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Chloroplast DNA diversity of the dioecious European tree Ilex aquifolium L. (English holly)
Author(s) -
Rendell S.,
Ennos R. A.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
molecular ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.619
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1365-294X
pISSN - 0962-1083
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-294x.2003.01934.x
Subject(s) - biology , evergreen , chloroplast dna , dioecy , ecology , glacial period , phylogeography , refugium (fishkeeping) , mitochondrial dna , genetic diversity , botany , genome , pollen , phylogenetics , genetics , paleontology , population , habitat , gene , demography , sociology
Variation in the chloroplast genome of Ilex aquifolium (English holly), a dioecious evergreen tree native to south, west and central Europe, was analysed using polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphisms (PCR‐RFLPs) and microsatellites. Differentiation between populations was high ( G ST = 0.595) and evidence for phylogeographical structure was detected ( N ST = 0.697, significantly higher than G ST ). Two chloroplast lineages were inferred originating from putative glacial refugia in southern Europe (Iberia, Italy and possibly the Balkans). The G ST value was higher than reported for endozoochorous hermaphrodite species and for anemochorous dioecious species investigated over a similar geographical scale. It appears that dioecy has contributed to strong differentiation between refugia and that this has been maintained following postglacial recolonization as a result of limited seed flow. Palynological records for I. aquifolium are poor, thus these results give an important insight into patterns of glacial isolation and postglacial recolonization of this species.