Search results for "Genetic Variation"
showing 10 items of 836 documents
DNA polymorphism at the FRIGIDA gene in Arabidopsis thaliana : extensive nonsynonymous variation is consistent with local selection for flowering time
2002
FRIGIDA (FRI) is a major gene involved in the regulation of flowering time in Arabidopsis thaliana. Nucleotide variation at this gene was investigated by sequencing 25 field ecotypes collected from western Europe. Genetic diversity at FRI was characterized by a high number of haplotypes and an excess of low-frequency polymorphisms. A large excess of intraspecific nonsynonymous variation associated with low synonymous variation was detected along the first exon in the FRI gene. In contrast, no excess of nonsynonymous divergence was detected between A. thaliana and A. lyrata. The Tajima and McDonald and Kreitman tests, however, suggested that this gene has evolved in a nonneutral fashion. Non…
Nucleotide Variability at the Acetyl Coenzyme A Carboxylase Gene and the Signature of Herbicide Selection in the Grass Weed Alopecurus myosuroides (H…
2004
Acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase (ACCase) is the target of highly effective herbicides. We investigated the nucleotide variability of the ACCase gene in a sample of 18 black-grass (Alopecurus myosuroides [Huds.]) populations to search for the signature of herbicide selection. Sequencing 3,396 bp encompassing ACCase herbicide-binding domain in 86 individuals revealed 92 polymorphisms, which formed 72 haplotypes. The ratio of nonsynonymous versus synonymous substitutions was very low, in agreement with ACCase being a vital metabolic enzyme. Within black grass, most nonsynonymous substitutions were related to resistance to ACCase-inhibiting herbicides. Differentiation between populations was stro…
Selection for reproduction under short photoperiods changes diapause-associated traits and induces widespread genomic divergence.
2019
The work has been supported by the Academyof Finland to A.H. (project 267244) and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) funding (NE/J020818/1 to M.G.R.; NE/L501852/1 to R.A.W.W.). The incidence of reproductive diapause is a critical aspect of life history in overwintering insects from temperate regions. Much has been learned about the timing, physiology and genetics of diapause in a range of insects, but how the multiple changes involved in this and other photoperiodically regulated traits are inter-related is not well understood. We performed quasinatural selection on reproduction under short photoperiods in a northern fly species, Drosophila montana, to trace the effects of photoper…
Gene flow and population admixture as the primary post-invasion processes in common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) populations in France
2010
*An improved inference of the evolutionary history of invasive species may be achieved by analyzing the genetic variation and population differentiation of recently established populations and their ancestral (historical) populations. Employing this approach, we investigated the role of gene flow in the post-invasion evolution of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia). *Using eight microsatellite loci, we compared genetic diversity and structure among nine pairs of historical and recent populations in France. Historical populations were reconstructed from herbarium specimens dated from the late 19th to early 20th century, whereas recent populations were collected within the last 5 yr. *Re…
Genetic structure of a greenhouse population of the spider mite Tetranychus urticae: spatio-temporal analysis with microsatellite markers.
2002
International audience; The genetic structure of a greenhouse population of the mite Tetranychus urticae was studied by the analysis of five microsatellite loci. Genetic variation was compared during a crop season between periods of population foundation and rapid population increase and was investigated in two consecutive years. The population displayed significant heterozygote deficiency at all the sampling periods. However, inbreeding tended to decrease with increasing density (FIS coefficient between 0.13 and 0.25). No significant genetic differentiation between samples was found either at a spatial scale within the greenhouse or at a temporal scale between two growing seasons (FST betw…
Large Spatial Scale of the Phenotype-Environment Color Matching in Two Cryptic Species of African Desert Jerboas (Dipodidae: Jaculus)
2014
We tested the camouflage hypothesis, or the linkage between animal (Saharan rodent) and habitat coloration, on the largest geographical scale yet conducted. We aimed to determine whether phenotypic variation is explained by micro-habitat variation and/or genetic polymorphism to determine 1) the strength of linkage between fur color and local substrate color, and 2) the divergence in fur coloration between two genetic clades, representing cryptic species, throughout the complete range of the African desert jerboas (Jaculus jaculus). We used a combination of museum and field-collected specimens, remote sensing tools, satellite and digital photography and molecular genetic and phylogenetic met…
Adaptation in response to environmental unpredictability
2017
Understanding how organisms adaptively respond to environmental fluctuations is a fundamental question in evolutionary biology. The Mediterranean region typically exhibits levels of environmental unpredictability that vary greatly in habitats over small geographical scales. In cyclically parthenogenetic rotifers, clonal proliferation occurs along with occasional bouts of sex. These bouts contribute to the production of diapausing eggs, which allows survival between growing seasons. Here, we studied two diapause-related traits in rotifers using clones from nine Brachionus plicatilis natural populations that vary in the degree of environmental unpredictability. We tested the hypothesis that …
Genetic Diversity and Structure of Northern Populations of the Declining Coastal Plant Eryngium maritimum
2019
Abstract Genetic diversity among 13 northern populations of the declining coastal plant Eryngium maritimum L. at the northernmost extent of the species distribution range was studied using retro-transposon-based SSAP molecular markers. Diversity indices varied extensively among populations; some showing extremely low diversity whereas other populations exhibited moderate amounts of genetic variation. Differentiation among populations was highly variable as well. Interestingly, differentiation among northern populations was not influenced strongly by geographic distance. Closely situated populations were often more divergent than more distant populations suggesting other factors may be respo…
Quantitative Genetics of the Aging of Reproductive Traits in the Houbara Bustard
2015
International audience; Do all traits within an organism age for the same reason? Evolutionary theories of aging share a common assumption: the strength of natural selection declines with age. A corollary is that additive genetic variance should increase with age. However, not all senescent traits display such increases suggesting that other mechanisms may be at play. Using longitudinal data collected from more than 5400 houbara bustards (Chlamydotis undulata) with an exhaustive recorded pedigree, we investigated the genetics of aging in one female reproductive trait (egg production) and three male reproductive traits (courtship display rate, ejaculate size and sperm viability), that displa…
Molecular systematics in the acanthocephalan genus Echinorhynchus (sensu lato) in northern Europe
1994
SUMMARYNew biological species and high levels of inter- and intraspecific genetic divergence were discovered in an allozyme study of some North European members of the acanthocephalan genus Echinorhynchus (sensu lato), parasites of fish and malacostracan crustaceans. (i) A strong differentiation between the marine E. gadi and the fresh- and brackish-water E. salmonis (genetic identity I ≃ 0) supports a generic distinction between these taxa; however, the subdivision would not entirely concur with the concepts of Echinorhynchus (sensu stricto) and Metechinorhynchus suggested earlier. (ii) Samples of E. gadi from the Baltic, Norwegian and North Seas included three distinct, partially sympatri…