Patterns of genomic differentiation and evolution of reproductive barriers among two hybridizing species of Pitcairnia (Bromeliaceae)

• Grant number: 23/18306-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: May 15, 2024
• End date: August 24, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Plant Genetics
• Principal Investigator: Clarisse Palma da Silva
• Grantee: Marília Manuppella Tavares
• Supervisor: Loren Henry Rieseberg
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of British Columbia, Vancouver (UBC), Canada
• Associated to the scholarship: 22/09509-2 - Patterns of genomic differentiation and evolution of reproductive barriers among four hybridizing species of Pitcairnia (Bromeliaceae), BP.DR

Abstract

Speciation is a continuous and complex process which consists of the gradual accumulation of changes and the evolution of reproductive isolation. Here, we will investigate the divergence process of two species of Pitcairnia genus (Bromeliaceae). P. albiflos and P. staminea adapted to naturally fragmented environments in the Atlantic Rainforest. These species have a high population structure and despite strong reproductive barriers previously described, hybridize in the wild. In this project, we will use high-resolution genomic data and a set of complex statistics and bioinformatics tools to study sympatric and allopatric populations. Thereby, we aim to investigate the genomic patterns of sympatric and allopatric populations and hybrids, the genomic architecture of speciation with gene flow and the evolution of reproductive barriers between these two species of Pitcairnia. Thus, we aim to test the reinforcement hypothesis, by analyzing the differences between sympatric and allopatric genomics landscapes of differentiation as well as investigate the role of SVs in the process of divergence with gene flow of these two Neotropical Bromeliads species.