From Sanger to NGS: Detecting MHC (Major Histocompatibility Complex) Class II and OR (Olfactory Receptors) Genetic Variability in Italian Wolves (Canis Lupus) and relative Canids

In this PhD thesis I will describe different aspects of conservation genetics and genomics of two wild Canidae species, the wolf (Canis lupus) and the golden jackal (Canis aureus), through the study of two of the most variable gene families: the Major Histocompatibility Complex genes (MHC), and Olfactory Receptors genes (OR). In order to perform these studies both Sanger and next generation sequencing (NGS) DNA techniques have been used. The background of the thesis is described in the “General introduction” with phylogeny, classification and evolutionary ecology of the Canidae, with a focus on the species Canis lupus and its main conservation concerns in Italy. Moreover, I will introduce the importance to perform genetic studies as tools for wild-life conservation and management, with a description of the framework of the principal historical and currently used molecular markers that had driven to develop MHC and OR sequencing projects. The thesis is divided into two parts, “PART I – The MHC typing project” and “PART II – The OR genes typing project”. A total of four scientific papers (already published or under revision) will be introduced and illustrated as result of three years of PhD activities at ISPRA’s (Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale), Laboratory of conservation genetics, in Ozzano dell’Emilia, and thankfully to a PhD fellowship granted by the Università di Bologna.