POPULATION GENETICS AND MIGRATION OF PEROMYCUS LEUCOPUS, A LYME DISEASE RESERVOIR SPECIES

Peromycus leucopus, or the white-footed mouse, is widely distributed across the eastern United States. These generalist mice prefer to inhabit understory vegetation and play a critical role in the dispersal of Lyme disease. Acting as possible reservoirs for Lyme disease, whitefooted mice may easily migrate throughout the landscape potentially distributing the disease. This study seeks to investigate dispersal between 2 populations in different habitats through use of bioinformatic techniques, and is the culmination of both field and laboratory work performed over the course of 2012 to 2017. Field work was completed at Capital University's Primmer Outdoor Learning Center in Logan, Ohio, in a secondary growth deciduous woodlot and an agricultural fencerow habitat. Mice were live-trapped, and tissue samples were collected and stored in 95% ethanol at -20 °C. DNA was extracted and multilocus microsatellite PCR was performed. Samples from Summer 2016 (n=14) and 2017 (n = 14) have been genotyped using a 3100 Genetic Analyzer DNA sequencer at 5 loci to date. Statistical analysis with the programming language R using the HIERFSTAT package was used to calculate genetic variation, FIS,and FST. Results suggest that migration was bidirectional between populations. Additional loci are currently being screened, and migration between populations was estimated using Geneclass, MIGRATE, and GENEPOP. Extensive movement of mice, if confirmed, will challenge management strategies to limit the spread of Lyme disease.