Ursprung, Speziation, Ausbreitung und intraspezifische Differenzierung arktischer und antarktischer Schlangensterne der Gattung Ophiocten: Hinweise aus vergleichenden Untersuchungen molekulargenetischer Signaturen

脆星(棘皮目：蛇夫总科)已被确定为北极和南极海洋底栖生态系统的关键要素。然而，尽管它们具有一般的生态意义，但关于许多物种的起源、物种形成、分类地位和与生物特征(生命周期和繁殖模式)和地质历史(板块构造和气候振荡)有关的分布范围的信息很少。因此，我们提出了一个丰富而广泛的Ophiocten属的案例研究，以协调北极、大西洋和南极物种的系统发育关系和最近的生物地理分布模式与进化时间尺度上的剧烈环境变化过程。分子方法将用于阐明(I)物种和(Ii)种群水平的遗传相似模式：将利用对各种分子遗传特征的比较分析来推断选定物种之间的系统发育关系，以便描述极地海洋物种形成和殖民的过程，并解决密切相关类群的分类地位，以及(Ii)跟踪浮游幼虫的扩散路线和识别不同的遗传种群。

Brittle stars (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea) have been identified as key elements of benthic ecosystems in both Arctic and Antarctic seas. However, despite their general ecological significance, there is only scarce information for many species with respect to origin, speciation, taxonomic status and distribution range in relation to biological traits (life cycle and reproduction mode) and geological history (plate tectonics and climate oscillations). Therefore, we propose a case study on the abundant and widespread genus Ophiocten in order to reconcile patterns in phylogenetic relationship and recent biogeographic distribution of Arctic, Atlantic and Antarctic species with the course of drastic environmental changes at evolutionary time scales. Molecular methods will be applied to elucidate genetic similarity patterns at both (i) species and (ii) population level: The comparative analysis of various molecular genetic signatures will be used (i) to deduce the phylogenetic relationships between selected species in order to describe the course of speciation and colonization of polar seas and to solve the taxonomic status of closely related taxa, as well as (ii) to track the dispersal routes of meroplanktonic larvae and to identify genetically distinct populations.