Mt-ND5 DNA variability in wildcats living in Central Italy Protected Areas

The European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris, Schreber 1777) is a medium-sized felid distributed heterogeneously throughout Europe: from the Iberian Peninsula to the Caucasus and up in north in Scotland. Despite the generally stable trend of the population, it is included in the “strictly protected” species in Europe. In Italy, the reserved behavior of this felid together with its small distribution, particularly in the central regions of the peninsula, has prevented the collecting of data, hence little is known about its demographic situation and genetic status. This study provides a preliminary view of the genetic variability of the European wild cat, based on 21 tissue samples of dead subjects neighboring or inside Central Italy Protected Areas. These individuals were phenotypically classified as wildcats by experts (park guards and/or veterinarians) and the DNA of their samples was extracted. Preliminary analyses on mitochondrial NADH subunit 5 (MT-ND5) by sanger sequencing have been conducted. A total of four haplotypes have been identified having: 71% a DW1 (Domestic Wildcat hybrid) haplotype, 14% a DW4 haplotype, 10% a W (Wildcat) haplotype and 5% (one individual) a D3 (Domestic) haplotype. Overall, the Haplotype diversity (HD) was 0.48095 with a Nucleotide diversity (π) = 0.00318 (computed using DNASP version 6.12.03). Furthermore, a meta-analysis has been conducted by comparing these results with those reported by other authors in these Italian regions. The results align, to some extent, with the reported introgression of domestic cat genes into European wildcat populations, which is occurring along with habitat loss and fragmentation.