DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Tracking Timing of Migration and Diversification Across North and South America in Agalinis (Orobanchaceae)

来自不同生物群的生物体的基本进化史或系统发育为理解这些谱系在地理上起源于哪里、它们随后如何多样化以及这些生物群在过去是如何组装的提供了一个框架。该项目探索了木兰(Orobanchaceae)的进化关系，这是一种约有70种的开花植物属，具有新的世界分布，并与南美洲两个公认的生物多样性热点地区的多样性中心：安第斯山脉和巴西的塞拉多。Aagalinis是研究两大洲之间以及安第斯山脉和塞拉多之间的历史生物地理和多样性，以及快速辐射到南美洲后的形态演变模式的理想分支。除了使用标准的系统发育和分化时间估计方法外，这项研究还将使用一种新开发的多物种合并方法来估计南美洲无尾两栖动物分支内的物种树和分化时间。我们的目标是：1)建立第一个大样本的无尾轮虫系统发育史；2)使用标准的系统发育和新的南美分支合并方法估计物种树和分歧时间；3)调查北美和南美洲之间以及南美洲境内安第斯山脉和塞拉多山脉之间的迁徙和多样化，努力将多样性的潜在变化与地质和古气候重建联系起来；4)调查形态特征的演变。这项研究的用处超出了黑线亚目的系统学范畴，不仅对南美洲谱系的多样性和特征进化的研究，而且对新热带地区的比较系统发育研究都将是一项有价值的贡献。该项目广泛依赖已建立的国际合作，特别是在巴西。研究结果将通过同行评议的出版物、在国家会议上的发言以及通过my-ants.org门户网站传播。田间植物的照片已经存放在寄生植物收藏网站上，该网站为研究人员和公众提供信息。联合PI正在指导一个与本文概述的研究重叠的小项目中的一名本科生，并将在2013年指导一名来自USP的实验室交换的巴西本科生。此外，联合PI将继续参与NSF支持的种植科学在线高中辅导计划，进一步促进拟议研究的教育影响。

The underlying evolutionary history, or phylogeny, of organisms from diverse biomes provide a framework for understanding where these lineages originated geographically, how they have subsequently diversified, and how these biomes were assembled in the past. This project explores evolutionary relationships in Agalinis (Orobanchaceae), a flowering plant genus of approximately 70 species with a New Word distribution and with South American centers of diversity in two recognized biodiversity hotspots: the Andes and the Cerrado of Brazil. Agalinis is an ideal clade for investigating historical biogeography and diversification between the two continents and between the Andes and Cerrado, as well as patterns of morphological evolution following a rapid radiation into South America. In addition to using standard phylogenetic and divergence time estimation approaches, this research will also employ a newly developed multi-species coalescent approach for estimation of the species tree and divergence times within the South American clade of Agalinis. Our goals are to: 1) assemble the first broadly-sampled phylogeny of Agalinis, 2) estimate the species tree and divergence times, using both standard phylogenetic and new coalescent methods for the South American clade, 3) investigate migration and diversification between North and South America and between the Andes and the Cerrado within South America, with efforts to correlate potential shifts in diversification with geological and paleoclimatic reconstructions, and 4) investigate morphological character evolution. The utility of this research extends beyond the systematics of Agalinis and will be a valuable contribution not only to studies of diversification and character evolution of lineages in South America, but also to comparative phylogenetic research in the Neotropics. This project relies extensively on established international collaborations, particularly in Brazil. The results of the research will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, presentations at national conferences, and through the my-plant.org web portal. Photos of plants in the field have already been deposited with the Parasitic Plant Collection, a website which provides information to researchers and the public. The co-PI is supervising an undergraduate student on a small project overlapping with the research outlined here, and will mentor a Brazilian undergraduate in a lab exchange from USP in 2013. Additionally, the co-PI will continue her involvement with the NSF-supported Planting Science online high school mentoring program, furthering the educational impact of the proposed research.