scholarly journals Evolutionary history shapes the association between developmental instability and population‐level genetic variation in three‐spined sticklebacks

2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 1695-1707 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. VAN DONGEN ◽  
L. LENS ◽  
E. PAPE ◽  
F. A. M. VOLCKAERT ◽  
J. A. M. RAEYMAEKERS
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Developmental Instability

scholarly journals Population-specific patterns of toxin sequestration in monarch butterflies from around the world

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Micah Freedman ◽  
Sue-Ling Choquette ◽  
Santiago Ramirez ◽  
Sharon Strauss ◽  
Mark Hunter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Host Plants ◽  
Strong Support ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Oceanic Island ◽  
Asclepias Syriaca ◽  
Monarch Butterflies ◽  
Toxin Sequestration

Monarch butterflies are one of the preeminent examples of a toxin-sequestering animal, gaining protection against predators via cardenolides obtained from their milkweed host plants. Although cardenolide sequestration by monarchs has been studied in ecological, physiological, and phylogenetic contexts, relatively little research has surveyed genetic variation in the ability to sequester, nor has monarch sequestration been studied in relation to divergent host plant assemblages or variation in exposure to predation. Here, we use the monarch's recent global range expansion to test hypotheses about how cardenolide sequestration evolves over relatively contemporary time scales. First, we test for whether sympatric monarch/milkweed combinations have a sequestration advantage by rearing six geographically disparate monarch populations on six associated milkweed host species and measuring levels of sequestered cardenolides in a set of 440 adult butterflies. Second, we use monarchs from Guam - an oceanic island where birds have been functionally extirpated for approximately 40 years - to test hypotheses about how exposure to avian predation affects cardenolide sequestration. We find little overall evidence for increased sequestration on sympatric hosts. However, one monarch population (Puerto Rico) shows strong support for cross-host tradeoffs in sequestration ability, primarily driven by limited sequestration of polar cardenolides from two temperate North American milkweeds (Asclepias syriaca and A. speciosa). Monarchs from Guam show some evidence for reduced cardenolide sequestration in both a cross-island comparison of wild-caught butterflies as well as population-level comparisons of greenhouse-reared butterflies. Our results suggest that there is substantial genetic variation in sequestration ability (both within and between monarch populations) and that evolutionary history and contemporary species interactions may influence patterns of cardenolide sequestration.

scholarly journals Understanding UCEs: A Comprehensive Primer on Using Ultraconserved Elements for Arthropod Phylogenomics

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Y Miles Zhang ◽  
Jason L Williams ◽  
Andrea Lucky
Keyword(s):  
Time Scales ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Tree Of Life ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Ultraconserved Elements ◽  
Background Theory ◽  
Promising Tool ◽  
Recent Advances ◽  
Targeted Enrichment

Abstract Targeted enrichment of ultraconserved elements (UCEs) has emerged as a promising tool for inferring evolutionary history in many taxa, with utility ranging from phylogenetic and biogeographic questions at deep time scales to population level studies at shallow time scales. However, the methodology can be daunting for beginners. Our goal is to introduce UCE phylogenomics to a wider audience by summarizing recent advances in arthropod research, and to familiarize readers with background theory and steps involved. We define terminology used in association with the UCE approach, evaluate current laboratory and bioinformatic methods and limitations, and, finally, provide a roadmap of steps in the UCE pipeline to assist phylogeneticists in making informed decisions as they employ this powerful tool. By facilitating increased adoption of UCEs in phylogenomics studies that deepen our comprehension of the function of these markers across widely divergent taxa, we aim to ultimately improve understanding of the arthropod tree of life.

scholarly journals High differentiation in functional traits but similar phenotypic plasticity in populations of a soil specialist along a climatic gradient

2020 ◽  
Vol 125 (6) ◽  
pp. 969-980 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Matesanz ◽  
Marina Ramos-Muñoz ◽  
Mario Blanco-Sánchez ◽  
Adrián Escudero
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Functional Traits ◽  
Common Garden ◽  
Population Level ◽  
General Purpose ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Environment Interaction ◽  
Moisture Variation ◽  
Neutral Genetic Variation

Abstract Background and Aims Plants experiencing contrasting environmental conditions may accommodate such heterogeneity by expressing phenotypic plasticity, evolving local adaptation or a combination of both. We investigated patterns of genetic differentiation and plasticity in response to drought in populations of the gypsum specialist Lepidium subulatum. Methods We created an outdoor common garden with rain exclusion structures using 60 maternal progenies from four distinct populations that substantially differ in climatic conditions. We characterized fitness, life history and functional plasticity in response to two contrasting treatments that realistically reflect soil moisture variation in gypsum habitats. We also assessed neutral genetic variation and population structure using microsatellite markers. Key Results In response to water stress, plants from all populations flowered earlier, increased allocation to root tissues and advanced leaf senescence, consistent with a drought escape strategy. Remarkably, these probably adaptive responses were common to all populations, as shown by the lack of population × environment interaction for almost all functional traits. This generally common pattern of response was consistent with substantial neutral genetic variation and large differences in population trait means. However, such population-level trait variation was not related to climatic conditions at the sites of origin. Conclusions Our results show that, rather than ecotypes specialized to local climatic conditions, these populations are composed of highly plastic, general-purpose genotypes in relation to climatic heterogeneity. The strikingly similar patterns of plasticity among populations, despite substantial site of origin differences in climate, suggest past selection on a common norm of reaction due to similarly high levels of variation within sites. It is thus likely that plasticity will have a prevalent role in the response of this soil specialist to further environmental change.

scholarly journals How diverse can rare species be on the margins of genera distribution?

AoB Plants ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice Backes ◽  
Geraldo Mäder ◽  
Caroline Turchetto ◽  
Ana Lúcia Segatto ◽  
Jeferson N Fregonezi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Population Structure ◽  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Genetic Variability ◽  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Founder Effects ◽  
Geographical Isolation ◽  
Genetic Diversity And Structure ◽  
Genetic Patterns

Abstract Different genetic patterns have been demonstrated for narrowly distributed taxa, many of them linking rarity to evolutionary history. Quite a few species in young genera are endemics and have several populations that present low variability, sometimes attributed to geographical isolation or dispersion processes. Assessing the genetic diversity and structure of such species may be important for protecting them and understanding their diversification history. In this study, we used microsatellite markers and plastid sequences to characterize the levels of genetic variation and population structure of two endemic and restricted species that grow in isolated areas on the margin of the distribution of their respective genera. Plastid and nuclear diversities were very low and weakly structured in their populations. Evolutionary scenarios for both species are compatible with open-field expansions during the Pleistocene interglacial periods and genetic variability supports founder effects to explain diversification. At present, both species are suffering from habitat loss and changes in the environment can lead these species towards extinction.

scholarly journals Populations Are Differentiated in Biological Rhythms without Explicit Elevational Clines in the Plant Mimulus laciniatus

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 452-464
Author(s):  
Päivi H. Leinonen ◽  
Matti J. Salmela ◽  
Kathleen Greenham ◽  
C. Robertson McClung ◽  
John H. Willis
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Circadian Clock ◽  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Population Differentiation ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Day Length ◽  
Circadian Period ◽  
Population Means ◽  
Seasonal Responses

Environmental variation along an elevational gradient can yield phenotypic differentiation resulting from varying selection pressures on plant traits related to seasonal responses. Thus, genetic clines can evolve in a suite of traits, including the circadian clock, that drives daily cycling in varied traits and that shares its genetic background with adaptation to seasonality. We used populations of annual Mimulus laciniatus from different elevations in the Sierra Nevada in California to explore among-population differentiation in the circadian clock, flowering responses to photoperiod, and phenological traits (days to cotyledon emergence, days to flowering, and days to seed ripening) in controlled common-garden conditions. Further, we examined correlations of these traits with environmental variables related to temperature and precipitation. We observed that the circadian period in leaf movement was differentiated among populations sampled within about 100 km, with population means varying by 1.6 h. Significant local genetic variation occurred within 2 populations in which circadian period among families varied by up to 1.8 h. Replicated treatments with variable ecologically relevant photoperiods revealed marked population differentiation in critical day length for flowering that ranged from 11.0 to 14.1 h, corresponding to the time period between late February and mid-May in the wild. Flowering time varied among populations in a 14-h photoperiod. Regardless of this substantial population-level diversity, obvious linear clinality in trait variability across elevations could not be determined based on our genotypic sample; it is possible that more complex spatial patterns of variation arise in complex terrains such as those in the Sierra Nevada. Moreover, we did not find statistically significant bivariate correlations between population means of different traits. Our research contributes to the understanding of genetic variation in the circadian clock and in seasonal responses in natural populations, highlighting the need for more comprehensive investigations on the association between the clock and other adaptive traits in plants.

scholarly journals Dog10K: an international sequencing effort to advance studies of canine domestication, phenotypes and health

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 810-824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine A Ostrander ◽  
Guo-Dong Wang ◽  
Greger Larson ◽  
Bridgett M vonHoldt ◽  
Brian W Davis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Aging Behavior ◽  
Extended Pedigrees ◽  
Geographical Variability ◽  
Whole Genomes

ABSTRACT Dogs are the most phenotypically diverse mammalian species, and they possess more known heritable disorders than any other non-human mammal. Efforts to catalog and characterize genetic variation across well-chosen populations of canines are necessary to advance our understanding of their evolutionary history and genetic architecture. To date, no organized effort has been undertaken to sequence the world's canid populations. The Dog10K Consortium (http://www.dog10kgenomes.org) is an international collaboration of researchers from across the globe who will generate 20× whole genomes from 10 000 canids in 5 years. This effort will capture the genetic diversity that underlies the phenotypic and geographical variability of modern canids worldwide. Breeds, village dogs, niche populations and extended pedigrees are currently being sequenced, and de novo assemblies of multiple canids are being constructed. This unprecedented dataset will address the genetic underpinnings of domestication, breed formation, aging, behavior and morphological variation. More generally, this effort will advance our understanding of human and canine health.

scholarly journals Towards a Better Understanding of the Evolution of Specialized Parasites of Fungus-Growing Ant Crops

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sze Huei Yek ◽  
Jacobus J. Boomsma ◽  
Michael Poulsen
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Recent Progress ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Fungus Growing Ants

Fungus-growing ants have interacted and partly coevolved with specialised microfungal parasites of the genusEscovopsissince the origin of ant fungiculture about 50 million years ago. Here, we review the recent progress in understanding the patterns of specificity of this ant-parasite association, covering both the colony/population level and comparisons between phylogenetic clades. We use a modified version of Tinbergen's four categories of evolutionary questions to structure our review in complementary approaches addressing both proximate questions of development and mechanism, and ultimate questions of (co)adaptation and evolutionary history. Using the same scheme, we identify future research questions that are likely to be particularly illuminating for understanding the ecology and evolution ofEscovopsisparasitism of the cultivar maintained by fungus-growing ants.

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