Paule, Juraj;
Scherbantin, Antonia;
Dobeš, Christoph
Implications of hybridisation and cytotypic differentiation in speciation assessed by AFLP and plastid haplotypes - a case study of Potentilla alpicola La Soie
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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
Implications of hybridisation and cytotypic differentiation in speciation assessed by AFLP and plastid haplotypes - a case study of Potentilla alpicola La Soie
Contributor:
Paule, Juraj;
Scherbantin, Antonia;
Dobeš, Christoph
Published:
Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2012
Published in:
BMC Evolutionary Biology, 12 (2012) 1
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1186/1471-2148-12-132
ISSN:
1471-2148
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
AbstractBackgroundHybridisation is presumed to be an important mechanism in plant speciation and a creative evolutionary force often accompanied by polyploidisation and in some cases by apomixis. ThePotentilla collinagroup constitutes a particularly suitable model system to study these phenomena as it is morphologically extensively variable, exclusively polyploid and expresses apomixis. In the present study, the alpine taxonPotentilla alpicolahas been chosen in order to study its presumed hybrid origin, identify underlying evolutionary processes and infer the discreteness or taxonomic value of hybrid forms.ResultsCombined analysis of AFLP, cpDNA sequences and ploidy level variation revealed a hybrid origin of theP. alpicolapopulations from South Tyrol (Italy) resulting from crosses betweenP. pusillaand two cytotypes ofP. argentea. Hybrids were locally sympatric with at least one of the parental forms. Three lineages of different evolutionary origin comprising two ploidy levels were identified withinP. alpicola.The lineages differed in parentage and the complexity of the evolutionary process. A geographically wide-spread lineage thus contrasted with locally distributed lineages of different origins. Populations ofP. collinastudied in addition, have been regarded rather as recent derivatives of the hexaploidP. argentea. The observation of clones within bothP. alpicolaandP. collinasuggested a possible apomictic mode of reproduction.ConclusionsDifferent hybridisation scenarios taking place on geographically small scales resulted in viable progeny presumably stabilised by apomixis. The case study ofP. alpicolasupports that these processes played a significant role in the creation of polymorphism in the genusPotentilla. However, multiple origin of hybrids and backcrossing are considered to produce a variety of evolutionary spontaneous forms existing aside of reproductively stabilised, established lineages.