Marine isolates of Aspergillus flavus: denizens of the deep or lost at sea?

Most fungal species from marine environments also live on land. It is not clear whether these fungi reach the sea from terrestrial sources as spores or other propagules, or if there are separate ecotypes that live and reproduce in the sea. The emergence of marine diseases has created an urgency to understand the distribution of these fungi.

Evidence for positive selection in putative virulence factors within the Paracoccidioides brasiliensis species complex.

Paracoccidioides brasiliensis is a dimorphic fungus that is the causative agent of paracoccidioidomycosis, the most important prevalent systemic mycosis in Latin America. Recently, the existence of three genetically isolated groups in P. brasiliensis was demonstrated, enabling comparative studies of molecular evolution among P.

Cryptic speciation and recombination in the fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis as revealed by gene genealogies.

Paracoccidioides brasiliensis is the etiologic agent of paracoccidioidomycosis, a disease confined to Latin America and of marked importance in the endemic areas due to its frequency and severity. This species is considered to be clonal according to mycological criteria and has been shown to vary in virulence. To characterize natural genetic variation and reproductive mode in this fungus, we analyzed P.

Evolutionary dynamics and preferential expression of homeologous 18S-5.8S-26S nuclear ribosomal genes in natural and artificial glycine allopolyploids.

Polyploidy is an important evolutionary process in plants, but much remains to be learned about the evolution of gene expression in polyploids. Evolution and expression of the 18S-5.8S-26S ribosomal gene family was investigated at homeologous loci in the Glycine subgenus Glycine perennial soybean polyploid complex, which consists of several diploid genomes that have formed allopolyploids in various combinations, often recurrently.

Multiple origins and nrDNA internal transcribed spacer homeologue evolution in the Glycine tomentella (Leguminosae) allopolyploid complex.

Despite the importance of polyploidy in the evolution of plants, patterns of molecular evolution and genomic interactions following polyploidy are not well understood. Nuclear ribosomal DNA is particularly complex with respect to these genomic interactions. The composition of nrDNA tandem arrays is influenced by intra- and interlocus concerted evolution and their expression is characterized by patterns such as nucleolar dominance.

Internal transcribed spacer repeat-specific primers and the analysis of hybridization in the Glycine tomentella (Leguminosae) polyploid complex.

Polyploid and diploid hybridization is a ubiquitous and evolutionarily important phenomenon in the plant world. Determining the parental species of a hybrid, however, is difficult. Molecular markers such as the nuclear ribosomal DNA gene complex, particularly its internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, have proved powerful in determining hybrid parentage.

Molecular phylogenetics of the Espeletia complex (Asteraceae): evidence from nrDNA ITS sequences on the closest relatives of an Andean adaptive radiation.

The subtribe Espeletiinae (Asteraceae, Heliantheae) comprises morphologically and ecologically diverse plants endemic to the tropical montane paramos of the Andes of Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador. Though the ecophysiology and ecology of this adaptive radiation have been well studied, relationships among taxa in the subtribe and between the subtribe and other taxa in the Heliantheae are poorly known. In this study, sequences from the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of nuclear ribosomal DNA are used to test previous hypotheses about the phylogenetic position of the Espeletiinae within the Heliantheae and to determine which taxa are the subtribe's closest relatives.

An exception to Darwin's syndrome: floral position, protogyny, and insect visitation in Besseya bullii (Scrophulariaceae).

Darwin pointed out that plants with vertical inflorescences are likely to be outcrossed if the inflorescence is acropetalous (flowers from the bottom up), the flowers are protandrous (pollen is dispersed before stigmas are receptive), and pollinators move upward on the inflorescence. This syndrome is common in species pollinated by bees and flies, and very few exceptions are known. We investigated flowering phenology and pollinator behavior in Besseya bullii (Scrophulariaceae) and found that it did not fit Darwin's syndrome.