scholarly journals Exploring the impact of fossil constraints on the divergence time estimates of derived liverworts

2013 ◽  
Vol 299 (3) ◽  
pp. 585-601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathrin Feldberg ◽  
Jochen Heinrichs ◽  
Alexander R. Schmidt ◽  
Jiří Váňa ◽  
Harald Schneider
2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. i884-i894
Author(s):  
Jose Barba-Montoya ◽  
Qiqing Tao ◽  
Sudhir Kumar

Abstract Motivation As the number and diversity of species and genes grow in contemporary datasets, two common assumptions made in all molecular dating methods, namely the time-reversibility and stationarity of the substitution process, become untenable. No software tools for molecular dating allow researchers to relax these two assumptions in their data analyses. Frequently the same General Time Reversible (GTR) model across lineages along with a gamma (+Γ) distributed rates across sites is used in relaxed clock analyses, which assumes time-reversibility and stationarity of the substitution process. Many reports have quantified the impact of violations of these underlying assumptions on molecular phylogeny, but none have systematically analyzed their impact on divergence time estimates. Results We quantified the bias on time estimates that resulted from using the GTR + Γ model for the analysis of computer-simulated nucleotide sequence alignments that were evolved with non-stationary (NS) and non-reversible (NR) substitution models. We tested Bayesian and RelTime approaches that do not require a molecular clock for estimating divergence times. Divergence times obtained using a GTR + Γ model differed only slightly (∼3% on average) from the expected times for NR datasets, but the difference was larger for NS datasets (∼10% on average). The use of only a few calibrations reduced these biases considerably (∼5%). Confidence and credibility intervals from GTR + Γ analysis usually contained correct times. Therefore, the bias introduced by the use of the GTR + Γ model to analyze datasets, in which the time-reversibility and stationarity assumptions are violated, is likely not large and can be reduced by applying multiple calibrations. Availability and implementation All datasets are deposited in Figshare: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.12594638.


2019 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 660-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Carruthers ◽  
Michael J Sanderson ◽  
Robert W Scotland

Abstract Rate variation adds considerable complexity to divergence time estimation in molecular phylogenies. Here, we evaluate the impact of lineage-specific rates—which we define as among-branch-rate-variation that acts consistently across the entire genome. We compare its impact to residual rates—defined as among-branch-rate-variation that shows a different pattern of rate variation at each sampled locus, and gene-specific rates—defined as variation in the average rate across all branches at each sampled locus. We show that lineage-specific rates lead to erroneous divergence time estimates, regardless of how many loci are sampled. Further, we show that stronger lineage-specific rates lead to increasing error. This contrasts to residual rates and gene-specific rates, where sampling more loci significantly reduces error. If divergence times are inferred in a Bayesian framework, we highlight that error caused by lineage-specific rates significantly reduces the probability that the 95% highest posterior density includes the correct value, and leads to sensitivity to the prior. Use of a more complex rate prior—which has recently been proposed to model rate variation more accurately—does not affect these conclusions. Finally, we show that the scale of lineage-specific rates used in our simulation experiments is comparable to that of an empirical data set for the angiosperm genus Ipomoea. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that lineage-specific rates cause error in divergence time estimates, and that this error is not overcome by analyzing genomic scale multilocus data sets. [Divergence time estimation; error; rate variation.]


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Barba-Montoya ◽  
Qiqing Tao ◽  
Sudhir Kumar

AbstractMotivationAs the number and diversity of species and genes grow in contemporary datasets, two common assumptions made in all molecular dating methods, namely the time-reversibility and stationarity of the substitution process, become untenable. No software tools for molecular dating allow researchers to relax these two assumptions in their data analyses. Frequently the same General Time Reversible (GTR) model across lineages along with a gamma (+Γ) distributed rates across sites is used in relaxed clock analyses, which assumes time-reversibility and stationarity of the substitution process. Many reports have quantified the impact of violations of these underlying assumptions on molecular phylogeny, but none have systematically analyzed their impact on divergence time estimates.ResultsWe quantified the bias on time estimates that resulted from using the GTR+Γ model for the analysis of computer-simulated nucleotide sequence alignments that were evolved with non-stationary (NS) and non-reversible (NR) substitution models. We tested Bayesian and RelTime approaches that do not require a molecular clock for estimating divergence times. Divergence times obtained using a GTR+Γ model differed only slightly (∼3% on average) from the expected times for NR datasets, but the difference was larger for NS datasets (∼10% on average). The use of only a few calibrations reduced these biases considerably (∼5%). Confidence and credibility intervals from GTR+Γ analysis usually contained correct times. Therefore, the bias introduced by the use of the GTR+Γ model to analyze datasets, in which the time-reversibility and stationarity assumptions are violated, is likely not large and can be reduced by applying multiple calibrations.AvailabilityAll datasets are deposited in Figshare: https://doi.org/10.6084/[email protected]


Palaeontology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans P. Püschel ◽  
Joseph E. O'Reilly ◽  
Davide Pisani ◽  
Philip C. J. Donoghue

Gene ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 455 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 22-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria A. Nilsson ◽  
Anna Härlid ◽  
Morgan Kullberg ◽  
Axel Janke

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Černý ◽  
Rossy Natale

Shorebirds (Charadriiformes) are a globally distributed clade of modern birds and, due to their ecological and morphological disparity, a frequent subject of comparative studies. While molecular phylogenies have been instrumental to resolving the suprafamilial backbone of the charadriiform tree, several higher-level relationships, including the monophyly of plovers (Charadriidae) and the phylogenetic positions of several monotypic families, have remained unclear. The timescale of shorebird evolution also remains uncertain as a result of extensive disagreements among the published divergence dating studies, stemming largely from different choices of fossil calibrations. Here, we present the most comprehensive non-supertree phylogeny of shorebirds to date, based on a total-evidence dataset comprising 336 ingroup taxa (89\% of all extant species), 24 loci (15 mitochondrial and 9 nuclear), and 69 morphological characters. Using this phylogeny, we clarify the charadriiform evolutionary timeline by conducting a node-dating analysis based on a subset of 8 loci tested to be clock-like and 16 carefully selected, updated, and vetted fossil calibrations. Our concatenated, species-tree, and total-evidence analyses consistently support plover monophyly and are generally congruent with the topologies of previous studies, suggesting that the higher-level relationships among shorebirds are largely settled. However, several localized conflicts highlight areas of persistent uncertainty within the gulls (Laridae), true auks (Alcinae), and sandpipers (Scolopacidae). At shallower levels, our phylogenies reveal instances of genus-level nonmonophyly that suggest changes to currently accepted taxonomies. Our node-dating analyses consistently support a mid-Paleocene origin for the Charadriiformes and an early diversification for most major subclades. However, age estimates for more recent divergences vary between different relaxed clock models, and we demonstrate that this variation can affect phylogeny-based macroevolutionary studies. Our findings demonstrate the impact of fossil calibration choice on the resulting divergence time estimates, and the sensitivity of diversification rate analyses to the modeling assumptions made in time tree inference.


Zootaxa ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 2107 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
CAROLINA M VOLOCH ◽  
PABLO R FREIRE ◽  
CLAUDIA A M RUSSO

Fossil record of penaeids indicates that the family exists since the Triassic period, but extant genera appeared only recently in Tertiary strata. Molecular based divergence time estimates on the matter of penaeid radiation were never properly addressed, due to shortcomings of the global molecular clock assumptions. Here, we studied the diversification patterns of the family, uncovering, more specifically, a correlation between fossil and extant Penaeid fauna. For this, we have used a Bayesian framework that does not assume a global clock. Our results suggest that Penaeid genera originated between 20 million years ago and 43 million years ago, much earlier than expected by previous molecular studies. Altogether, these results promptly discard late Tertiary or even Quaternary hypotheses that presumed a major glaciations influence on the diversification patterns of the family.


2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1742) ◽  
pp. 3501-3509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prashant P. Sharma ◽  
Gonzalo Giribet

The origins of tropical southwest Pacific diversity are traditionally attributed to southeast Asia or Australia. Oceanic and fragment islands are typically colonized by lineages from adjacent continental margins, resulting in attrition of diversity with distance from the mainland. Here, we show that an exceptional tropical family of harvestmen with a trans-Pacific disjunct distribution has its origin in the Neotropics. We found in a multi-locus phylogenetic analysis that the opilionid family Zalmoxidae, which is distributed in tropical forests on both sides of the Pacific, is a monophyletic entity with basal lineages endemic to Amazonia and Mesoamerica. Indo-Pacific Zalmoxidae constitute a nested clade, indicating a single colonization event. Lineages endemic to putative source regions, including Australia and New Guinea, constitute derived groups. Divergence time estimates and probabilistic ancestral area reconstructions support a Neotropical origin of the group, and a Late Cretaceous ( ca 82 Ma) colonization of Australasia out of the Fiji Islands and/or Borneo, which are consistent with a transoceanic dispersal event. Our results suggest that the endemic diversity within traditionally defined zoogeographic boundaries might have more complex evolutionary origins than previously envisioned.


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