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Low genetic diversity and high differentiation among relict populations of the neotropical gymnosperm Podocarpus sellowii (Klotz.) in the Atlantic Forest

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Abstract

Podocarpus sellowii (Podocarpaceae) is one of only a few gymnosperms native to Brazil and the sole species of the genus found in the northeastern region of that country. It has a very restricted distribution in this region, with only three known populations in highland forests (called Brejos de Altitude), which apparently have been isolated from each other since the Pleistocene. Due to this long-term isolation and the fact that these populations have few adult individuals and suffer great anthropogenic pressure, low genetic variability is expected, compromising their long-term viability. The present work assessed the genetic variability and structure of northeastern populations of P. sellowii to investigate the role of Pleistocene glaciations on the genetic relationships between them and to propose strategies for their conservation by analyzing the SSR and ISSR markers of adult and juvenile individuals. Low genetic diversity was found with both markers, associated with a high differentiation of the Brejo de Baturité population in relation to the others—suggesting their isolation at different points in time, probably during the Pleistocene. Actions directed towards increasing the genetic diversity of these populations will be needed, such as planting seedlings with high genetic variability—but the high degrees of differentiation observed between the populations must be taken into account.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Laboratório de Análise Genética e Molecular of the Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) for support and infrastructure during the development of the SSR markers; to the MSc. Luiz Wilson Lima-Verde for his valuable help during the field work; the CNPq (National Council for Scientific and Technological Development) for the fellowship to LD; and PROPESQ/UFPE for financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Plant Cytogenetics and Evolution, Department of Botany, Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, 50670-420, Brazil

    Liliane G. Dantas, Tiago Esposito & Andrea Pedrosa-Harand

  2. Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology (DBCM), Center of Biotechnology (CBiotec), Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), João Pessoa, PB, Brazil

    Adna Cristina Barbosa de Sousa

  3. Laboratory of Plant Cytognetics, Department of Plant Science, Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), Areia, PB, Brazil

    Leonardo Félix

  4. Laboratory of Plant Genetics and Biotechnology, Department of Genetics, Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil

    Lidiane L. B. Amorim & Ana Maria Benko-Iseppon

  5. Institute of Biology, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Salvador, BA, Brazil

    Henrique Batalha-Filho

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  1. Liliane G. Dantas
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  2. Tiago Esposito
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  3. Adna Cristina Barbosa de Sousa
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  4. Leonardo Félix
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  6. Ana Maria Benko-Iseppon
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  7. Henrique Batalha-Filho
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Correspondence to Andrea Pedrosa-Harand.

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Liliane G. Dantas and Tiago Esposito have contributed equally to this work.

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Dantas, L.G., Esposito, T., de Sousa, A.C.B. et al. Low genetic diversity and high differentiation among relict populations of the neotropical gymnosperm Podocarpus sellowii (Klotz.) in the Atlantic Forest. Genetica 143, 21–30 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10709-014-9809-y

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