Can phylogeny predict chemical diversity and potential medicinal activity of plants? A case study of amaryllidaceae

Background During evolution, plants and other organisms have developed a diversity of chemical defences, leading to the evolution of various groups of specialized metabolites selected for their endogenous biological function. A correlation between phylogeny and biosynthetic pathways could offer a predictive approach enabling more efficient selection of plants for the development of traditional medicine and lead discovery. However, this relationship has rarely been rigorously tested and the potential predictive power is consequently unknown.Results We produced a phylogenetic hypothesis for the medicinally important plant subfamily Amaryllidoideae (Amaryllidaceae) based on parsimony and Bayesian analysis of nuclear, plastid, and mitochondrial DNA sequences of over 100 species. We tested if alkaloid diversity and activity in bioassays related to the central nervous system are significantly correlated with phylogeny and found evidence for a significant phylogenetic signal in these traits, although the effect is not strong.Conclusions Several genera are non-monophyletic emphasizing the importance of using phylogeny for interpretation of character distribution. Alkaloid diversity and in vitro inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and binding to the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT) are significantly correlated with phylogeny. This has implications for the use of phylogenies to interpret chemical evolution and biosynthetic pathways, to select candidate taxa for lead discovery, and to make recommendations for policies regarding traditional use and conservation priorities.<br /

Asociando inmaduros y adultos de insectos acuáticos utilizando códigos de barras de ADN en ríos altoandinos

Analizamos la viabilidad del uso de códigos de barras de ADN como una herramienta para lograr una asociación rápida y correcta entre las diferentes etapas de vida en algunos insectos de los órdenes Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera y Trichoptera, correspondiente a cursos de aguas corrientes de la región Andina de La Paz, Bolivia. Nos enfocamos en estos ambientes, debido a que el agua de los arroyos de los glaciares empieza a escasear, y esto podría crear un riesgo en la desaparición local de estas especies acuáticas. Por medio del uso de las secuencias del gen citocromo c-oxidasa subunidad 1 (COI), encontramos alta divergencia interespecífica genética entre muestras de diferentes familias y géneros (máximo 20%), mientras que las divergencias genéticas intraespecíficas fueron menores entre ejemplares de la misma especie (osciló entre 0.1-2%). De esta manera asociamos el estadio larval o de ninfa con sus respectivos adultos (hembras y machos), para una especie de efemeróptero (Meridialaris tintinnabula Pescador & Peters 1987), tres especies de plecópteros (Anacroneuria vagante Stark & Baumann 2011, Claudioperla tigrina Klapálek 1904 y C. ruhieri Gibon & Molina 2013) y una especie de tricóptero (cf. Anomalocosmoecus illiesi Marlier, 1962). Concluimos que el código de barras de ADN podría ser una herramienta eficaz para asociar etapas de la vida y esto podría acelerar el estudio de los patrones de biodiversidad de insectos acuáticos de la región altoandina.We analyzed the feasibility of using DNA-barcoding as a tool to achieve a correct and rapid association between different life stages of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera insects in high Andean streams from La Paz, Bolivia. We focused on this particular environment because the water of streams from the glaciers is becoming scarce, and this could create a risk of local disappearance of these aquatic species. Using cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene sequences, we found high genetic interspecific divergence between specimens from different families and genera (maximum 20%), whereas the intraspecific genetic divergences were lower between specimens of the same species (ranged from 0.1-2%). In this manner, we associate the larval or nymphal instar with their respective adults (female and male), for one species of mayfly (Meridialaris tintinnabula Pescador & Peters, 1987), three species of stoneflies (Anacroneuria vagante Stark & Baumann, 2011, Claudioperla tigrina Klapálek, 1904 and C. ruhieri Gibon & Molina, 2013) and one species of caddisfly (Anomalocosmoecus cf. illiesi Marlier, 1962). We concluded that COI Barcoding can be an effective tool for associating life stages and this tool could speed up the exploring the biodiversity patterns of aquatic insects in the High Andean regionFil: Molina, Carlos Israel. Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Mayor de San Andres; Bolivia. University of Copenhagen. Natural History Museum of Denmark; DinamarcaFil: Gibon, Francois Marie. Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations; FranciaFil: Dominguez, Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Universidad Nacional de Tucuman. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical; ArgentinaFil: Pape, Thomas. University of Copenhagen. Natural History Museum of Denmark; DinamarcaFil: Ronsted, Nina. University of Copenhagen. Natural History Museum of Denmark; Dinamarc

Estimating species diversity and distribution in the era of Big Data: to what extent can we trust public databases?

Massive digitalization of natural history collections is now leading to a steep accumulation of publicly available species distribution data. However, taxonomic errors and geographical uncertainty of species occurrence records are now acknowledged by the scientific community - putting into question to what extent such data can be used to unveil correct patterns of biodiversity and distribution. We explore this question through quantitative and qualitative analyses of uncleaned versus manually verified datasets of species distribution records across different spatial scales. The American tropics. As test case we used the plant tribe Cinchoneae (Rubiaceae). We compiled four datasets of species occurrences: one created manually and verified through classical taxonomic work, and the rest derived from GBIF under different cleaning and filling schemes. We used new bioinformatic tools to code species into grids, ecoregions, and biomes following WWF's classification. We analysed species richness and altitudinal ranges of the species. Altitudinal ranges for species and genera were correctly inferred even without manual data cleaning and filling. However, erroneous records affected spatial patterns of species richness. They led to an overestimation of species richness in certain areas outside the centres of diversity in the clade. The location of many of these areas comprised the geographical midpoint of countries and political subdivisions, assigned long after the specimens had been collected.Open databases and integrative bioinformatic tools allow a rapid approximation of large-scale patterns of biodiversity across space and altitudinal ranges. We found that geographic inaccuracy affects diversity patterns more than taxonomic uncertainties, often leading to false positives, i.e. overestimating species richness in relatively species poor regions. Public databases for species distribution are valuable and should be more explored, but under scrutiny and validation by taxonomic experts. We suggest that database managers implement easy ways of community feedback on data quality248973984Carlsberg Foundation; Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen; European Research Council (ERC); Swedish Research Council; Wallenberg Foundatio