Multiple colonization and dispersal events hide the early origin and induce a lack of genetic structure of the moss Bryum argenteum in Antarctica.

The dispersal routes of taxa with transoceanic disjunctions remain poorly understood, with the potential roles of Antarctica not yet demonstrated. Mosses are suitable organisms to test direct intra‐Antarctic dispersal, as major component of the extant Antarctic flora, with the cosmopolitan moss Bryum argenteum as ideal target species. We analyzed the genetic structure of B. argenteum to provide an evolutionary time frame for its radiation and shed light into its historical biogeography in the Antarctic region. We tested two alternative scenarios: (a) intra‐Antarctic panmixia and (b) intra‐Antarctic genetic differentiation. Furthermore, we tested for evidence of the existence of specific intra‐Antarctic dispersal routes. Sixty‐seven new samples (40 collected in Antarctica) were sequenced for ITS nrDNA and rps4 cpDNA regions, and phylogenetic trees of B. argenteum were constructed, with a focus on its Southern Hemisphere. Combining our new nrDNA dataset with previously published datasets, we estimated time‐calibrated phylogenies based on two different substitution rates (derived from angiosperms and bryophytes) along with ancestral area estimations. Minimum spanning network and pairwise genetic distances were also calculated. B. argenteum was potentially distributed across Africa and Antarctica soon after its origin. Its earliest intra‐Antarctic dispersal and diversification occurred during a warming period in the Pliocene. On the same timescale, a radiation took place involving a dispersal event from Antarctica to the sub‐Antarctic islands. A more recent event of dispersal and diversification within Antarctica occurred during a warm period in the Pleistocene, creating favorable conditions also for its colonization outside the Antarctic continent worldwide. We provide evidence supporting the hypothesis that contemporary populations of B. argenteum in Antarctica integrate a history of both multiple long‐range dispersal events and local persistence combined with in situ diversification. Our data support the hypothesis that B. argenteum has been characterized by strong connectivity within Antarctica, suggesting the existence of intra‐Antarctic dispersal routes

The evolutionary significance of polyploidy

Polyploidy, or the duplication of entire genomes, has been observed in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms, and in somatic and germ cells. The consequences of polyploidization are complex and variable, and they differ greatly between systems (clonal or non-clonal) and species, but the process has often been considered to be an evolutionary 'dead end'. Here, we review the accumulating evidence that correlates polyploidization with environmental change or stress, and that has led to an increased recognition of its short-term adaptive potential. In addition, we discuss how, once polyploidy has been established, the unique retention profile of duplicated genes following whole-genome duplication might explain key longer-term evolutionary transitions and a general increase in biological complexity

Comparison of palaeobotanical observations with experimental data on the leaf anatomy of durmast oak [Quercus petraea (Fagaceae)] in response to environmental change

To test whether stomatal density measurements on oak leaf remains are reliable tools for assessing palaeoatmospheric carbon dioxide concentration [CO2], under changing Late Miocene palaeoenvironmental conditions, young seedings of oak (Quercus petraea, Liebl.) were grown at elevated vs. ambient atmospheric [CO2] and at high humidity combined with an increased air temperature. The leaf anatomy of the young oaks was compared with that of fossil leaves of the same species. In the experiments, stomatal density and stomatal index were significantly decreased at elevated [CO2] in comparison to ambient [CO2]. Elevated [CO2] induced leaf cell expansion and reduced the intercellular air space by 35%. Leaf cell size or length were also stimulated at high air humidity and temperature. Regardless of a temperate or subtropical palaeoclimate, leaf cell size in fossil oak was not enhanced, since neither epidermal cell density nor length of the stomatal apparatus changed. The absence of these effects may be attributed to the phenological response of trees to climatic changes that balanced temporal changes in environmental variables to maintain leaf growth under optimal and stable conditions. Quercus petraea, which evolved under recurring depletions in the palaeoatmospheric [CO2], may possess sufficient phenotypic plasticity to alter stomatal frequency in hypostomatous leaves allowing high maximum stomatal conductance and high assimilation rates during these phases of low [CO2]. (C) 1998 Annals of Botany Company