TY - JOUR A1 - Schedina, Ina Maria A1 - Groth, Detlef A1 - Schlupp, Ingo A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - The gonadal transcriptome of the unisexual Amazon molly Poecilia formosa in comparison to its sexual ancestors, Poecilia mexicana and Poecilia latipinna JF - BMC Genomics N2 - Background The unisexual Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) originated from a hybridization between two sexual species, the sailfin molly (Poecilia latipinna) and the Atlantic molly (Poecilia mexicana). The Amazon molly reproduces clonally via sperm-dependent parthenogenesis (gynogenesis), in which the sperm of closely related species triggers embryogenesis of the apomictic oocytes, but typically does not contribute genetic material to the next generation. We compare for the first time the gonadal transcriptome of the Amazon molly to those of both ancestral species, P. mexicana and P. latipinna. Results We sequenced the gonadal transcriptomes of the P. formosa and its parental species P. mexicana and P. latipinna using Illumina RNA-sequencing techniques (paired-end, 100 bp). De novo assembly of about 50 million raw read pairs for each species was performed using Trinity, yielding 106,922 transcripts for P. formosa, 115,175 for P. latipinna, and 133,025 for P. mexicana after eliminating contaminations. On the basis of sequence similarity comparisons to other teleost species and the UniProt databases, functional annotation, and differential expression analysis, we demonstrate the similarity of the transcriptomes among the three species. More than 40% of the transcripts for each species were functionally annotated and about 70% were assigned to orthologous genes of a closely related species. Differential expression analysis between the sexual and unisexual species uncovered 2035 up-regulated and 564 down-regulated genes in P. formosa. This was exemplary validated for six genes by qRT-PCR. Conclusions We identified more than 130 genes related to meiosis and reproduction within the apomictically reproducing P. formosa. Overall expression of these genes seems to be down-regulated in the P. formosa transcriptome compared to both ancestral species (i.e., 106 genes down-regulated, 29 up-regulated). A further 35 meiosis and reproduction related genes were not found in the P. formosa transcriptome, but were only expressed in the sexual species. Our data support the hypothesis of general down-regulation of meiosis-related genes in the apomictic Amazon molly. Furthermore, the obtained dataset and identified gene catalog will serve as a resource for future research on the molecular mechanisms behind the reproductive mode of this unisexual species. KW - Differential gene expression KW - Gynogenesis KW - Hybrid speciation KW - Meiosis KW - Poecilia formosa KW - Poecilia latipinna KW - Poecilia mexicana Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-017-4382-2 SN - 1471-2164 VL - 19 IS - 12 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - BioMed Central CY - London ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schedina, Ina Maria A1 - Groth, Detlef A1 - Schlupp, Ingo A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - The gonadal transcriptome of the unisexual Amazon molly Poecilia formosa in comparison to its sexual ancestors, Poecilia mexicana and Poecilia latipinna N2 - Abstract Background The unisexual Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) originated from a hybridization between two sexual species, the sailfin molly (Poecilia latipinna) and the Atlantic molly (Poecilia mexicana). The Amazon molly reproduces clonally via sperm-dependent parthenogenesis (gynogenesis), in which the sperm of closely related species triggers embryogenesis of the apomictic oocytes, but typically does not contribute genetic material to the next generation. We compare for the first time the gonadal transcriptome of the Amazon molly to those of both ancestral species, P. mexicana and P. latipinna. Results We sequenced the gonadal transcriptomes of the P. formosa and its parental species P. mexicana and P. latipinna using Illumina RNA-sequencing techniques (paired-end, 100 bp). De novo assembly of about 50 million raw read pairs for each species was performed using Trinity, yielding 106,922 transcripts for P. formosa, 115,175 for P. latipinna, and 133,025 for P. mexicana after eliminating contaminations. On the basis of sequence similarity comparisons to other teleost species and the UniProt databases, functional annotation, and differential expression analysis, we demonstrate the similarity of the transcriptomes among the three species. More than 40% of the transcripts for each species were functionally annotated and about 70% were assigned to orthologous genes of a closely related species. Differential expression analysis between the sexual and unisexual species uncovered 2035 up-regulated and 564 down-regulated genes in P. formosa. This was exemplary validated for six genes by qRT-PCR. Conclusions We identified more than 130 genes related to meiosis and reproduction within the apomictically reproducing P. formosa. Overall expression of these genes seems to be down-regulated in the P. formosa transcriptome compared to both ancestral species (i.e., 106 genes down-regulated, 29 up-regulated). A further 35 meiosis and reproduction related genes were not found in the P. formosa transcriptome, but were only expressed in the sexual species. Our data support the hypothesis of general down-regulation of meiosis-related genes in the apomictic Amazon molly. Furthermore, the obtained dataset and identified gene catalog will serve as a resource for future research on the molecular mechanisms behind the reproductive mode of this unisexual species. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 412 KW - Differential gene expression KW - Gynogenesis KW - Hybrid speciation KW - Meiosis KW - Poecilia formosa KW - Poecilia latipinna KW - Poecilia mexicana Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-409299 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Epp, Laura Saskia A1 - Kruse, Stefan A1 - Kath, Nadja J. A1 - Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph A1 - Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike T1 - Temporal and spatial patterns of mitochondrial haplotype and species distributions in Siberian larches inferred from ancient environmental DNA and modeling T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Changes in species' distributions are classically projected based on their climate envelopes. For Siberian forests, which have a tremendous significance for vegetation-climate feedbacks, this implies future shifts of each of the forest-forming larch (Larix) species to the north-east. However, in addition to abiotic factors, reliable projections must assess the role of historical biogeography and biotic interactions. Here, we use sedimentary ancient DNA and individual-based modelling to investigate the distribution of larch species and mitochondrial haplotypes through space and time across the treeline ecotone on the southern Taymyr peninsula, which at the same time presents a boundary area of two larch species. We find spatial and temporal patterns, which suggest that forest density is the most influential driver determining the precise distribution of species and mitochondrial haplotypes. This suggests a strong influence of competition on the species' range shifts. These findings imply possible climate change outcomes that are directly opposed to projections based purely on climate envelopes. Investigations of such fine-scale processes of biodiversity change through time are possible using paleoenvironmental DNA, which is available much more readily than visible fossils and can provide information at a level of resolution that is not reached in classical palaeoecology. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 1052 KW - ecological genetics KW - ecological modelling KW - palaeoecology KW - plant ecology KW - climate change KW - introgression KW - temperature KW - treeline KW - vegetation KW - mitochondrial haplotypes KW - Siberian larch KW - larch species KW - range shifts KW - vegetation-climate feedbacks KW - ecosystems KW - impacts KW - dynamics Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-468352 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 1052 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Epp, Laura Saskia A1 - Kruse, Stefan A1 - Kath, Nadja J. A1 - Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph A1 - Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike T1 - Temporal and spatial patterns of mitochondrial haplotype and species distributions in Siberian larches inferred from ancient environmental DNA and modeling JF - Scientific reports N2 - Changes in species’ distributions are classically projected based on their climate envelopes. For Siberian forests, which have a tremendous significance for vegetation-climate feedbacks, this implies future shifts of each of the forest-forming larch (Larix) species to the north-east. However, in addition to abiotic factors, reliable projections must assess the role of historical biogeography and biotic interactions. Here, we use sedimentary ancient DNA and individual-based modelling to investigate the distribution of larch species and mitochondrial haplotypes through space and time across the treeline ecotone on the southern Taymyr peninsula, which at the same time presents a boundary area of two larch species. We find spatial and temporal patterns, which suggest that forest density is the most influential driver determining the precise distribution of species and mitochondrial haplotypes. This suggests a strong influence of competition on the species’ range shifts. These findings imply possible climate change outcomes that are directly opposed to projections based purely on climate envelopes. Investigations of such fine-scale processes of biodiversity change through time are possible using paleoenvironmental DNA, which is available much more readily than visible fossils and can provide information at a level of resolution that is not reached in classical palaeoecology. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-35550-w SN - 2045-2322 VL - 8 PB - Nature Publ. Group CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schnitzler, Joseph G. A1 - Reckendorf, Anja A1 - Pinzone, Marianna A1 - Autenrieth, Marijke A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph A1 - Covaci, Adrian A1 - Malarvannan, Govindan A1 - Ruser, Andreas A1 - Das, Krishna A1 - Siebert, Ursula T1 - Supporting evidence for PCB pollution threatening global killer whale population JF - Aquatic Toxicology N2 - A recent Science report predicted the global killer whale population to collapse due to PCB pollution. Here we present empirical evidence, which supports and extends the reports’ statement. In 2016, a neonate male killer whale stranded on the German island of Sylt. Neonatal attributes indicated an age of at least 3 days. The stomach contained ∼20 mL milk residue and no pathologies explaining the cause of death could be detected. Blubber samples presenting low lipid concentrations were analysed for persistent organic pollutants. Skin samples were collected for genotyping of the mitochondrial control region. The blubber PCB concentrations were very high [SPCBs, 225 mg/kg lipid weight (lw)], largely exceeding the PCB toxicity thresholds reported for the onset of immunosuppression [9 mg/kg lw ∑PCB] and for severe reproductive impairment [41 mg/kg lw ∑PCB] reported for marine mammals. Additionally, this individual showed equally high concentrations in p,p’-DDE [226 mg/kg lw], PBDEs [5 mg/kg lw] and liver mercury levels [1.1 μg/g dry weight dw]. These results suggest a high placental transfer of pollutants from mother to foetus. Consequently, blubber and plasma PCB concentrations and calf mortality rates are both high in primiparous females. With such high pollutant levels, this neonate had poor prerequisites for survival. The neonate belonged to Ecotype I (generalist feeder) and carried the mitochondrial haplotype 35 present in about 16% of the North Atlantic killer whale from or close to the North Sea. The relevance of this data becomes apparent in the UK West Coast Community, the UK's only residentorca population, which is currently composed of only eight individuals (each four males and females) and no calves have been reported over the last 19 years.Despite worldwide regulations, PCBs persist in the environment and remain a severe concern for killer whale populations, placing calves at high risk due to the mother-offspring PCB-transfer resulting in a high toxicological burden of the neonates. KW - Killer whale KW - PCB KW - DDT KW - PBDE KW - Mercury KW - North Sea Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquatox.2018.11.008 SN - 0166-445X SN - 1879-1514 VL - 206 SP - 102 EP - 104 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Senczuk, Gabriele A1 - Havenstein, Katja A1 - Milana, Valentina A1 - Ripa, Chiara A1 - De Simone, Emanuela A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph A1 - Castiglia, Riccardo T1 - Spotlight on islands BT - on the origin and diversification of an ancient lineage of the Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus in the western Pontine Islands JF - Scientific reports N2 - Groups of proximate continental islands may conceal more tangled phylogeographic patterns than oceanic archipelagos as a consequence of repeated sea level changes, which allow populations to experience gene flow during periods of low sea level stands and isolation by vicariant mechanisms during periods of high sea level stands. Here, we describe for the first time an ancient and diverging lineage of the Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus from the western Pontine Islands. We used nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences of 156 individuals with the aim of unraveling their phylogenetic position, while microsatellite loci were used to test several a priori insular biogeographic models of migration with empirical data. Our results suggest that the western Pontine populations colonized the islands early during their Pliocene volcanic formation, while populations from the eastern Pontine Islands seem to have been introduced recently. The inter-island genetic makeup indicates an important role of historical migration, probably due to glacial land bridges connecting islands followed by a recent vicariant mechanism of isolation. Moreover, the most supported migration model predicted higher gene flow among islands which are geographically arranged in parallel. Considering the threatened status of small insular endemic populations, we suggest this new evolutionarily independent unit be given priority in conservation efforts. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33326-w SN - 2045-2322 VL - 8 PB - Nature Publ. Group CY - London ER - TY - GEN A1 - Senczuk, Gabriele A1 - Havenstein, Katja A1 - Milana, Valentina A1 - Ripa, Chiara A1 - De Simone, Emanuela A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph A1 - Castiglia, Riccardo T1 - Spotlight on islands BT - on the origin and diversification of an ancient lineage of the Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus in the western Pontine Islands T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Groups of proximate continental islands may conceal more tangled phylogeographic patterns than oceanic archipelagos as a consequence of repeated sea level changes, which allow populations to experience gene flow during periods of low sea level stands and isolation by vicariant mechanisms during periods of high sea level stands. Here, we describe for the first time an ancient and diverging lineage of the Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus from the western Pontine Islands. We used nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences of 156 individuals with the aim of unraveling their phylogenetic position, while microsatellite loci were used to test several a priori insular biogeographic models of migration with empirical data. Our results suggest that the western Pontine populations colonized the islands early during their Pliocene volcanic formation, while populations from the eastern Pontine Islands seem to have been introduced recently. The inter-island genetic makeup indicates an important role of historical migration, probably due to glacial land bridges connecting islands followed by a recent vicariant mechanism of isolation. Moreover, the most supported migration model predicted higher gene flow among islands which are geographically arranged in parallel. Considering the threatened status of small insular endemic populations, we suggest this new evolutionarily independent unit be given priority in conservation efforts. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 991 KW - mitochondrial dna sequences KW - genetic diversity KW - haplotype reconstruction KW - evolutionary history KW - geological evolution KW - population structure KW - Tyrrhenian Sea KW - endemic lizard KW - genotype data KW - biogeography Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-446360 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 991 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Autenrieth, Marijke A1 - Ernst, Anja A1 - Deaville, Rob A1 - Demaret, Fabien A1 - Ijsseldijk, Lonneke L. A1 - Siebert, Ursula A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - Putative origin and maternal relatedness of male sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) recently stranded in the North Sea T2 - Mammalian biology = Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde N2 - The globally distributed sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) has a partly matrilineal social structure with predominant male dispersal. At the beginning of 2016, a total of 30 male sperm whales stranded in five different countries bordering the southern North Sea. It has been postulated that these individuals were on a migration route from the north to warmer temperate and tropical waters where females live in social groups. By including samples from four countries (n = 27), this event provided a unique chance to genetically investigate the maternal relatedness and the putative origin of these temporally and spatially co-occuring male sperm whales. To utilize existing genetic resources, we sequenced 422 bp of the mitochondrial control region, a molecular marker for which sperm whale data are readily available from the entire distribution range. Based on four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the mitochondrial control region, five matrilines could be distinguished within the stranded specimens, four of which matched published haplotypes previously described in the Atlantic. Among these male sperm whales, multiple matrilineal lineages co-occur. We analyzed the population differentiation and could show that the genetic diversity of these male sperm whales is comparable to the genetic diversity in sperm whales from the entire Atlantic Ocean. We confirm that within this stranding event, males do not comprise maternally related individuals and apparently include assemblages of individuals from different geographic regions. (c) 2017 Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Saugetierkunde. Published by Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved. KW - Mitochondrial DNA KW - Maternal relationships KW - Population genetics KW - Migration KW - Marine mammals Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mambio.2017.09.003 SN - 1616-5047 SN - 1618-1476 VL - 88 SP - 156 EP - 160 PB - Elsevier CY - München ER - TY - GEN A1 - Nagel, Rebecca A1 - Kirschbaum, Frank A1 - Engelmann, Jacob A1 - Hofmann, Volker A1 - Pawelzik, Felix A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - Male-mediated species recognition among African weakly electric fishes T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Effective communication among sympatric species is often instrumental for behavioural isolation, where the failure to successfully discriminate between potential mates could lead to less fit hybrid offspring. Discrimination between con- and heterospecifics tends to occur more often in the sex that invests more in offspring production, i.e. females, but males may also mediate reproductive isolation. In this study, we show that among two Campylomormyrus Africanweakly electric fish species, males preferentially associate with conspecific females during choice tests using live fish as stimuli, i.e. when all sensory modalities potentially used for communication were present. We then conducted playback experiments to determine whether the species-specific electric organ discharge (EOD) used for electrocommunication serves as the cue for this conspecific association preference. Interestingly, only C. compressirostris males associated significantly more with the conspecific EOD waveform when playback stimuli were provided, while no such association preference was observed in C. tamandua males. Given our results, the EOD appears to serve, in part, as a male-mediated pre-zygotic isolation mechanism among sympatric species. However, the failure of C. tamandua males to discriminate between con- and heterospecific playback discharges suggests that multiple modalities may be necessary for species recognition in some African weakly electric fish species. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 645 KW - Campylomormyrus KW - communication KW - electric fishes KW - pre-zygotic isolation KW - species recognition Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-425016 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 645 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Nagel, Rebecca A1 - Kirschbaum, Frank A1 - Engelmann, Jacob A1 - Hofmann, Volker A1 - Pawelzik, Felix A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - Male-mediated species recognition among African weakly electric fishes JF - Royal Society Open Science N2 - Effective communication among sympatric species is often instrumental for behavioural isolation, where the failure to successfully discriminate between potential mates could lead to less fit hybrid offspring. Discrimination between con- and heterospecifics tends to occur more often in the sex that invests more in offspring production, i.e. females, but males may also mediate reproductive isolation. In this study, we show that among two Campylomormyrus Africanweakly electric fish species, males preferentially associate with conspecific females during choice tests using live fish as stimuli, i.e. when all sensory modalities potentially used for communication were present. We then conducted playback experiments to determine whether the species-specific electric organ discharge (EOD) used for electrocommunication serves as the cue for this conspecific association preference. Interestingly, only C. compressirostris males associated significantly more with the conspecific EOD waveform when playback stimuli were provided, while no such association preference was observed in C. tamandua males. Given our results, the EOD appears to serve, in part, as a male-mediated pre-zygotic isolation mechanism among sympatric species. However, the failure of C. tamandua males to discriminate between con- and heterospecific playback discharges suggests that multiple modalities may be necessary for species recognition in some African weakly electric fish species. KW - Campylomormyrus KW - communication KW - electric fishes KW - pre-zygotic isolation KW - species recognition Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170443 SN - 2054-5703 VL - 5 IS - 2 PB - Royal Society CY - London ER -