ArticleEcology and evolution2015
The use and abuse of genetic marker-based estimates of relatedness and inbreeding.
Article in Ecology and evolution, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Sex-specific inbreeding depression: A meta-analysis.Ecology letters · 2022Pooled it
- Meta-analytic evidence that animals rarely avoid inbreeding.Nature ecology & evolution · 2021Pooled it
- Article
- Inbreeding in a Fission-Fusion Equid Decreases Following an Increase in the Number and Redistribution of Water Sources.Molecular ecology · 2026Article
- Article
- Genetic and Cyto-Histological Analyses inInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- A Comprehensive Account of the Breeding Systems of the Fire AntEcology and evolution · 2025Article
- Going With the Flow? Relative Importance of Riverine Hydrologic Connectivity Versus Tidal Influence for Spatial Structure of Genetic Diversity and Relatedness in a Foundational Submersed Aquatic Plant.Ecology and evolution · 2025Article
- Relatedness dynamics and sex-biased dispersal in a seasonal cycle of corn mice from intensively managed agroecosystems.Current zoology · 2024Article
- Species-wide genomics of kākāpō provides tools to accelerate recovery.Nature ecology & evolution · 2023Article
- The relevance of pedigrees in the conservation genomics era.Molecular ecology · 2022Article
- Article
- Genetic management on the brink of extinction: sequencing microsatellites does not improve estimates of inbreeding in wild and captive Vancouver Island marmots (Conservation genetics (Print) · 2022Article
- Rapid adaptation through genomic and epigenomic responses following translocations in an endangered salmonid.Evolutionary applications · 2021Article
- Patterns of Genetic Diversity and Mating Systems in a Mass-Reared Black Soldier Fly Colony.Insects · 2021Article
- Pedigree reconstruction and distant pairwise relatedness estimation from genome sequence data: A demonstration in a population of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).Molecular ecology resources · 2021Article
- Genetic patterns in Mugil cephalus and implications for fisheries and aquaculture management.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Article
- A comparison of pedigree, genetic and genomic estimates of relatedness for informing pairing decisions in two critically endangered birds: Implications for conservation breeding programmes worldwide.Evolutionary applications · 2020Article
- Mate choice, reproductive success and inbreeding in white rhinoceros: New insights for conservation management.Evolutionary applications · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Genetic marker-based estimators remain a popular tool for measuring relatedness (r xy ) and inbreeding (F) coefficients at both the population and individual level. The performance of these estimators fluctuates with the number and variability of markers available, and the relatedness composition and demographic history of a population. Several methods are available to evaluate the reliability of the estimates of r xy and F, some of which are implemented in the program COANCESTRY. I used the simulation module in COANCESTRY since assess the performance of marker-based estimators of r xy and F in a species with very low genetic diversity, New Zealand's little spotted kiwi (Apteryx owenii). I also conducted a review of published papers that have used COANCESTRY as its release to assess whether and how the reliability of the estimates of r xy and F produced by genetic markers are being measured and reported in published studies. My simulation results show that even when the correlation between true (simulated) and estimated r xy or F is relatively high (Pearson's r = 0.66-0.72 and 0.81-0.85, respectively) the imprecision of the estimates renders them highly unreliable on an individual basis. The literature review demonstrates that the majority of studies do not report the reliability of marker-based estimates of r xy and F. There is currently no standard practice for selecting the best estimator for a given data set or reporting an estimator's performance. This could lead to experimental results being interpreted out of context and render the robustness of conclusions based on measures of r xy and F debatable.
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