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Population structure and genetic diversity in the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens: does the dwarf male system facilitate gene flow?
BMC Evol Biol. 2015 12 03; 15:270.BE

Abstract

BACKGROUND

Nannandry is a sexual system where males ("dwarf males") are much smaller than the conspecific females. Dwarf males occur in a wide range of unrelated organisms but the evolutionary advantages of this condition are poorly understood. The dwarf male sexual system results in differences in the mode of dispersal and establishment as well as the life span between males and females. Such differences must have profound effects on the population dynamics and genetic structures. We have studied four populations of the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens in southern Sweden. We genotyped dwarf males and female shoots with the aim of describing the genetic diversity and structure of the populations.

RESULTS

Dwarf males were most related to their host shoot, then their colony (within 0.5 m(2)) and then the rest of the population, which suggests restricted spore dispersal. However, a few dwarf males in each population appeared to originate from other colonies and sometimes even other populations. Genetic diversity of dwarf males was generally high but showed no tendency to be consistently higher or lower than female genetic diversity within the four populations.

CONCLUSIONS

Although most dwarf males have local origin, sporadic dispersal events occur. The ability of the dwarf males to establish in high numbers in mature colonies facilitates gene flow between populations as well as increases the potential to accumulate genetic diversity within populations.

Links

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Authors+Show Affiliations

Rosengren F
Department of Biology, Biodiversity, Lund University, Ecology Building, SE-223 62, Lund, Sweden. Frida.Rosengren@biol.lu.se.
Hansson B
Department of Biology, Lund University, Molecular Ecology and Evolution Lab, Ecology Building, SE-223 62, Lund, Sweden. Bengt.Hansson@biol.lu.se.
Cronberg N
Department of Biology, Biodiversity, Lund University, Ecology Building, SE-223 62, Lund, Sweden. Nils.Cronberg@biol.lu.se.

MeSH

Biological EvolutionBryopsidaDNA, PlantGene FlowGenetic VariationSweden

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Language

eng

PubMed ID

26634921

Citation

Rosengren, Frida, et al. "Population Structure and Genetic Diversity in the Nannandrous Moss Homalothecium Lutescens: Does the Dwarf Male System Facilitate Gene Flow?" BMC Evolutionary Biology, vol. 15, 2015, p. 270.
Rosengren F, Hansson B, Cronberg N. Population structure and genetic diversity in the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens: does the dwarf male system facilitate gene flow? BMC Evol Biol. 2015;15:270.
Rosengren, F., Hansson, B., & Cronberg, N. (2015). Population structure and genetic diversity in the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens: does the dwarf male system facilitate gene flow? BMC Evolutionary Biology, 15, 270. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12862-015-0545-4
Rosengren F, Hansson B, Cronberg N. Population Structure and Genetic Diversity in the Nannandrous Moss Homalothecium Lutescens: Does the Dwarf Male System Facilitate Gene Flow. BMC Evol Biol. 2015 12 3;15:270. PubMed PMID: 26634921.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
TY - JOUR T1 - Population structure and genetic diversity in the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens: does the dwarf male system facilitate gene flow? AU - Rosengren,Frida, AU - Hansson,Bengt, AU - Cronberg,Nils, Y1 - 2015/12/03/ PY - 2015/06/18/received PY - 2015/11/17/accepted PY - 2015/12/5/entrez PY - 2015/12/5/pubmed PY - 2016/4/1/medline SP - 270 EP - 270 JF - BMC evolutionary biology JO - BMC Evol Biol VL - 15 N2 - BACKGROUND: Nannandry is a sexual system where males ("dwarf males") are much smaller than the conspecific females. Dwarf males occur in a wide range of unrelated organisms but the evolutionary advantages of this condition are poorly understood. The dwarf male sexual system results in differences in the mode of dispersal and establishment as well as the life span between males and females. Such differences must have profound effects on the population dynamics and genetic structures. We have studied four populations of the nannandrous moss Homalothecium lutescens in southern Sweden. We genotyped dwarf males and female shoots with the aim of describing the genetic diversity and structure of the populations. RESULTS: Dwarf males were most related to their host shoot, then their colony (within 0.5 m(2)) and then the rest of the population, which suggests restricted spore dispersal. However, a few dwarf males in each population appeared to originate from other colonies and sometimes even other populations. Genetic diversity of dwarf males was generally high but showed no tendency to be consistently higher or lower than female genetic diversity within the four populations. CONCLUSIONS: Although most dwarf males have local origin, sporadic dispersal events occur. The ability of the dwarf males to establish in high numbers in mature colonies facilitates gene flow between populations as well as increases the potential to accumulate genetic diversity within populations. SN - 1471-2148 UR - https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/26634921/Population_structure_and_genetic_diversity_in_the_nannandrous_moss_Homalothecium_lutescens:_does_the_dwarf_male_system_facilitate_gene_flow DB - PRIME DP - Unbound Medicine ER -