Katarzyna A. Jadwiszczak, Stanisław Kłosowski, Iwona Zalewska, Agata Banaszek, Agnieszka Chrzanowska. (2017). Genetic diversity and sexual reproduction in relict populations of Betula nana. Silva Fennica vol. 51 no. 2 article id 5643. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.5643

Keywords: flowering; AFLP; dwarf birch; meiotic recombination; seed germination

Highlights: Genetic diversity parameters and meiotic recombination frequencies in the relict populations were comparable to those from widespread localities; Contribution of seeds without ovule was very high; Fully developed seeds germinated better in central populations; Significant differences of groundwater parameters were observed between relict and central populations.

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In the present study, the impact of geographical isolation and habitat conditions on genetic diversity and sexual reproduction was tested in four relict populations of dwarf birch Betula nana L. in Poland and Belarus. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) method revealed that the endangered central European stands were not genetically extirpated compared with the widespread localities from Finland and Russia, which can result from infrequent outcrossing events in long-living clonal populations. However, genetic clustering methods indicated significant differentiation of the Polish populations because of their small sizes and long-term geographical isolation. Considerable numbers of empty seeds were observed in both relict and central locations, although fully developed seeds germinated better in widespread populations. Analysis of groundwater chemical parameters indicated that two relict populations were significantly different from the remaining samples with respect to pH, electrical conductivity and concentrations of phosphorus ions, which can also influence the efficiency of sexual reproduction. In the light of results obtained it seems that endangered B. nana localities are relatively stable.

Jadwiszczak, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, Ciołkowskiego 1J, 15-245 Białystok, Poland http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9345-8891 E-mail: jadwiszczak2010@gmail.com
Kłosowski, Department of Environment Protection and Modelling, The Jan Kochanowski University, Świętokrzyska 15, 25-406 Kielce, Poland E-mail: stanislaw.klosowski@ujk.kielce.pl
Zalewska, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Białystok, Mickiewicza 2a, 15-222 Białystok, Poland E-mail: iwonazalewska1988@gmail.com
Banaszek, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, Ciołkowskiego 1J, 15-245 Białystok, Poland E-mail: banaszek@uwb.edu.pl
Chrzanowska, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, Ciołkowskiego 1J, 15-245 Białystok, Poland E-mail: maga.chrzanowska@gmail.com

article id 905, category Research article

Katarzyna A. Jadwiszczak, Danuta Drzymulska, Agata Banaszek, Piotr Jadwiszczak. (2012). Population history, genetic variation and conservation status of the endangered birch species Betula nana L. in Poland. Silva Fennica vol. 46 no. 4 article id 905. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.905

Keywords: Betula nana; genetic diversity; microsatellites; conservation genetics; cpDNA; isolation

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The effective conservation of species requires data on the levels and distribution of genetic diversity within and among populations. In this study, we estimated the genetic variation in three isolated populations of Betula nana in Poland. An analysis of 11 nuclear microsatellites revealed moderate mean heterozygosities (H_O=0.556, H_E=0.562), low mean number of alleles per locus (A=4.57) and no inbreeding in the total sample. An M-ratio test indicated that each population had experienced a severe bottleneck in the past. Tests for heterozygosity excess revealed that a significant decrease in the numbers of individuals in two populations had occurred quite recently. The large number of private alleles and very restricted number of migrants between populations (Nm=0.35) strongly suggest that genetic drift and geographic isolation are the primary factors responsible for the reduction of genetic variation in the Polish populations of B. nana. We detected two cpDNA haplotypes in the study populations, which can be explained in terms of either the genetic drift acting on the relict localities or a postglacial recolonisation from distinct refugia. Palynological data indicated that one refugium could be located in the Carpathians and their northern foreland. The primary threat to B. nana in Poland is the overgrowth of its habitats by competing species, which has likely resulted in a lack of generative reproduction in the mountain populations.

Jadwiszczak, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, wierkowa 20B, 15-950 Białystok, Poland E-mail: kszalaj@uwb.edu.pl
Drzymulska, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, wierkowa 20B, 15-950 Białystok, Poland E-mail: dd@nn.pl
Banaszek, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, wierkowa 20B, 15-950 Białystok, Poland E-mail: ab@nn.pl
Jadwiszczak, Institute of Biology, University of Białystok, wierkowa 20B, 15-950 Białystok, Poland E-mail: pj@nn.pl

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