Using molecular markers to investigate genetic diversity, mating system and gene flow of Neotropical trees

Genetic analysis provides a robust method for understanding the ways in which human interventions in ecosystems may affect genetic diversity and species survival, providing an empirical basis for evidence-based conservation and management planning. This review aims to (1) describe the most informative and widely used molecular markers for genotype analysis, and describe the methods for using that genotype data to understand (2) genetic diversity and structure; and (3) mating system, pollen and seed dispersal. For each area of investigation, we discuss the types of analyses that can be performed, the software available for the analyses, what the analyses indicate, and provide examples from the literature of studies using these approaches. The review focuses on Neotropical tree species because Neotropical forests are highly diverse and are under particular threat from anthropogenic land-use change, and trees are useful model organisms to investigate patterns over evolutionary time and across geographical space

Using molecular markers to investigate genetic diversity, mating system and gene flow of Neotropical trees

Genetic analysis provides a robust method for understanding the ways in which human interventions in ecosystems may affect genetic diversity and species survival, providing an empirical basis for evidence-based conservation and management planning. This review aims to (1) describe the most informative and widely used molecular markers for genotype analysis, and describe the methods for using that genotype data to understand (2) genetic diversity and structure; and (3) mating system, pollen and seed dispersal. For each area of investigation, we discuss the types of analyses that can be performed, the software available for the analyses, what the analyses indicate, and provide examples from the literature of studies using these approaches. The review focuses on Neotropical tree species because Neotropical forests are highly diverse and are under particular threat from anthropogenic land-use change, and trees are useful model organisms to investigate patterns over evolutionary time and across geographical space

Population genetics of Cedrela fissilis (Meliaceae) from an ecotone in central Brazil

Cedrela fissilis is an endangered timber species associated with seasonal forests throughout South America. We investigated a population of C. fissilis (PAN) located toward central Brazil to uncover insights on how an ecotone may have shaped the evolutionary history of this species at the local scale. PAN consisted of 18 mother trees and their 283 offspring (18 families), which were genotyped with ten microsatellite loci. We supplemented our dataset with equivalent microsatellite data from 175 specimens representing the east and west lineages of C. fissilis. An array of complementary methods assessed PAN for genetic diversity, population structure, and mating system. In PAN, the gene pool of the east lineage combined with a third (previously unidentified) lineage to form an admixture population. PAN is under inbreeding (Ho = 0.80 and 0.74, uHe = 0.85 and 0.82, Ap = 1.1 and 7.1, F = 0.06 and 0.10, for mother trees and offspring, respectively). Mother trees were predominantly outcrossing (tm = 0.95), with some selfing (1 − tm = 0.05), and crossing between related individuals (tm–ts = 0.07); they received pollen from few donors (Nep = 9). Restricted gene flow within PAN gave rise to a strong population structure, which split the 18 families into six groups. Some mother trees were reproductively isolated. Conservation perspectives are discussed