Comparative phylogeography of the different populations of Actinostella flosculifera (Le Seuer, 1817) (Cnidaria, Actiniaria) in the Western Atlantic and Canary Islands using UCEs and exons

• Grant number: 23/10683-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: December 04, 2023
• End date: July 20, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Oceanography - Biological Oceanography
• Principal Investigator: Sérgio Nascimento Stampar
• Grantee: Jeferson Alexis Durán Fuentes
• Supervisor: Marymegan Daly
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências (FC). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Bauru. Bauru , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Ohio State University, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 22/09430-7 - Phylogeographic, genomic and transcriptomic analyses of Actinostella flosculifera (Le Sueur, 1817) (Cnidaria; Anthozoa; Actiniaria) and a population study of the East coasts of Central and South America and West Africa, BP.DD

Abstract

Actinostella flosculifera (Le Sueur, 1817) (Actiniaria) is characterized by the presence of a fairly wide marginal ruff that is formed by a number of short or long series of small frond-like papillae, column more or less elongated, usually with adhesive verrucae in its upper part. Currently, the species A. flosculifera has a wider distribution compared to its congeners, it has been reported throughout West America and East Africa. This project will study a complex of individuals from different populations of the species A. flosculifera. The potential for finding cryptic species is uncertain because there are no studies on this species from a molecular point of view or comparisons at the population level. This project proposes the collection of A. flosculifera specimens in the rocky intertidal of eight localities (four countries) in East America and West Africa and the design of new target-capture baits for sequencing of ultraconserved elements (UCEs)/exons using target enrichment (Illumina) sequencing. To achieve this objective, two sequencing methods (Illumina and Oxford Nanopore) will be used for whole-genome description and transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) of a specimen of the locality of Saco da Ribeira, Ubatuba (São Paulo State, Brazil). The target capture bait data will be used for phylogeographic and species delimitation analyses of the different populations of the A. flosculifera complex. It is expected that this study will contribute to the knowledge of the species, and to understand its evolutionary history and molecular composition in more detail. (AU)