Multiple Nuclear Gene Phylogenetic Analysis of the Evolution of Dioecy and Sex Chromosomes in the Genus Silene

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0021915
• Publication Date: 2011-08-10T20:45:35Z
• Authors: Gabriel A. B. Marais; Alan Forrest; Esther Kamau; Jos Käfer; Vincent Daubin; Deborah Charlesworth
• Keywords: Silene

In the plant genus Silene, separate sexes and sex chromosomes are believed to have evolved twice. Silene species that wholly or largely hermaphroditic assumed represent ancestral state from which dioecy evolved. This assumption is important for choice of outgroup inferring genetic chromosomal changes involved in evolution dioecy, but mainly based on data a single locus (ITS). To establish order events more clearly, inform choice, we therefore carried out (i) multi-nuclear-gene phylogenetic analyses 14 (including 7 hermaphrodite gynodioecious species), representing both clades with dioecious members, plus distantly related outgroup, (ii) BayesTraits character analysis dioecy. We confirm two origins within this agreement recent work comparing species. conclude after origin clade includes only S. latifolia its closest relatives. estimate emerged soon split ancestor viscosa, probable non-dioecious relative among included our study.