Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42663278›Full record

ArticleGenome biology and evolution2026

Whole-Genome Sequencing Revealed Local Genetic Differences and Multi-Layered Genetic Structure in Asian Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) Populations.

Yu Endo, Naoki Osada, Tsutomu Mano, Alexei V Abramov, Ryuichi Masuda

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Genome biology and evolution, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Yu EndoDepartment of Natural History Sciences, Graduate School of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.ORCID 0000-0001-6320-4105
Naoki OsadaFaculty of Information Science and Technology, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.ORCID 0000-0003-0180-5372
Tsutomu ManoResearch Institute of Energy, Environment and Geology, Hokkaido Research Organization, Sapporo, Japan.ORCID 0009-0008-2035-2325
Alexei V AbramovLaboratory of Mammalogy, Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Science, Saint Petersburg, Russia.ORCID 0000-0001-9709-4469
Ryuichi MasudaDepartment of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.ORCID 0000-0002-6843-0053

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

A multi-layered genetic structure shaped by multiple demographic events across different time periods has been well documented in some species. However, evaluating this pattern remains challenging in many wide-ranging wildlife because genome-wide datasets with broad geographic coverage are still scarce. Brown bears are genetically differentiated among regional populations, but the genomic data are still limited and the demographic events remain incompletely understood. Here, we generated whole-genome resequencing data from brown bears in Asian local populations previously reported to show significant variation and combined these data with ancient samples for population genomic analyses. Our results support previously reported demographic events, such as the early divergence of Central Asian populations. Furthermore, we found genetic differences among Asian brown bear populations, suggesting that population-specific demographic histories occurring at different times have contributed to their unique genetic characteristics. In the Central and West Asian populations, divergence times estimated from autosomal genomes differed by hundreds of thousands of years from those inferred from mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosomal DNA haplotypes, suggesting that gene flow continued after regional dispersal. In addition, the Y-chromosomal phylogeny and ƒ4 statistics indicated genetic differentiation between the Kazakhstan and Tibetan populations, likely resulting from male-biased introgression into the Tibetan population. Finally, the Hokkaido and Etorofu (Iturup) populations retained alleles derived from hybridization with polar bears, likely due to the limited impact of post-Last Glacial Maximum population expansion. These findings indicate that the genetic variation among brown bear populations is shaped by multiple demographic events occurring at different times, resulting in a multi-layered genetic structure.

Indexed as

UrsidaeAnimalsDNA, MitochondrialGene FlowGenetics, PopulationGenetic VariationGenomeHaplotypesMalePhylogenyWhole Genome SequencingY ChromosomeDNA, MitochondrialAsiaexpansionhybridizationLast Glacial Maximummale-biased dispersalpopulation demography

Identifiers

PMID42663278
PMCPMC13584206

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.