating
ecological conditions are the main cause of this decline
in population, and most of the existing populations in
lakes are maintained thanks to reintroduction. Thus, it
is important to determine the genetic structure of the
European cisco. The study involved PCR-RFLP-based
genetic analysis of C. albula caught in 15 lakes in northern
Poland, including four lakes located in national parks.
The analysis covered 3 genes located in the mitochondrial
DNA: ND1, ND3/4 and cytochrome b, as well as a control
region (D-loop). The PCR product was digested with
4 endonucleases (RsaI, MspI, BsuI and HhaI) and the
resulting haplotypes were grouped into combinations.
Statistical analysis were then performed on these
groups. Based on the genetic distance, a phenogram was
constructed in which two groups could be distinguished.
One group was represented by C. albula populations from
most lakes in north-western Poland, including the three
protected lakes. The other group consisted of the European
cisco population from Lake Wigry (north-eastern Poland)
and commercially exploited lakes from the southern part
of the investigated north-western Poland area. The results
of the study of C. albula from northern Poland present a
valuable molecular characterization of the populations
and can be a starting point for further genetic monitoring.
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