Category Archives: plants

Genomics of Hybridization – Part 1

Posted on 21 Jan, 2016 by Arun Sethuraman

In a series of articles, I will discuss recent advances in hybridization genomics – the fundamentals of adaptive introgression, “islands of speciation”, differential gene flow, and linked selection have been discussed in my previous posts (here, here, and also at … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptation, evolution, genomics, methods, natural history, next generation sequencing, pedigree, phylogenetics, plants, population genetics, RNAseq, software, speciation, species delimitation, STRUCTURE, theory, transcriptomics | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

An Oedipus complex in mosses?

Posted on 11 Dec, 2015 by Stacy Krueger-Hadfield

Nannandrous … phyllodioicous … gotta love botanical terms and these will most definitely find their way into this week’s list of favorite words! Both refer to the tiny epiphytic nature of males situated on much larger female shoots. There may be many … Continue reading →

Posted in bioinformatics, evolution, genomics, haploid-diploid, plants, population genetics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The next, next generation: long reads facilitate assembly & annotation in large genome species

Posted on 10 Dec, 2015 by Melissa DeBiasse

The typical procedure for constructing a draft genome or transcriptome using current second generation, high throughput sequencing platforms involves generating short reads about 150 base pairs long, assembling those short reads into larger contigs, putting the contigs in the correct order to create … Continue reading →

Posted in genomics, next generation sequencing, plants, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Pre-adapted algal ancestors colonized land

Posted on 7 Dec, 2015 by Stacy Krueger-Hadfield

The colonization of land by plants 450 Mya marked a major transition on Earth and was one of the critical events that led to the emergence of extant terrestrial ecosystems. Chief among the challenges the terrestrial environment presented for these … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptation, bioinformatics, Coevolution, evolution, genomics, haploid-diploid, next generation sequencing, phylogenetics, plants, transcriptomics | Tagged | Leave a comment

Workshop: Gene Conservation of Tree Species

Posted on 23 Nov, 2015 by Jeremy Yoder

From friend-of-the-blog Sean Hoban, an update about a workshop that should be of interest to molecular ecologists: A reminder, the deadline to submit abstracts for the “Gene Conservation of Tree Species – Banking on the Future” conference, to be held … Continue reading →

Posted in community, conferences, conservation, genomics, plants | Tagged | Leave a comment

Paternity matters in polyploid plants

Posted on 30 Sep, 2015 by Rob Denton

In the most basic definition, polyploidy is a numerical increase in whole chromosome number. The effects of this increase in genomic material often produce novel morphologies compared to parental species, and polyploids have become both a huge part of explaining the … Continue reading →

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Testing local adaptation at latitudinal and elevation range edges

Posted on 7 Sep, 2015 by Melissa DeBiasse

A species’ distribution is determined by the relative strength and complex interaction of many factors including (but not limited to) dispersal, life history, and physiological tolerance. Often the center of a species’ range is the warm, fuzzy place to be and fitness there is … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptation, plants, population genetics, selection | Leave a comment

The unforeseen genomic consequences of domestication

Posted on 26 Aug, 2015 by Rob Denton

When a desired genome is selected for propagation, all mutations, beneficial, neutral, or deleterious, shift in frequency, and this sometimes can have unforeseen consequences. Natural selection takes the good with the bad. Beneficial and harmful mutations combine to provide a net … Continue reading →

Posted in domestication, genomics, plants, selection, transcriptomics | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Notes from Edmonton and #Botany2015

Posted on 11 Aug, 2015 by Jeremy Yoder

As noted previously, I broke with my usual habit and skipped the Evolution meetings this year. Instead, I attended Botany 2015, a joint meeting of multiple U.S. and Canadian plant-focused scholarly societies held in Edmonton, Alberta — I’d never been … Continue reading →

Posted in bioinformatics, conferences, genomics, natural history, phylogenetics, plants, population genetics | Tagged | 1 Comment

When genomes duplicate

Posted on 8 May, 2015 by Stacy Krueger-Hadfield

Whole genome duplication events have played an important role in the evolutionary history of plants. Vallejo-Marín et al. (2015) describe origins of a new polyploid species, Mimulus peregrines, found on the Scottish mainland as well as the Orkney Islands. It was formed within … Continue reading →

Posted in bioinformatics, evolution, genomics, natural history, plants | Tagged , , | 1 Comment