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Evolutionary patterns in the antR-Cor gene in the dwarf dogwood complex (Cornus, Cornaceae)

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Abstract

The evolutionary pattern of the myc-like anthocyanin regulatory gene antR-Cor was examined in the dwarf dogwood species complex (Cornus Subgenus Arctocrania) that contains two diploid species (C. canadensis and C. suecica), their putative hybrids with intermediate phenotypes, and a tetraploid derivative (C. unalaschkensis). Full-length sequences of this gene (∼4 kb) were sequenced and characterized for 47 dwarf dogwood samples representing all taxa categories from 43 sites in the Pacific Northwest. Analysis of nucleotide diversity indicated departures from neutral evolution, due most likely to local population structure. Neighbor-joining and haplotype network analyses show that sequences from the tetraploid and diploid intermediates are much more strongly diverged from C. suecica than from C. canadensis, and that the intermediate phenotypes may represent an ancestral group to C. canadensis rather than interspecific hybrids. Seven amino acid mutations that are potentially linked to myc-like anthocyanin regulatory gene function correlate with petal colors differences that characterize the divergence between two diploid species and the tetraploid species in this complex. The evidence provides a working hypothesis for testing the role of the gene in speciation and its link to the petal coloration. Sequencing and analysis of additional nuclear genes will be necessary to resolve questions about the evolution of the dwarf dogwood complex.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the following people for their help with the study: Brian Cassel for assistance with sequencing; Jingen (Jim) Qi, Christian Brochmann, Margaret Ptacek, and Jean Schulenberg for plant sample collection; Nina Gardner for DNA extraction and morphological identification; members of the Xiang lab for a variety of help and discussion; Becky Boston for using her lab space in the experiments; and, Tom Wentworth and two anonymous reviewers for critically reading the manuscript. This study is supported by Faculty Research Grants from Idaho State University and North Carolina State University and NSF grant DEB-0129069 to Q.-Y.X., and Karling Graduate Student Research Award from Botanical Society of America and Deep Gene Travel Award from Deep Gene Research Coordination Network (NSF DEB-0090227 funded to B. D. Mishler) to C.F.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Botany, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7612, USA

    Chuanzhu Fan & Qiu-Yun (Jenny) Xiang

  2. Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, 1101 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Chuanzhu Fan

  3. Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, 27402-6174, USA

    David L. Remington

  4. Department of Genetics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7614, USA

    Michael D. Purugganan

  5. Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7613, USA

    Brian M. Wiegmann

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  1. Chuanzhu Fan
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  2. Qiu-Yun (Jenny) Xiang
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  3. David L. Remington
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  4. Michael D. Purugganan
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  5. Brian M. Wiegmann
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Correspondence to Qiu-Yun (Jenny) Xiang.

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Fan, C., Xiang, QY.(., Remington, D.L. et al. Evolutionary patterns in the antR-Cor gene in the dwarf dogwood complex (Cornus, Cornaceae). Genetica 130, 19–34 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10709-006-0016-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10709-006-0016-3

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