Scale-dependent signatures of local adaptation in a foundation tree species. 2021

Brenton von Takach, and Collin W Ahrens, and David B Lindenmayer, and Sam C Banks
Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT, Australia.

Understanding local adaptation is critical for conservation management under rapidly changing environmental conditions. Local adaptation inferred from genotype-environment associations may show different genomic patterns depending on the spatial scale of sampling, due to differences in the slope of environmental gradients and the level of gene flow. We compared signatures of local adaptation across the genome of mountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans) at two spatial scales: A species-wide data set and a topographically-complex subregional data set. We genotyped 367 individual trees at over 3700 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), quantified patterns of spatial genetic structure among populations, and used two analytical methods to identify loci associated with at least one of three environmental variables at each spatial scale. Together, the analyses identified 549 potentially adaptive SNPs at the subregion scale, and 435 SNPs at the range-wide scale. A total of 39 genic or near-genic SNPs, associated with 28 genes, were identified at both spatial scales, although no SNP was identified by both methods at both scales. We observed that nongenic regions had significantly higher homozygote excess than genic regions, possibly due to selective elimination of inbred genotypes during stand development. Our results suggest that strong environmental selection occurs in mountain ash, and that the identification of putatively adaptive loci can differ substantially depending on the spatial scale of analyses. We also highlight the importance of multiple adaptive genetic architectures for understanding patterns of local adaptation across large heterogenous landscapes, with comparison of putatively adaptive loci among spatial scales providing crucial insights into the process of adaptation.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D005828 Genetics, Population The discipline studying genetic composition of populations and effects of factors such as GENETIC SELECTION, population size, MUTATION, migration, and GENETIC DRIFT on the frequencies of various GENOTYPES and PHENOTYPES using a variety of GENETIC TECHNIQUES. Population Genetics
D005838 Genotype The genetic constitution of the individual, comprising the ALLELES present at each GENETIC LOCUS. Genogroup,Genogroups,Genotypes
D000064 Acclimatization Adaptation to a new environment or to a change in the old. Acclimation
D000222 Adaptation, Physiological The non-genetic biological changes of an organism in response to challenges in its ENVIRONMENT. Adaptation, Physiologic,Adaptations, Physiologic,Adaptations, Physiological,Adaptive Plasticity,Phenotypic Plasticity,Physiological Adaptation,Physiologic Adaptation,Physiologic Adaptations,Physiological Adaptations,Plasticity, Adaptive,Plasticity, Phenotypic
D012641 Selection, Genetic Differential and non-random reproduction of different genotypes, operating to alter the gene frequencies within a population. Natural Selection,Genetic Selection,Selection, Natural
D014197 Trees Woody, usually tall, perennial higher plants (Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, and some Pterophyta) having usually a main stem and numerous branches. Tree
D020641 Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide A single nucleotide variation in a genetic sequence that occurs at appreciable frequency in the population. SNPs,Single Nucleotide Polymorphism,Nucleotide Polymorphism, Single,Nucleotide Polymorphisms, Single,Polymorphisms, Single Nucleotide,Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms

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