Journal article

Publication year: 2024

Journal: Plants

Volume number: 13

Issue number: 5

ISSN: 2223-7747

Open access status: Gold

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13050635

Publisher: MDPI

Abstract: 
The main aim of the present study has been the completion of genome size data for the diverse arctic-alpine A. ciliata species complex, with special focus on the unexplored arctic taxon A. pseudofrigida, the north-European A. norvegica, and A. gothica from Gotland (Sweden). Altogether, 46 individuals of these three Nordic taxa have been sampled from seven different regions and their genome size estimated using flow cytometry. Three other alpine taxa in the A. ciliata complex (A. multicaulis, A. ciliata subsp. ciliata, and A. ciliata subsp. bernensis) were also collected and analyzed for standardization purposes, comprising 20 individuals from six regions. A mean 2c value of 1.65 pg of DNA was recorded for A. pseudofrigida, 2.80 pg for A. norvegica, and 4.14 pg for A. gothica, as against the reconfirmed 2c value of 1.63 pg DNA for the type taxon A. ciliata subsp. ciliata. Our results presenting the first estimations of genome sizes for the newly sampled taxa, corroborate ploidy levels described in the available literature, with A. pseudofrigida being tetraploid (2n = 4x = 40), A. norvegica possessing predominantly 2n = 8x = 80, and A. gothica with 2n = 10x = 100. The present study also reconfirms genome size and ploidy level estimations published previously for the alpine members of this species complex. Reflecting a likely complex recent biogeographic history, the A. ciliata species group comprises a polyploid arctic-alpine species complex characterized by reticulate evolution, polyploidizations and hybridizations, probably associated with rapid latitudinal and altitudinal migrations in the Pleistocene-Holocene period.

Harvard Citation style: Kozlowski, G., Fragniere, Y., Clement, B., Gilg, O., Sittler, B., Lang, J., et al. (2024) Genome Size in the Arenaria ciliata Species Complex (Caryophyllaceae), with Special Focus on Northern Europe and the Arctic, Plants, 13(5), Article 635. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13050635

APA Citation style: Kozlowski, G., Fragniere, Y., Clement, B., Gilg, O., Sittler, B., Lang, J., Eidesen, P., Lang, S., Wasowicz, P., & Meade, C. (2024). Genome Size in the Arenaria ciliata Species Complex (Caryophyllaceae), with Special Focus on Northern Europe and the Arctic. Plants. 13(5), Article 635. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13050635