Abstract Detail

Systematics

Siekkinen, Andy [1].

Full plastome phylogenetics of Hechtia (Bromeliaceae, Hechtioideae): Insights into phylogenetics and plastome evolution in a non-model organism.

Hechtia s.l. (77 species), the sole genus in the subfamily Hechtioideae of the Bromeliaceae, represents an isolated lineage of bromeliads restricted to North America. This morphologically diverse group is greatly understudied despite having a number of interesting traits—including dioecy, ovary position variation, leaf characters, and growth patterns—that should prove interesting to study in an evolutionary framework. The only published molecular phylogeny based on three plastid and one nuclear loci, this study utilized Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) approaches to infer evolutionary relationships to begin testing evolutionary and taxonomic hypotheses. The primary goal of this research is to reconstruct a highly resolved, well-supported phylogenomic hypothesis of the majority of species of Hechtia using complete plastomes (Genome Skimming) to clarify evolutionary history and enable future the investigation of evolutionary questions. Here, I present the results and discuss unexpected insights into the molecular evolution of the plastome including gene deletion and degradation typically seen in hemiparasite plant lineages. These results suggest closer scrutiny of plastomes in other lineages is warranted. The phylogenomic hypothesis from this research also provides a solid foundation to support future comparative analyses of morphological and functional traits, biogeography and ecology across the entire lineage.

1 - Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 1500 N. College Ave., Claremont, CA, 91711, United States

Keywords:
Phylogenetics
Plastome evolution
Bromeliaceae.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: COOL1, ASPT Cooley Award Talks
Location: Tucson C/Starr Pass
Date: Tuesday, July 30th, 2019
Time: 11:30 AM
Number: COOL1013
Abstract ID:1056
Candidate for Awards:George R. Cooley Award