bioRxiv Science⌕ Search
Home/Archive/bioRxiv

bioRxiv · 10.1101/732834

Assignment of frost tolerant coast redwood trees of unknown origin to populations within their natural range using nuclear and chloroplast microsatellite genetic markers

Breidenbach, N.·Gailing, O.·Krutovsky, K. V.
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Considering climate change and expected changes in temperature and precipitation, some introduced timber species are prospective for growing in Germany or Europe to produce valuable wood products and support sustainable forestry. The Californian tree, coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens [D. Don] Endl.) is one of such species due to its excellent wood properties and high growth rate. It is sensitive to the freezing temperatures, but several trees of unknown origin introduced to Germany decades ago demonstrated high frost tolerance, and their propagated cuttings were planted all over German botanic gardens and arboreta. The knowledge of their origin within the natural distribution range could help us identify the potential genetic resources of frost resistant coast redwood genotypes. Therefore, both trees of unknown origin in Germany (G) and two reference data sets representing the \"Kuser provenance test\" established in 1990 in France (F) and samples collected in California (C) with known origin were genotyped using 18 microsatellite markers including 12 nuclear and six chloroplast simple sequence repeat (cpSSR) markers. The number of haplotypes found in the data sets based on six cpSSR markers was surprisingly very high. These markers were used to assign the German frost resistant trees (G) to the two reference data sets (F and C). The genetic structure among California samples (C) based on nSSR and cpSSR markers was very weak and mainly due to northern and southern clusters separated by the San Francisco Bay as a geographic barrier between coast redwood populations confirming previously published data. It was impossible to confidently assign frost tolerant trees (G) to single native populations, but rather to either the northern or southern cluster. However, the existing frost tolerant genotypes can already be used to establish commercial coast redwood plantation for future German forestry.

Source connections

Explore related subjects

geneticsPreprint

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Breidenbach, N., Gailing, O., Krutovsky, K. V.. 2019-08-12. Assignment of frost tolerant coast redwood trees of unknown origin to populations within their natural range using nuclear and chloroplast microsatellite genetic markers. https://doi.org/10.1101/732834

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

bioRxiv2026

The histone demethylase Kdm5 and the ARGONAUTE proteins Piwi and Aubergine regulate female abdominal pigmentation in Drosophila melanogaster

Insect pigmentation is an ecologically critical trait influencing many physiological processes. In Drosophila melanogaster, abdominal pigmentation is sexually dimorphic: males have fully pigmented posterior segments, while females exhibit a posterior melanin stripe. Pigmentation relies on the expression of pigmentation genes that encode enzymes involved in pigment synthesis. These genes are tightly regulated during pupal and young adult stages. To expand the gene regulatory network of pigmentation genes, we conducted an RNAi screen using the yellow-Gal4 driver, expressed during the pupal stage in abdominal epidermis. One of the candidates from this screen, Kdm5, encodes a histone demethylase erasing the H3K4me3 histone mark catalyzed by the histone methyl-transferase Trithorax (Trx). We show that Kdm5 down-regulation reduces abdominal pigmentation, mimicking trx down-regulation. Kdm5 activates melanin production through regulation of the pigmentation gene tan. Transcriptomic analyses reveal that Kdm5 and Trx share many targets in pupal abdominal epidermis, including piRNA pathway components such as piwi and aubergine. These piRNA components, originally associated with transposon silencing in the germline, also function in some somatic tissues such as the nervous system, the fat body or the gut. We demonstrate that Piwi and Aubergine participate in female abdominal pigmentation establishment, without evident piRNA production. We also show that Kdm5 and Piwi act not only in pupal abdominal epidermis but also in pupal fat body. This study therefore expands the regulatory network of pigmentation genes. It identifies a new somatic function for Kdm5 and Piwi and reveals a role for pupal fat body in female abdominal pigmentation regulation.

genetics↗
bioRxiv2026

Genetic diversity within and between polyploid sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) families obtained via caryopsis using microsatellite markers and multicategory model

Genetic diversity analyses are essential for sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) breeding programs. Crossbreeding, based on genetic distances between parental plants, is a tool used to increase genetic variability and enhance plant selection; however, quantifying variation in highly polyploid species remains a challenge. The present study aimed to evaluate the diversity within and between 12 families of sugarcane derived from caryopses, analyzing 120 individual seedlings arranged in an augmented block design. Genotyping was performed using primers for 16 microsatellite loci, five simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci, and 11 expressed sequence tag-SSR (EST-SSR) loci. To accurately account for polyploidy, similarity calculations were performed using Bruvos distances among individuals and RST distances among the families. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicated that most of the genetic variability was within families (72%), with only 28% found between them. This high level of intra-family variation demonstrates that a significant reservoir of genetic diversity remains available within the crosses. The highest genetic similarity was observed between the families RB986952 x RB986960 and RB036122 x RB03611, whereas the lowest genetic similarity was observed between the families RB97319 x RB966928 and RB106802 x RB855036. Although the evaluated families shared high genetic similarity, the pronounced genetic variation within them demonstrates a robust recombination potential, indicating that the genetic basis of sugarcane can be better explored using the high variability that already exists in the selection of desirable morpho-agronomic characteristics within the families. Furthermore, this study highlights the importance of using appropriate distances for diversity studies with codominant markers, such as microsatellites, in polyploid species.

genetics↗
bioRxiv2026

Optimizing DNA extraction from environmentally degraded bone samples for molecular identification of cetacean species

Molecular identification of cetacean bone remains can be limited by DNA degradation and the presence of PCR inhibitors. Here, we present an optimized DNA extraction protocol based on a total demineralization method for environmentally exposed cetacean bones. The protocol uses 100 mg of bone powder, 24 h digestion with EDTA, N-lauroylsarcosine, and proteinase K, followed by a modified silica-column purification. Nine environmentally degraded bone samples representing eight individuals were processed. DNA concentrations ranged from 7.3 to 57.1 ng/uL (mean SD = 25.91- 13.91 ng/uL). The mitochondrial cytochrome b gene was successfully amplified from all samples using conventional PCR, and five samples (55.6%) yielded sequences suitable for downstream analysis. BLASTn identified Balaenoptera physalus as the closest database match for all recovered sequences, and phylogenetic analysis further supported their association with B. physalus reference sequences. These results demonstrate that the proposed protocol provides a practical approach for recovering amplifiable and molecularly informative mitochondrial DNA from environmentally degraded cetacean bone material, facilitating molecular identification from challenging skeletal remains.

genetics↗