Introgression, phylogeography, and genomic species cohesion in the eastern North American white oak syngameon

Molecular Ecology
By: , and 

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Abstract

Hybridization and interspecific gene flow play a substantial role in the evolution of plant taxa. The eastern North American white oak syngameon, a group of approximately 15 ecologically, morphologically and genomically distinguishable species, has long been recognised as a model system for studying introgressive hybridization in temperate trees. However, the prevalence, genomic context and environmental correlates of introgression in this system remain largely unknown. To assess introgression in the eastern North American white oak syngameon and population structure within the widespread Quercus macrocarpa, we conducted a rangewide survey of Q. macrocarpa and four sympatric eastern North American white oak species. Using a Hyb-Seq approach, we assembled a dataset of 3412 thinned single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 445 enriched target loci including 62 genes putatively associated with various ecological functions, as well as associated intronic regions and some off-target intergenic regions (not associated with the exons). Admixture analysis and hybrid class inference demonstrated species coherence despite hybridization and introgressive gene flow (due to backcrossing of F1s to one or both parents). Additionally, we recovered a genetic structure within Q. macrocarpa associated with latitude. Generalised linear mixed models (GLMMs) indicate that proximity to range edge predicts interspecific admixture, but rates of genetic differentiation do not appear to vary between putative functional gene classes. Our study suggests that gene flow between eastern North American white oak species may not be as rampant as previously assumed and that hybridization is most strongly predicted by proximity to a species' range margin.

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Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Introgression, phylogeography, and genomic species cohesion in the eastern North American white oak syngameon
Series title Molecular Ecology
DOI 10.1111/mec.17822
Volume 34
Issue 21
Publication Date June 09, 2025
Year Published 2025
Language English
Publisher Wiley
Contributing office(s) Fort Collins Science Center
Description e17822, 22 p.
Country Canada, Mexico, United States
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