Abstract
Concentrations of potassium (K) and sodium (Na) were determined in the erythrocytes of 28 members of an interbreeding herd of Speke's gazelle. The distribution of K concentrations and Na/K concentration ratios suggested the presence of the high-K/low-K (HK/LK) polymorphism known in erythrocytes of domestic bovids. The pedigree of the herd of gazelles is known completely, permitting examination of the inheritance of HK/LK polymorphism by overlaying the distribution of phenotypes on the pedigree. Statistical analyses clearly indicate a strong genetic component in the phenotypic variability that is entirely consistent with a single autosomal locus, two-allele mode of inheritance, with the LK allele being dominant. This is the first demonstration of HK/LK polymorphism in a wild bovid species. The evidence indicates that HK/LK polymorphism is of considerable evolutionary age, is of monophyletic origin, and is maintained by selection.
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