Species: Okapi johnstoni and Giraffa camelopardalis
Genome size: 3.3 billion and 2.9 billion bases, respectively
The genomes of the only two extant members of the Giraffidae family—the okapi (Okapi johnstoni) and the giraffe (subspecies Giraffa camelopardalis, tippelskirchi)—have been sequenced for the first time, according to a paper published today (May 17) in Nature Communications. The sequences are likely to help explain the giraffe’s unique look .
“Through comparative analysis with other eutherians mammals, 70 genes were identified that exhibit multiple signs of adaptation in giraffe,” the authors wrote in their paper. “Several of these genes encode well-known regulators of skeletal, cardiovascular and neural development, and are likely to contribute to giraffe’s unique characteristics.”
By aligning the new sequences to known sequences in cattle (Bos taurus), the team of researchers from Tanzania, Kenya, the U.K., and the U.S. came up with a list of 17,210 giraffe and 17,048 okapi genes. Comparing ...
