Case Study: Recovery of Ancient Nuclear DNA from Toe Pads of the Extinct Passenger Pigeon

Abstract

A variety of DNA extraction methods have been employed successfully to extract DNA from museum specimens. Toe pads are a common source of ancient DNA in birds, as they are generally not an informative character and can be removed without significant destruction of precious specimens. However, the DNA in these tissues is often highly degraded, both by natural postmortem decay and due to treatment by preservatives. In this case study chapter, we describe the use of both a commercial DNA extraction method and a silica-based method to extract ancient DNA from desiccated toe pads from the extinct passenger pigeon, Ectopistes migratorius. Successful amplification of nuclear DNA was achieved from both methods, representing the first nuclear DNA sequence recovered from this extinct species. We describe simple modifications to both protocols that we employed during the DNA extraction process.

*Note: In the case study presented in this chapter, we describe the extraction of DNA from toe pads of museum-preserved specimens of the passenger pigeon, Ectopistes migratorius, using a method similar to that presented in Chap. 3. Other methods, such as those described in Chap. 2, may also be appropriate to extract DNA from this type of sample. We discuss specific challenges associated with applying this extraction method to ancient toe pad samples, including the use of dithiothreitol (DTT) for tissue dissolution. For more information, see the original publication of the scientific results in (1).