Efectes de la fragmentació de l'hàbitat sobre la diversitat genètica d'Stachys maritima (Lamiaceae) i estat actual de conservació

Diploma d'Estudis Avançats (DEA) en Farmàcia, Universitat de Barcelona. Facultat de Farmàcia, any: 200

Clematis acerifolia

Planta del mes: Clematis acerifoli

Diversitat isoenzimàtica de dues plantes vasculars endèmiques dels Països Catalans: Seseli farrenyi (Apiaceae) i Petrocoptis montsicciana (Caryophyllaceae)

S'ha emprat electroforesi d'isoenzims per avaluar la diversitat genètica de dues plantes vasculars endèmiques dels Països Catalans, Seseli farrenyi Molero & Pujadas (Apiaceae) i Petrocoptis montsicciana O. Bolòs & Rivas Martínez (Caryophyllaceae). L'estudi d'aquesta última s'ha complementat amb el de P. pardoi Pau, atès a que en el darrer tractament taxonòmic són tractades com a sinònims. S'han interpretat un total de 14 loci en S. farrenyi i 16 loci en els dos tàxons de Petrocoptis. Són remarcables els alts nivells de diversitat genètica que presenten els tres tàxons, especialment en el cas de S. farrenyi, molt superiors als esperats per a espècies endèmiques. També s'aporten dades sobre l'estructura poblacional dels diferents tàxons tractats i, finalment, s'enumeren les principals amenaces que pateixen aquestes espècies i es proposen estratègies per a la seva conservació.Se ha utilizado electroforesis de isoenzimas para evaluar la diversidad genética de dos plantas vasculares endémicas de los Països Catalans, Seseli farrenyi Molero & Pujadas (Apiaceae) y Petrocoptis montsicciana O. Bolòs & Rivas Martínez (Caryophyllaceae). El estudio de esta última se ha complementado con el de P. pardoi Pau, debido a que en el último tratamiento taxonómico son tratadas como sinónimos. Se han interpretado un total de 14 loci en S. farrenyi y 16loci en los dos taxones de Petrocoptis. Son remarcables los altos niveles de diversidad genética que presentan los 3 taxones, especialmente en el caso de S. farrenyi, muy superiores a los esperados para especies endémicas. También se aportan datos acerca de la estructura poblacional de los diferentes taxones tratados, y, finalmente, se enumeran las principales amenazas que sufren estas especies y se proponen estrategias para su conservación.Allozyme electrophoresis is used to evaluate the allozymic diversity of two vascular plants endemic to the Catalan Countries, Seseli farrenyi Molero & Pujadas (Apiaceae) and Petrocoptis montsicciana O. Bolòs & Rivas Martínez (Caryophyllaceae). The study of P. montsicciana has been combined with that of P. pardoi Pau, since they are considered synonymous in the most recent taxonomic treatment. 14 loci have been interpreted in S. farrenyi and 16 loci in the two Petrocoptis taxa. The high levels of genetic diversity found in the three taxa are surprising, far exceeding those expected for endemic species, especially in the case of S. farrenyi. Data about population structure are given for the taxa studied and, finally, the main threats to these species are enumerated and conservation strategies are suggested

Sobre la necesidad de un libro rojo «moderno» para China

Los llamados «libros rojos» se cuentan hoy en día entre las mejores y más ampliamente utilizadas herramientas para la identificación de plantas vasculares sometidas a una situación de riesgo, así como para la priorización de los esfuerzos que se deben realizar para su conservación. Los libros rojos constituyen un paso más allá de la elaboración de una «lista roja», puesto que contienen información muy valiosa acerca del estado de conservación de una especie determinada (p. ej. su encuadre taxonómico, sus características biológicas y ecológicas, su área de distribución y sus amenazas actuales y potenciales) aparte de su categoría de amenaza de acuerdo con unos criterios estandarizados. Esta información, a su vez, permitirá aplicar aquellas medidas más adecuadas de cara a su preservación y/o recuperación

Diversitat isoenzimàtica de la flora vascular silvestre dels Països Catalans

Els Països Catalans presenten una elevada diversitat florística, amb més de 4.500 tàxons i una taxa mitjana d'endemicitat al voltant del 5 %. En el present estudi s'ha dut a terme una síntesi de les dades publicades fins a la data referides a diversitat genètica isoenzimàtica en tàxons endèmics o aquells amb poblacions situades dins els Països Catalans. Dels 36 tàxons analitzats, se'n desprenen uns nivells relativament elevats de variabilitat genètica (P = 28,85 %, A = 1,46, He = 0,112 per als tàxons diploides), encara que amb un percentatge prou important (al voltant del 6 %) d'al·lels rars per població, unes taxes elevades de consanguinitat (FIS = 0,245) i una divergència genètica entre poblacions prou significativa (GST = 0,248). Les causes d'aquests patrons, juntament amb la seva relació amb diferents característiques biològiques i ecològiques dels tàxons catalans, s'analitzen detingudament.The Catalan Countries exhibit a high floristic diversity, with more than 4.500 taxa and a mean rate of endemism of about 5 %. Here we present a synthesis of the literature concerning allozyme genetic diversity in endemic taxa or in those with populations located within the Catalan Countries. From 36 taxa examined, relatively high levels of genetic variability have been detected (P = 28,85 %, A = 1,46, He = 0,112 for diploid taxa), although with a substantial percentage (around 6 %) of rare alleles per population, high rates of imbreeding (FIS = 0,245), and a significant genetic divergence among populations (GST = 0,248). The causes of those patterns, together with their relationship with different biological and ecological traits of these Catalan taxa, have been analyzed in detail.diversidad florística, con más de 4.500 taxones y una tasa media de endemicidad de aproximadamente el 5 %. En el presente estudio se ha llevado a cabo una síntesis de los datos publicados hasta la fecha referidos a diversidad genética isoenzimática en taxones endémicos o en aquellos con poblaciones situadas dentro de los Países Catalanes. De los 36 taxones analizados, se constatan unos niveles relativamente elevados de variabilidad genética (P = 28,85 %, A = 1,46, He = 0,112 para los taxones diploides), aunque con un porcentaje notable (cerca del 6 %) de alelos raros por población, unas tasas elevadas de consanguinidad (FIS = 0,245) y una divergencia genética entre poblaciones bastante significativa (GST = 0,248). Las causas de estos patrones, junto con su relación con diferentes características biológicas y ecológicas de los taxones catalanes, se analizan detalladamente

DCDB: an updated on-line database of chromosome numbers of tribe Delphinieae (Ranunculaceae)

Version 2.0, Updated 23/IV/2016A new version of the earlier chromosome database of tribe Delphinieae Warming (Simon, J., M. Bosch, J. Molero & C. Blanché 1999, A conspect of chromosome numbers in tribe Delphinieae (Ranunculaceae). Biodiversity Electronic Publications, 1 [Available online at http://hdl.handle.net/2445/95875]) is presented, after an accurate extensive literature and Internet survey, by adding the chromosome counts for the genera Aconitum L. (including Gymnaconitum (Stapf) Wei Wang & Z. D. Chen), Delphinium L. (including Staphisagria Spach), Consolida (DC.) S.F. Gray and Aconitella Spach., accumulated in the last 17 years. The Delphinieae Chromosome Database (DCDB) provides the most complete current available information on chromosome numbers of Delphinieae, will be yearly updated and easily available by a system searchable through international platforms as CCDB (Rice et al., 2015), to be useful for general building of cytotaxonomical databases and for specific research ongoing projects of systematics of Ranunculaceae

Assessing the relevance of herbarium collections as tools for conservation biology.

Herbarium collections constitute permanent and often well-documented records of the distribution of taxa through space and time. Since their creation, their uses have dramatically expanded and with many new uses being proposed, including some for which herbaria were not initially intended for. In this paper we assess the potential of these collections on conservation biology, by providing exemplary studies that use herbarium specimens, grouped into four categories: (1) based on occurrence data, such as studies about plant extinction or introduction, or those focused on modelling their ecological niche; (2) based on the specimens themselves, such as morphological or phenological studies to evaluate the impact of climate change; (3) based in genetic data, such as phylogeographic or taxonomical studies; and (4), other applied studies

Detectable clonal mosaicism in blood as biomarker of cancer risk in Fanconi anemia

Altres ajuts: Juan de la Cierva postdoctoral fellowship (JCI-2011-10660); Marató de TV3 (project 464/C/2012)Detectable clonal mosaicism for large chromosomal events has been associated with aging and an increased risk of hematological and some solid cancers. We hypothesized that genetic cancer predisposition disorders, such as Fanconi anemia (FA), could manifest a high rate of chromosomal mosaic events (CMEs) in peripheral blood, which could be used as early biomarkers of cancer risk. We studied the prevalence of CMEs by single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array in 130 FA patients' blood DNA and their impact on cancer risk. We detected 51 CMEs (4.4-159 Mb in size) in 16 out of 130 patients (12.3%), of which 9 had multiple CMEs. The most frequent events were gains at 3q (n = 6) and 1q (n = 5), both previously associated with leukemia, as well as rearrangements with breakpoint clustering within the major histocompatibility complex locus (P = 7.3 × 10-9). Compared with 15?743 age-matched population controls, FA patients had a 126 to 140 times higher risk of detectable CMEs in blood (P < 2.2 × 10-16). Prevalent and incident hematologic and solid cancers were more common in CME carriers (odds ratio [OR] = 11.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.4-39.3, P = 2.8 × 10-5), leading to poorer prognosis. The age-adjusted hazard risk (HR) of having cancer was almost 5 times higher in FA individuals with CMEs than in those without CMEs. Regarding survival, the HR of dying was 4 times higher in FA individuals having CMEs (HR = 4.0, 95% CI = 2.0-7.9, P = 5.7 × 10-5). Therefore, our data suggest that molecular karyotyping with SNP arrays in easy-to-obtain blood samples could be used for better monitoring of bone marrow clonal events, cancer risk, and overall survival of FA patients

Genetic diversity in Silene sennenii Pau (Caryophyllaceae) assayed through DNA-based techniques

Genetic diversity in Silene sennenii Pau (Caryophyllaceae) assayed through DNA-based techniques. Silene sennenii is a narrow endemic species from the NE of the Iberian Peninsula. It is considered as EN ("Endangered") according to the IUCN criteria and is under legal protection in Catalonia. In the present work we report an assay using three different approaches for surveying the genetic diversity in this rare, endangered campion: analysis of chloroplast haplotypes, AFLPs and transferability of microsatellites previously developed for Silene latifolia. None of the nine chloroplast regions sequenced showed any variability. Five out of the 21 microsatellite loci tested were polymorphic although more loci are required in order to perform a robust population genetics study. Regarding the AFLP analysis, five out of the 26 pairs of primers tested exhibited moderate levels of variability and therefore they could be useful for further investigating the genetic structure of S. sennenii. Although preliminary, our results based on three different genetic markers are in agreement with the low values of genetic variation already reported for this species employing allozymes