cpDNA Variation (cpdna + variation)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


GENE FLOW AND SPECIES DELIMITATION: A CASE STUDY OF TWO PINE SPECIES WITH OVERLAPPING DISTRIBUTIONS IN SOUTHEAST CHINA

EVOLUTION, Issue 8 2010
Yong Feng Zhou
Species delimitation detected by molecular markers is complicated by introgression and incomplete lineage sorting between species. Recent modeling suggests that fixed genetic differences between species are highly related to rates of intraspecific gene flow. However, it remains unclear whether such differences are due to high levels of intraspecific gene flow overriding the spread of introgressed alleles or favoring rapid lineage sorting between species. In pines, chloroplast (cp) and mitochondrial (mt) DNAs are normally paternally and maternally inherited, respectively, and thus their relative rates of intraspecific gene flow are expected to be high and low, respectively. In this study, we used two pine species with overlapping geographical distributions in southeast China, P. massoniana and P. hwangshanensis, as a model system to examine the association between organelle gene flow and variation within and between species. We found that cpDNA variation across these two pine species is more species specific than mtDNA variation and almost delimits taxonomic boundaries. The shared mt/cp DNA genetic variation between species shows no bias in regard to parapatric versus allopatric species' distributions. Our results therefore support the hypothesis that high intraspecific gene flow has accelerated cpDNA lineage sorting between these two pine species. [source]


Phylogeography of Pulsatilla vernalis (L.) Mill. (Ranunculaceae): chloroplast DNA reveals two evolutionary lineages across central Europe and Scandinavia

JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 9 2008
Micha, Ronikier
Abstract Aim, The aim of this study was to test hypotheses regarding some of the main phylogeographical patterns proposed for European plants, in particular the locations of glacial refugia, the post-glacial colonization routes, and genetic affinities between southern (alpine) and northern (boreal) populations. Location, The mountains of Europe (Alps, Balkans, Carpathians, Central Massif, Pyrenees, Scandinavian chain, Sudetes), and central European/southern Scandinavian lowlands. Methods, As our model system we used Pulsatilla vernalis, a widely distributed European herbaceous plant occurring both in the high-mountain environments of the Alps and other European ranges and in lowlands north of these ranges up to Scandinavia. Based on a distribution-wide sampling of 61 populations, we estimated chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) variation along six regions using polymerase chain reaction,restriction fragment-length polymorphisms (PCR,RFLPs) (trnH,trnK, trnK,trnK, trnC,trnD, psbC,trnS, psaA,trnS, trnL,trnF) and further sequencing of trnL,trnF and trnH,psbA. In addition, 11 samples of other European species of Pulsatilla were sequenced to survey the genus-scale cpDNA variation. Results, Eleven PCR,RFLP polymorphisms were detected in P. vernalis, revealing seven haplotypes. They formed two distinct genetic groups. Three haplotypes representing both groups dominated and were widely distributed across Europe, whereas the others were restricted to localized regions (central Alps, Tatras/Sudetes mountains) or single populations. Sequencing analysis confirmed the reliability of PCR,RFLPs and homology of haplotypes across their distribution. The chloroplast DNA variation across the section Pulsatilla was low, but P. vernalis did not share haplotypes with other species. Main conclusions, The genetic distinctiveness of P. vernalis populations from the south-western Alps with respect to other Alpine populations, as well as the affinities between the former populations and those from the eastern Pyrenees, is demonstrated, thus providing support for the conclusions of previous studies. Glacial refugia in the Dolomites are also suggested. Isolation is inferred for the high-mountain populations from the Tatras and Sudetes; this is in contrast to the case for the Balkans, which harboured the common haplotype. Specific microsatellite variation indicates the occurrence of periglacial lowland refugia north of the Alps, acting as a source for the post-glacial colonization of Scandinavia. The presence of different fixed haplotypes in eastern and western Scandinavia, however, suggests independent post-glacial colonization of these two areas, with possible founder effects. [source]


Inferring long-distance dispersal and topographic barriers during post-glacial colonization from the genetic structure of red maple (Acer rubrum L.) in New England

JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 9 2008
Paul F. Gugger
Abstract Aim, This study aims to assess the role of long-distance seed dispersal and topographic barriers in the post-glacial colonization of red maple (Acer rubrum L.) using chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) variation, and to understand whether this explains the relatively higher northern diversity found in eastern North American tree species compared with that in Europe. Location, North-eastern United States. Methods, The distribution of intraspecific cpDNA variation in temperate tree populations has been used to identify aspects of post-glacial population spread, including topographic barriers to population expansion and spread by long-distance seed dispersal. We sequenced c. 370 cpDNA base pairs from 221 individuals in 100 populations throughout the north-eastern United States, and analysed spatial patterns of diversity and differentiation. Results, Red maple has high genetic diversity near its northern range limit, but this diversity is not partitioned by topographic barriers, suggesting that the northern Appalachian Mountains were not a barrier to the colonization of red maple. We also found no evidence of the patchy genetic structure that has been associated with spread by rare long-distance seed dispersal in previous studies. Main conclusions, Constraints on post-glacial colonization in eastern North America seem to have been less stringent than those in northern Europe, where bottlenecks arising from long-distance colonization and topographic barriers appear to have strongly reduced genetic diversity. In eastern North America, high northern genetic diversity may have been maintained by a combination of frequent long-distance dispersal, minor topographic obstacles and diffuse northern refugia near the ice sheet. [source]


How did an annual plant react to Pleistocene glaciations?

BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 1 2009
Postglacial history of Rhinanthus angustifolius in Europe
The impact of climate fluctuations during the Pleistocene on the geographic structure of genetic variation in plant populations is well documented, but there is a lack of studies of annual species at the European scale. The present study aimed to infer the history of the widespread European annual Rhinanthus angustifolius C. C. Gmelin (Orobanchaceae). We explored variation in chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) sequences and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) in twenty-nine populations covering the entire distribution area of the species. Five AFLP groups were identified, suggesting at least two glacial refugial areas: one area in southwestern Europe and one large eastern area in the Balkan/Caucasus. Recolonization of previously glaciated areas mainly took place from the east of Europe. Despite the difference in life-history traits, the patterns found for the annual R. angustifolius show similarities with those of perennial species in terms of genetic diversity and geographic organization of genetic variation. Although organelle markers have typically been preferred in phylogeographic studies, the cpDNA variation in R. angustifolius did not show any clear geographic structure. The absence of geographic structure in the cpDNA variation may reflect persistence of ancestral polymorphisms or hybridization and introgression with closely-related species. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 98, 1,13. [source]