Annual climatic fluctuations and short-term genetic variation in the eastern spadefoot toad

Cohen, Ortal; Ram, Yoav; Hadany, Lilach; Gafny, Sarig

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-92696-w

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(52 reference statements)

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“…Our results are in line with those of other recent other studies and reviews that have provided evidence of an association between genetic structure and the environment (e.g., Schmidt and Anderson, 2006;McCairns and Bernatchez, 2008;Ortego et al, 2012;Stojak et al, 2019). Further support for an environmental effect on microsatellite variation comes from the study by Cohen et al (2021), which revealed a significant correlation between climatic variation among successive years, primarily the amount of rainfall and number of rainy days, and both microsatellite allelic composition and diversity (15% of the total explained genetic variance). Cohen et al (2021) sampled seven rain pools, which we also sampled for the present study, making their earlier study's results highly relevant.…”

Section: Natural Selectionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…Further support for an environmental effect on microsatellite variation comes from the study by Cohen et al (2021), which revealed a significant correlation between climatic variation among successive years, primarily the amount of rainfall and number of rainy days, and both microsatellite allelic composition and diversity (15% of the total explained genetic variance). Cohen et al (2021) sampled seven rain pools, which we also sampled for the present study, making their earlier study's results highly relevant. However, explaining our results according to the natural selection hypothesis is currently controversial, as most microsatellite loci in the genome are generally thought to be neutral, with allele length changing due to drift.…”

Section: Natural Selectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We used eight published microsatellite loci (Cohen et al, 2021; Supplementary Table 2), a set of genetic markers that is particularly suitable for individual-level analysis (Wan et al, 2004). Genomic DNA samples from P. syriacus were sent to the Evolutionary Genetics Core Facility (EGCF) at Cornell University for genomic library construction via Illumina MiSeq sequencing.…”

Section: Microsatellite Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The effect of habitat and climatic on microsatellite diversity and allele length variation

et al. 2022

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Microsatellite loci have been shown to vary according to environment. We studied allelic length variation and diversity in eight microsatellite loci along a sharp climatic and habitat gradient in Israel, using the eastern spadefoot toad (Pelobates syriacus) as our model system. We found a gradual increase in allele lengths from north to south. We used a distance-based redundancy analysis (dbRDA) to associate between allele length and habitat and climatic measures and found that geography and annual climate explained the significant variation in allele length. We also used additional measurements pertaining to demography, heterozygosity and allelic diversity to explore four different hypotheses that might explain the variations in allele length. Our results suggest that the changes we observed in allele lengths may not be purely random but could be influenced by the differential mutation rate and/or local environmental conditions operating at the different locations.

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Section: Natural Selectionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Natural Selectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Microsatellite Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The effect of habitat and climatic on microsatellite diversity and allele length variation

et al. 2022

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A validated protocol for eDNA-based monitoring of within-species genetic diversity in a pond-breeding amphibian

Zanovello

Girardi

Marchesini

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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In light of the dramatic decline in amphibian biodiversity, new cost-efficient tools to rapidly monitor species abundance and population genetic diversity in space and time are urgently needed. It has been amply demonstrated that the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) for single-species detection and characterization of community composition can increase the precision of amphibian monitoring compared to traditional (observational) approaches. However, it has been suggested that the efficiency and accuracy of the eDNA approach could be further improved by more timely sampling; in addition, the quality of genetic diversity data derived from the same DNA has been confirmed in other vertebrate taxa, but not amphibians. Given the availability of previous tissue-based genetic data, here we use the common frog Rana temporaria Linnaeus, 1758 as our target species and an improved eDNA protocol to: (i) investigate differences in species detection between three developmental stages in various freshwater environments; and (ii) study the diversity of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes detected in eDNA (water) samples, by amplifying a specific fragment of the COI gene (331 base pairs, bp) commonly used as a barcode. Our protocol proved to be a reliable tool for monitoring population genetic diversity of this species, and could be a valuable addition to amphibian conservation and wetland management.

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Distance to coastline modulates morphology and population structure in a coastal amphibian

Lorrain-Soligon

Robin

Lelong³

et al. 2022

Biological Journal of the Linnean Society

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Salinization due to sea-level rise and marine submersions is expected to strongly impact coastal ecosystems. Exposure to salinity can negatively impact biodiversity especially in coastal wetlands. To understand comprehensively the consequences of environmental salinization on coastal biodiversity, it is essential to document how coastal species currently respond to exposure to salinity. In this study, we investigated how variations of environmental salinity relative to the distance to the ocean influence population structure (age ratio and sex ratio), and individual hydro-mineral balance (osmolality) and morphology (size, mass, condition) in the western spadefoot toad (Pelobates cultripes) in two populations from the French Atlantic coast. We show that distance to coastline strongly influences exposure to salt on a small spatial scale. Some variables (e.g., abundances, osmolality, morphology) responded similarly in both sites and may be related to salt deposition due to landward sea-spray. Interestingly, other variables (sex ratio and age ratio) displayed site-specific responses and appeared to be linked to the salinity of breeding sites. Distance to the shoreline appears to be a critical population structuring factor in this coastal salt-tolerant species. Future studies should investigate how distance to shoreline—and thus environmental salinity—can ultimately affect individual performances and fitness.

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Annual climatic fluctuations and short-term genetic variation in the eastern spadefoot toad

Cited by 3 publications

References 46 publications

The effect of habitat and climatic on microsatellite diversity and allele length variation

The effect of habitat and climatic on microsatellite diversity and allele length variation

A validated protocol for eDNA-based monitoring of within-species genetic diversity in a pond-breeding amphibian

Distance to coastline modulates morphology and population structure in a coastal amphibian

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