Microsatellites: Evolution and Applications

by David B. Goldstein, Christian Schlötterer (Editor)

Microsatellites are short stretches of repeated DNA that show exceptional variability in humans and most other species. This variability has made microsatellites the genetic marker of choice for numerous applications, including genetic mapping and studies of evolutionary connections between
species and populations. This book details the molecular processes which give rise to microsatellite DNA and then describes the wide range of applications in medical genetics, forensics, the study of human evolution, and conservation genetics. Drawing from an international group of researchers, the
book presents the theoretical background and the hands-on details for many of the popular analytic methods using microsatellites, including methods for estimating coalescent times, population divergences, and migration.

352 pages, Hardcover

First published September 16, 1999

About the author

David B. Goldstein is a critic, poet, food writer, and Associate Professor at York University in Toronto. His publications include Eating and Ethics in Shakespeare’s England, the poetry collections Object Permanence (UDP), Lost Originals and Laws of Rest, and two co-edited essay collections.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good introduction to microsatellites and for me really helped to bring them into focus and create a better understanding of how they are used in different avenues of research and experimentation and what their limitations are. Some of the chapters weren't relevant to what I'm going to be using them for but it was still interesting to see how they are used in medical research and forensic science as well as conservation biology (my field of study) and how they relate to other DNA approaches.