Heritable differences in abundance of bacterial rhizosphere taxa are correlated with fungal necrotrophic pathogen resistance.

Host-microbe interactions are increasingly recognized as important drivers of organismal health, growth, longevity and community-scale ecological processes. However, less is known about how genetic variation affects hosts' associated microbiomes and downstream phenotypes. We demonstrate that sunflower (Helianthus annuus) harbours substantial, heritable variation in microbial communities under field conditions.

Mitochondrial genomes in the iconic reindeer lichens: Architecture, variation, and synteny across multiple evolutionary scales.

Variation in mitochondrial genome composition across intraspecific, interspecific, and higher taxonomic scales has been little studied in lichen obligate symbioses. is one of the most diverse and ecologically important lichen genera, with over 500 species representing an array of unique morphologies and chemical profiles. Here, we assess mitochondrial genome diversity and variation in this flagship genus, with focused sampling of two clades of the "true" reindeer lichens, subgenus , and additional genomes from nine outgroup taxa.

Genomic Evidence That Governmentally Produced Poorly Represents Genetic Variation Available in State Markets.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is the sole producer of for research purposes in the United States, including medical investigation. Previous research established that cannabinoid profiles in the NIDA varieties lacked diversity and potency relative to the produced commercially. Additionally, microsatellite marker analyses have established that the NIDA varieties are genetically divergent form varieties produced in the private legal market.

Gene copy number is associated with phytochemistry in .

Gene copy number (CN) variation is known to be important in nearly every species where it has been examined. Alterations in gene CN may provide a fast way of acquiring diversity, allowing rapid adaptation under strong selective pressures, and may also be a key component of standing genetic variation within species. plants produce a distinguishing set of secondary metabolites, the cannabinoids, many of which have medicinal utility.

A taxonomically broad metagenomic survey of 339 species spanning 57 families suggests cystobasidiomycete yeasts are not ubiquitous across all lichens.

Premise: Lichens are fungi that enter into obligate symbioses with photosynthesizing organisms (algae, cyanobacteria). Traditional narratives of lichens as binary symbiont pairs have given way to their recognition as dynamic metacommunities. Basidiomycete yeasts, particularly of the genus Cyphobasidium, have been inferred to be widespread and important components of lichen metacommunities.

Extensive chloroplast genome rearrangement amongst three closely related Halamphora spp. (Bacillariophyceae), and evidence for rapid evolution as compared to land plants.

Diatoms are the most diverse lineage of algae, but the diversity of their chloroplast genomes, particularly within a genus, has not been well documented. Herein, we present three chloroplast genomes from the genus Halamphora (H. americana, H.

Genome streamlining via complete loss of introns has occurred multiple times in lichenized fungal mitochondria.

Reductions in genome size and complexity are a hallmark of obligate symbioses. The mitochondrial genome displays clear examples of these reductions, with the ancestral alpha-proteobacterial genome size and gene number having been reduced by orders of magnitude in most descendent modern mitochondrial genomes. Here, we examine patterns of mitochondrial evolution specifically looking at intron size, number, and position across 58 species from 21 genera of lichenized Ascomycete fungi, representing a broad range of fungal diversity and niches.

Genomic insights into the mitochondria of 11 eastern North American species of .

is among the most species-rich genera of lichens globally. Species in this lineage, commonly referred to as reindeer lichens, are ecologically important in numerous regions worldwide. In some locations, species of can comprise the dominant groundcover, and are a major food source for caribou and other mammals.

Comparative analysis of the mitochondrial genomes of six newly sequenced diatoms reveals group II introns in the barcoding region of cox1.

Diatoms are the most diverse lineage of algae and at the base of most aquatic food webs, but only 11 of their mitochondrial genomes have been described. Herein, we present the mitochondrial genomes of six diatom species, including: Melosira undulata, Nitzschia alba, Surirella sp., Entomoneis sp.

The complete mitochondrial genomes of five lichenized fungi in the genus (Ascomycota: Parmeliaceae).

Known colloquially as 'Old Man's Beard', is a genus of lichenized Ascomycete fungi characterized by having a fruticose growth form and cartilaginous central axis. The complete mitochondrial genomes of , , , , and were sequenced using Illumina data and then assembled . These mitogenomes ranged in size from 52,486 bp () to 94,464 bp ().

Reductions in complexity of mitochondrial genomes in lichen-forming fungi shed light on genome architecture of obligate symbioses.

Symbioses among co-evolving taxa are often marked by genome reductions such as a loss of protein-coding genes in at least one of the partners as a means of reducing redundancy or intergenomic conflict. To explore this phenomenon in an iconic yet under-studied group of obligate symbiotic organisms, mitochondrial genomes of 22 newly sequenced and annotated species of lichenized fungi were compared to 167 mitochondrial genomes of nonlichenized fungi. Our results demonstrate the first broad-scale loss of atp9 from mitochondria of lichenized fungi.

The complete mitochondrial genome for .

The following report details the first annotated mitochondrial genome for the Carmagnola variety of , the first reference genome for the Cannabaceae family. The total length is 415,499 bp and contains 54 genes, which sub-divide into 38 protein-coding genes, 15 tRNA genes, and 3 rRNA genes.

The complete chloroplast genomes of Cannabis sativa and Humulus lupulus.

Cannabis and Humulus are sister genera comprising the entirety of the Cannabaceae sensu stricto, including C. sativa L. (marijuana, hemp), and H.

Fitness landscape of sympatric pupfishes a useful tool for visualizing speciation.

Arguably the most useful model of evolution emerged from the mind of Sewall Wright when he invented the fitness landscape (Wright 1932). In a recent issue of Molecular Ecology, Martin & Feinstein (2014) investigate the genetics and demographic history of an adaptive radiation of pupfish on San Salvador Island. Since the founder species colonized the island 10,000 years ago, two descendent species have appeared and in several lakes all three species (a durophage, a scale-eater, and the generalist ancestral form) coexist.