Publication
Title
Limits to gene flow in a cosmopolitan marine planktonic diatom
Author
Abstract
The role of geographic isolation in marine microbial speciation is hotly debated because of the high dispersal potential and large population sizes of planktonic microorganisms and the apparent lack of strong dispersal barriers in the open sea. Here, we show that gene flow between distant populations of the globally distributed, bloom-forming diatom species Pseudo-nitzschia pungens (clade I) is limited and follows a strong isolation by distance pattern. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis implies that under appropriate geographic and environmental circumstances, like the pronounced climatic changes in the Pleistocene, population structuring may lead to speciation and hence may play an important role in diversification of marine planktonic microorganisms. A better understanding of the factors that control population structuring is thus essential to reveal the role of allopatric speciation in marine microorganisms.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - Washington, D.C.
Publication
Washington, D.C. : 2010
ISSN
0027-8424 [Print]
1091-6490 [Online]
DOI
10.1073/PNAS.1001380107
Volume/pages
107 :29 (2010) , p. 12952-12957
ISI
000280144500046
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 02.08.2010
Last edited 25.05.2022
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