DISSERTATION RESEARCH: The geographic and ecological basis of species richness: diversification in Mertensia

论文研究：物种丰富度的地理和生态学基础：梅滕西亚的多样性理解为什么不同地理区域的生物多样性不同是进化生物学和生态学的根本挑战。这项研究将结合系统发育分析、生物地理学和生态学来研究风铃属的多样性，风铃属的物种丰富度在北美西部最大，但也出现在亚洲。这项研究的目的是：(1)建立Mertensia的第一个分子系统发育；(2)对Mertensia的祖先地区进行测试；(3)估计Mertensia？S起源的时间并识别多样性的转变；(4)测试地理和生态变化对多样性比率的影响。叶绿体DNA序列将用于重建物种关系的系统发育假说。时间校准的发展史将被用来检验地理和生态变化的假说。这项研究将有助于解释植物多样性的生态和地理动态，并对理解人为气候变化的影响具有重要意义。研究结果将发表在同行评议的期刊上，在科学会议上发表，并保存在在线数据库中。这项研究的外延将指向本土植物协会、流行期刊，并与STEM教育联盟赞助的国家女孩合作项目合作。

DISSERTATION RESEARCH: The geographic and ecological basis of species richness: diversification in MertensiaUnderstanding why biotic diversity differs among geographic regions is a fundamental challenge in evolutionary biology and ecology. This research will combine phylogenetic analyses with biogeography and ecology to examine diversification of the bluebell genus, Mertensia, which has its greatest species richness in western North America but also occurs in Asia. The research aims to: (1) produce the first molecular phylogeny for Mertensia; (2) test for the ancestral area of Mertensia; (3) estimate the time of Mertensia?s origin and identify shifts in diversification; and (4) test for effects of geographic and ecological change on diversification rates. Chloroplast DNA sequences will be used to reconstruct a phylogenetic hypothesis of species relationships. A time-calibrated phylogeny will be used to test hypotheses of geographic and ecological change. This research will help explain the ecological and geographical dynamics of plant diversification and have implications for understanding effects of anthropogenic climate change. Results will be published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at scientific meetings, and deposited in online databases. Outreach from this research will be directed toward native plant societies, popular periodicals, and work with the National Girls Collaborative Project, sponsored by the STEM Education Coalition.