Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in Geum urbanum (Rosaceae) and their transferability within the genus Geum

Thirteen novel polymorphic microsatellite loci are presented for Geum urbanum (Rosaceae). The microsatellites will be useful tools to analyse the influence of landscape structure and land‐use intensity in agricultural landscapes on genetic diversity within and among populations of Geum urbanum. Transferability was tested in 19 other Geum species and two Waldsteinia species. In most species polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products of the expected range were obtained, therefore the markers reported here appear to be applicable across the whole genus.     

Inducible and constitutive mechanisms of salt stress resistance in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Geum urbanum</Emphasis> L.

The avens (Geum urbanum L.) seedlings were grown for 6 weeks until the expansion of five to six leaves and then exposed to salinity shock (300 mM NaCl in the nutrient medium) or to a gradual (within 4 days) increase in NaCl concentration from 100 to 400 mM. The dynamics of stress-dependent accumulation of Na⁺, Cl^?, proline, and polyamines in leaves and roots was measured, together with activities of antioxidant enzymes, namely, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and guaiacol-dependent peroxidase occurring in soluble, ionically bound, and covalently bound forms. It is shown that avens plants can adapt to gradual salinization by mobilizing stressinducible protective mechanisms (accumulation of proline and spermine) and by activating constitutive enzyme systems (SOD and peroxidase).     

Landscape genetics of the self-compatible forest herb Geum urbanum: effects of habitat age, fragmentation and local environment

To investigate the role of habitat fragmentation, fragment age and local environment in shaping the genetics of plant populations, we examined the genetic structure of the self-compatible forest herb Geum urbanum using microsatellite markers. A historical land-use reconstruction assigned the studied populations to two age classes: populations in primary forest fragments, and populations in secondary fragments. Local environmental conditions were quantified on the basis of the herb-layer community composition. A stepwise general linear model revealed that levels of within-population genetic diversity were best explained by population size, landscape connectivity and the interaction between both. Connectivity was positively correlated with the genetic diversity of small populations, but did not significantly affect the diversity of large populations. Contrary to what we expected, secondary-forest populations showed lower divergence relative to populations located in primary patches. Small populations were genetically more diverged compared to large populations. Mantel tests showed no significant isolation by distance and no significant correlation between habitat similarity and genetic differentiation. We conclude that gene flow has probably prevented founder events from being reflected in the present genetic structure of G. urbanum. Gene flow towards low-connectivity populations, however, seemed to be insufficient to counteract the effects of drift in small populations.     

不同纬度高蔊菜的交配系统和繁殖保障

高山植物的繁殖适应策略一直是进化生态学研究的热点, 但是目前仍缺乏对繁殖适应性状的量化研究。本研究以横断山特有十字花科植物高蔊菜(Rorippa elata)为研究材料, 结合野外同质园控制实验, 在居群水平探讨了其繁殖适应策略。结果表明, 高蔊菜的繁殖能力与纬度呈负相关, 而越冬存活率与纬度呈正相关。不同交配方式结实率的显著性差异分析表明, 高蔊菜具有混合交配系统, 其中自交为主型和中间型的株系各占45.5%和39.4%; 不同株系具有不同程度的繁殖保障现象, 自交为主型最高(0.163), 中间型最低(0.011)。本研究表明高蔊菜在居群水平的繁殖和存活之间存在沿纬度梯度的权衡变化, 以自交为主的混合交配系统为其提供不同程度的繁殖保障。     

The consequences of mating over a range of parental genetic similarity in a selfing allopolyploid plant species

In diploids, F(1) offspring performance is expected to increase with increasing genetic dissimilarity between the parents until an optimum is reached because outbreeding mitigates inbreeding depression and maximizes heterosis. However, many flowering plant species are derived through allopolyploidization, i.e. interspecific hybridization with genome doubling. This mode of plant speciation can be expected to considerably alter the consequences of inbreeding and outbreeding. We investigated the F1 fitness consequences of mating over a range of (genetic) distances in the allohexaploid plant species Geum urbanum. Offspring was raised under controlled conditions (632 plants). The performance of outcrossed progeny was not significantly better than that of their selfed half-siblings and did not increase with parental genetic dissimilarity (0-0.83). Our findings support low, if any, inbreeding depression and heterosis. We attribute this to the peculiar state of quasi-permanent heterozygosity in allopolyploids and frequent selfing.     

Role of antioxidant systems in wild plant adaptation to salt stress

Wild plants differing in the strategies of adaptation to salinity were grown for six weeks in the phytotron and then subjected to salt stress (100 mM NaCl, 24 h). The activities of principal antioxidant enzymes and the accumulation of sodium ions and proline were studied. Independently of the level of constitutive salt tolerance, plants of all species tested accumulated sodium ions under salinity conditions but differed in their capability of stress-dependent proline accumulation and superoxide dismutase (SOD) and guaiacol-dependent peroxidase activities. Proline-accumulating species were found among both halophytes (Artemisia lerchiana and Thellungiella halophila) and glycophytes (Plantago major and Mycelis muralis). The high activities of ionically-bound and covalently bound peroxidases were characteristic of Th. halophila plants. High constitutive and stress-induced SOD activities were, as a rule, characteristic of glycophytes with the low constitutive proline level: Geum urbanum and Thalictrum aquilegifolium. Thus, a negative correlation was found between proline content and SOD activity in wild species tested; it was especially bright in the halophyte Th. halophila and glycophyte G. urbanum. An extremely high constitutive and stress-induced levels of proline and peroxidase activity in Th. halophila maybe compensate SOD low activity in this plant, and this contributed substantially into its salt resistance. Thus, monitoring of stress-dependent activities of some antioxidant enzymes and proline accumulation in wild plant species allowed a supposition of reciprocal interrelations between SOD activity and proline accumulation. It was also established that the high SOD activity is not obligatory trait of species salt tolerance. Moreover, plants with the high activity of peroxidase and active proline accumulation could acclimate to salts stress (100 mM NaCl, 24 h) independently of SOD activity.     

A Bayesian method for the joint estimation of outcrossing rate and inbreeding depression

The population outcrossing rate (t) and adult inbreeding coefficient (F) are key parameters in mating system evolution. The magnitude of inbreeding depression as expressed in the field can be estimated given t and F via the method of Ritland (1990). For a given total sample size, the optimal design for the joint estimation of t and F requires sampling large numbers of families (100–400) with fewer offspring (1–4) per family. Unfortunately, the standard inference procedure (MLTR) yields significantly biased estimates for t and F when family sizes are small and maternal genotypes are unknown (a common occurrence when sampling natural populations). Here, we present a Bayesian method implemented in the program BORICE (Bayesian Outcrossing Rate and Inbreeding Coefficient Estimation) that effectively estimates t and F when family sizes are small and maternal genotype information is lacking. BORICE should enable wider use of the Ritland approach for field-based estimates of inbreeding depression. As proof of concept, we estimate t and F in a natural population of Mimulus guttatus. In addition, we describe how individual maternal inbreeding histories inferred by BORICE may prove useful in studies of inbreeding and its consequences.     

Growth and Reproduction of Double-Ended Pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus, in Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia

Life-history characteristics of the double-ended pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus (Bloch), were investigated to determine growth rate, degree of sexual dimorphism, size at maturity, and reproductive biology. Growth rates of wild juveniles and adults calculated from monthly progression of length-frequency modes ranged from 0.8mmd^–1 (fish lengths 120–145mm standard length (SL)) in summer to 0.2mmd^–1 in winter (185–200mm SL). Growth of laboratory-reared juveniles up to 63d old was greater, ranging from 0.8 to 2.3mmd^-1. The von Bertalanffy growth constant K was estimated at 0.0076d^{- 1}, or 2.8year^–1. Morphological differentiation between the sexes based upon abdominal pattern was possible for fish larger than 120mm SL, with females possessing a zigzag pattern on the abdomen. The association between this pattern and sex was confirmed by histological gonad analysis. Males were significantly longer than females during four of seven seasons examined, and a 1:1 sex ratio was determined for all seasons except autumn when the ratio was female biased. The breeding season was marked by the appearance of pregnant males between October and April, and during courtship both species exhibited increased pigmentation. The minimum paternal size at maturity was 185mm, the maximum length recorded 260mm. Clutch size ranged between 60 and 200 eggs, with a mean of 153. Ovaries had a sequential pattern of egg development, resulting in egg batches that approximated the number of eggs carried by brooding males. Additionally, all eggs in a brood were at the same developmental stage. This suggests that one female provides all of the eggs for one male per breeding event in a monogamous mating system.     

特异性适应稻作系统的稗草种群生活史特性

长期进行除草剂药效试验可能会导致田间杂草种群发生适应性进化。本研究在安徽南陵县除草剂药效试验专用稻田中采集了1个稗草种群A,并以从常规稻田采集的3个稗草种群为对照,开展同质园栽培试验。结果表明: 与3个对照种群相比,A种群稗草植株的单株种子产量显著减少,种子千粒重显著增加,幼苗生长速率显著加快,结实分蘖数显著增多,生育期显著缩短;A种群稗草成株的株高、生物量及对除草剂五氟磺草胺的敏感性均显著降低。A种群稗草幼苗3～4叶期时经五氟磺草胺推荐剂量2倍量(有效成分60 g·hm^-2)处理后,其株高、生物量及成熟种子产量(平均每株1066粒)显著降低,而抽穗期、结实分蘖数、单个总状花序的种子数及种子千粒重无显著差异。因此,种子较重、生活史周期短、植株矮小、结实分蘖多及对除草剂五氟磺草胺具有抗药性,使得A种群稗草对稻作系统具有特异适应性,应防止此类种群扩散至常规稻田。     

Genetic and morphological differentiation in Populus nigra L.: isolation by colonization or isolation by adaptation?

Identifying processes underlying the genetic and morphological differences among populations is a central question of evolutionary biology. Forest trees typically contain high levels of neutral genetic variation, and genetic differences are often correlated with geographic distance between populations [isolation by distance (IBD)] or are due to historic vicariance events [isolation by colonization (IBC)]. In contrast, morphological differences are largely due to local adaptation. Here, we examined genetic (microsatellite) and morphological (from a common garden experiment) variation in Populus nigra L., European black poplar, collected from 13 sites across western Europe and grown in a common garden in Belgium. Significant genetic differentiation was observed, with populations from France displaying greater admixture than the distinct Spanish and central European gene pools, consistent with previously described glacial refugia (IBC). Many quantitative traits displayed a bimodal distribution, approximately corresponding to small‐leaf and large‐leaf ecotypes. Examination of nine climatic variables revealed the sampling locations to have diverse climates, and although the correlation between morphological and climatic differences was significant, the pattern was not consistent with strict local adaptation. Partial Mantel tests based on multivariate summary statistics identified significant residual correlation in comparisons of small‐leaf to large‐leaf ecotypes, and within the small‐leaf samples, but not within large‐leaf ecotypes, indicating that variation within the small‐leaf morphotype in particular may be adaptive. Some small‐leaf populations experience climates very similar to those in large‐leaf sites. We conclude that adaptive differentiation and persistent IBC acted in combination to produce the genetic and morphological patterns observed in P. nigra.