Phylogenomic, biogeography, and evolution of the ancient genus Isoetes with focus on the American clade

• Grant number: 19/07109-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: September 01, 2019
• End date: August 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Botany - Plant Taxonomy
• Principal Investigator: Jefferson Prado
• Grantee: Jovani Bernardino de Souza Pereira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Pesquisas Ambientais (IPA). Secretaria de Meio Ambiente, Infraestrutura e Logística (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 21/11881-4 - Phylogenomic, biogeography, and evolution of the ancient genus Isoetes with focus on the American clade, BE.EP.PD

Abstract

Phylogenetic inferences are being revolutionized with the emerging of the next-generation sequencing, which provides enormous amounts of gene sequence data. This data allows to clarify not only basal relationships, but also resolve rapid radiations that would be intractable with smaller datasets. This provides unprecedented opportunities to address fundamental evolutionary questions in intriguing plant groups such as the ancient genus Isoetes. The genus Isoetes is globally distributed with approximately 250 species. South America (SA) is one the centers of taxonomic diversity with 64 species. Phylogenetic studies revealed South American Isoetes species in two major clades: Gondwanian (from tropical areas in SA) and American (from subtropical to temperate areas in SA). American clade is the most diverse clade in Isoetes. Despite being well-supported, the relationships among the species within the American clade remain poorly understood. Polyploidy is a confounding factor in phylogenetic analyses and it hampers phylogenetic inferences in this group. Previous studies based on a few molecular regions led uncertainties in the deep and terminal relationships in the clade. The absence of a well-resolved phylogeny also hampered the capability of dating the divergence events and reconstructing the biogeographic history of the American clade. This research proposal aims to extend the sampling of species from crucial regions from South America, explore incongruence between nuclear and plastid phylogenies for the same set of taxa, explore the mechanisms which may be responsible for phylogenetic conflicts and determine the extension to which reticulation has influenced the evolution of American clade. The resulted phylogeny will be calibrated and the ancestral ranges of the species estimated to test biogeography hypotheses in the group. (AU)

Scientific publications

(6)

(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)

PEREIRA, JOVANI B. S.; GIULIETTI, ANA MARIA; PRADO, JEFFERSON; VASCONCELOS, SANTELMO; WATANABE, MAURICIO T. C.; PINANGE, DIEGO S. B.; OLIVEIRA, RENATO R. M.; PIRES, EDER S.; CALDEIRA, CECILIO F.; OLIVEIRA, GUILHERME. Plastome-based phylogenomics elucidate relationships in rare Isoetes species groups from the Neotropics. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, v. 161, AUG 2021. (19/07109-4)

PEREIRA, JOVANI B. S.; NUNES, MAURICIO G.; LABIAK, PAULO H.. Novelties in the Anemia elegans Clade (Anemiaceae), with a New Species and Nothospecies from Brazil. SYSTEMATIC BOTANY, v. 47, n. 3, p. 6-pg., 2022-07-01. (19/07109-4)

PEREIRA, JOVANI B. S.; PRADO, JEFFERSON. Taxonomy of Cryptic Isoetes Species from the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region, with a Note about the Putative Maternal Origin of Polyploids. AMERICAN FERN JOURNAL, v. 112, n. 3, p. 17-pg., 2022-07-01. (19/07109-4)

PEREIRA, JOVANI B. S.; PRADO, JEFFERSON. Two New Endemic Tetraploid Species of the Genus Isoetes from the Brazilian Savanna. SYSTEMATIC BOTANY, v. 47, n. 2, p. 5-pg., 2022-04-01. (19/07109-4)

BRUNTON, DANIEL F.; DE SOUSA PEREIRA, JOVANI B.. Description of Isoetes afloramientorum, sp. nov. (Isoetaceae), and a second record for Isoetes santacruzensis, two granite outcrop quillworts in Bolivia. PHYTOTAXA, v. 451, n. 3, p. 215-222, JUL 6 2020. (19/07109-4)

PEREIRA, JOVANI B. S.; BROTTO, MARCELO; LABIAK, PAULO H.. The southernmost distribution range of Isoetes panamensis Maxon & C.V. Morton (Lycopodiopsida, Isoetaceae) in the relicts of the Cerrado in southern Brazil. Check List, v. 17, n. 1, p. 5-pg., 2021-01-01. (19/07109-4)