Screening of informative molecular markers for evolutionary studies in species from genus Cereus (Family Cactaceae; Tribe Cereeae)

• Grant number: 13/07211-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 01, 2013
• End date: November 30, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Plant Genetics
• Principal Investigator: Fernando de Faria Franco
• Grantee: Monique Romeiro Brito
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Humanas e Biológicas (CCHB). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). Sorocaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The genus Cereus (Family Cactaceae; Tribe Cereeae) encompasses around third species in South America. These species are allocated in four subgenera, of which three (Ebneria, Mirabella e Cereus) are found in Brazil. Evolutionary studies, both the inter-and intraspecific, with molecular markers in Cereus are uncommon. Recently, data from the plastid intergenic spacer trnS-trnG was used to evaluate the phylogenetic relationships among the species of Cereus, as well as to identify populations groups of C. fernambucensis (subgenus Cereus). Nevertheless, the trnS-trnG do not show phylogenetic signal in terminal branches of this group. In this sense, this project has as the ultimate goal to identify informative molecular markers, both from cpDNA and/or nDNA, for phylogenetic and populational studies in Cereus. Thus, based on the information available in the literature six candidate molecular markers were selected to use in this project, of which five are from cpDNA (rpS16, rpL16, trnK-matK, trnL-trnF, matK) and one from nDNA (second intron of LEAFY gene). The experimental design for access the variability in these markers will follow three steps. First, comparing species of Cereus from distinct subgenus and allocated in different clades of the phylogeny. If there is variation in this level, species of Cereus from the same subgenus and closely related will be chosen for comparison. Finally, if there is variation in the second level the molecular marker will be isolated from the population of C. fernambucensis. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

ROMEIRO-BRITO, MONIQUE; MORAES, EVANDRO M.; TAYLOR, NIGEL P.; ZAPPI, DANIELA C.; FRANCO, FERNANDO F.. LINEAGE-SPECIFIC EVOLUTIONARY RATE IN PLANTS: CONTRIBUTIONS OF A SCREENING FOR CEREUS (CACTACEAE). APPLICATIONS IN PLANT SCIENCES, v. 4, n. 1, JAN 2016. (13/07211-7, 10/19557-7)