Dataset Information

Chloroplast DNA phylogeography reveals repeated range expansion in a widespread aquatic herb Hippuris vulgaris in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and adjacent areas.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is one of the most extensive habitats for alpine plants in the world. Climatic oscillations during the Quaternary ice age had a dramatic effect on species ranges on the QTP and the adjacent areas. However, how the distribution ranges of aquatic plant species shifted on the QTP in response to Quaternary climatic changes remains almost unknown.

Methodology and principal findings

We studied the phylogeography and demographic history of the widespread aquatic herb Hippuris vulgaris from the QTP and adjacent areas. Our sampling included 385 individuals from 47 natural populations of H. vulgaris. Using sequences from four chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) non-coding regions, we distinguished eight different cpDNA haplotypes. From the cpDNA variation in H. vulgaris, we found a very high level of population differentiation (G ST?=?0.819) but the phylogeographical structure remained obscure (N ST?=?0.853>G ST?=?0.819, P>0.05). Phylogenetic analyses revealed two main cpDNA haplotype lineages. The split between these two haplotype groups can be dated back to the mid-to-late Pleistocene (ca. 0.480 Myr). Mismatch distribution analyses showed that each of these had experienced a recent range expansion. These two expansions (ca. 0.12 and 0.17 Myr) might have begun from the different refugees before the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).

Conclusions/significance

This study initiates a research on the phylogeography of aquatic herbs in the QTP and for the first time sheds light on the response of an alpine aquatic seed plant species in the QTP to Quaternary climate oscillations.

SUBMITTER: Chen JM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3614902 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Chloroplast DNA phylogeography reveals repeated range expansion in a widespread aquatic herb Hippuris vulgaris in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and adjacent areas.

Chen Jin-Ming JM Du Zhi-Yuan ZY Sun Shan-Shan SS Gituru Robert Wahiti RW Wang Qing-Feng QF

PloS one 20130402 4

<h4>Background</h4>The Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is one of the most extensive habitats for alpine plants in the world. Climatic oscillations during the Quaternary ice age had a dramatic effect on species ranges on the QTP and the adjacent areas. However, how the distribution ranges of aquatic plant species shifted on the QTP in response to Quaternary climatic changes remains almost unknown.<h4>Methodology and principal findings</h4>We studied the phylogeography and demographic history of the ...[more]

PMID: 23565290

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Project description:BackgroundAlthough allopatric speciation is viewed as the most common way in which species originate, allopatric divergence among a group of closely related species has rarely been examined at the population level through phylogeographic analysis. Here we report such a case study on eight putative cypress (Cupressus) species, which each have a mainly allopatric distribution in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) and adjacent regions. The analysis involved sequencing three plastid DNA fragments (trnD-trnT, trnS-trnG and trnL-trnF) in 371 individuals sampled from populations at 66 localities.ResultsBoth phylogenetic and network analyses showed that most DNA haplotypes recovered or haplotype-clustered lineages resolved were largely species-specific. Across all species, significant phylogeographic structure (N(ST) > G(ST), P < 0.05) implied a high correlation between haplotypes/lineages and geographic distribution. Two species, C. duclouxiana and C. chengiana, which are distributed in the eastern QTP region, contained more haplotypes and higher diversity than five species with restricted distributions in the western highlands of the QTP. The remaining species, C. funebris, is widely cultivated and contained very little cpDNA diversity.ConclusionsIt is concluded that the formation of high mountain barriers separating deep valleys in the QTP and adjacent regions caused by various uplifts of the plateau since the early Miocene most likely promoted allopatric divergence in Cupressus by restricting gene flow and fixing local, species-specific haplotypes in geographically isolated populations. The low levels of intraspecific diversity present in most species might stem from population bottlenecks brought about by recurrent periods of unfavorable climate and more recently by the negative impacts of human activities on species' distributions. Our findings shed new light on the importance of geographical isolation caused by the uplift of the QTP on the development of high plant species diversity in the QTP biodiversity hotspot.

Project description:Clonal reproduction is one of the most distinctive characteristics of plants and is common and diverse in aquatic macrophytes. The balance between sexual and asexual reproduction is affected by various conditions, especially adverse environments. However, we know little about clonal diversity of aquatic plants under suboptimal conditions, such as at high altitudes, and having this information would help us understand how environmental gradients influence patterns of clonal and genetic variation in freshwater species. The microsatellite data of four aquatic taxa in our previous studies were revisited to estimate clonal and genetic diversity on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Clonal diversity among different genetic groups was compared. Local environmental features were surveyed. Beta regressions were used to identify the environmental factors that significantly explained clonal diversity for relative taxon. The level of clonal diversity from high to low was Stuckenia filiformis > Hippuris vulgaris > Myriophyllum species > Ranunculus section Batrachium species. A positive correlation between clonal and genetic diversity was identified for all taxa, except H. vulgaris. Clonal diversity was affected by climate in S. filiformis and by the local environment in H. vulgaris. For Myriophyllum spp., low elevation and high sediment nutrition were significant for sexual recruitment. The environmental effects on clonal diversity were not significant in R. sect. Batrachium spp. Clonal diversity of aquatic plants is moderate to high and varies greatly in highlands. The effects of breeding systems and environmental factors on the patterns of clonal variation were identified. Elevational gradients, climates and local conditions play different roles in clonal diversity among relative taxon. Our results highlight the importance of sexual recruitment in alpine aquatic plant populations and the influence of environmental factors on the genetic patterns in freshwater species at local and regional scales.

Dataset Information

Chloroplast DNA phylogeography reveals repeated range expansion in a widespread aquatic herb Hippuris vulgaris in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and adjacent areas.

Background

Methodology and principal findings

Conclusions/significance

Publications

Chloroplast DNA phylogeography reveals repeated range expansion in a widespread aquatic herb Hippuris vulgaris in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and adjacent areas.

Similar Datasets

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