Phylogenomics and Biogeography of the Mammilloid Clade Revealed an Intricate Evolutionary History Arose in the Mexican Plateau

Abstract

Mexico harbors ~45% of world’s cacti species richness. Their biogeography and phylogenomics were integrated to elucidate the evolutionary history of the genera Coryphantha, Escobaria, Mammillaria, Mammilloydia, Neolloydia, Ortegocactus, and Pelecyphora (Mammilloid Clade). We analyzed 52 orthologous loci from 142 complete genomes of chloroplast (103 taxa) to generate a cladogram and a chronogram; in the latter, the ancestral distribution was reconstructed with the Dispersal-Extinction-Cladogenesis model. The ancestor of these genera arose ~7 Mya on the Mexican Plateau, from which nine evolutionary lineages evolved. This region was the site of 52% of all the biogeographical processes. The lineages 2, 3 and 6 were responsible for the colonization of the arid southern territories. In the last 4 Mya, the Baja California Peninsula has been a region of prolific evolution, particularly for lineages 8 and 9. Dispersal was the most frequent process and vicariance had relevance in the isolation of cacti distributed in the south of Mexico. The 70 taxa sampled as Mammillaria were distributed in six distinct lineages; one of these presumably corresponded to this genus, which likely had its center of origin in the southern part of the Mexican Plateau. We recommend detailed studies to further determine the taxonomic circumscription of the seven genera.

Two chloroplast genomes with reduced inverted repeat regions in Mammillaria series Stylothelae (Cactaceae)

“…Krainzia. Similar results have been reported in recent, more comprehensive studies, indicating the need for further research (Chincoya et al 2023). Our results agreed with the monophyly of series Supertextae, which was also identified by Cervantes et al (2021).…”

“…Analyses of chloroplast genome structures and phylogenetic hypothesis based on whole chloroplast sequences have demonstrated their utility in elucidating phylogenetic relationships within Mammillaria and its related genera (Solórzano et al 2019, Breslin et al 2021, Chincoya et al 2023. Our objective was to sequence and assemble the plastome of M. bocasana Poselg.…”

“…S4 denominates the structure found in this work.the shortest among Mammillaria (~ 107 kb), but they differ from each other in their gene content (108 and 130, respectively) and arrangement, suggesting a different evolutionary pathway. According toChincoya et al (2023), the divergence of most Mammillaria clades occurred ~ 4.5 Mya, which implies a recent diversification of chloroplast structures within the genus. It is necessary to assemble more Mammillaria plastomes to trace an accurate evolutionary history.…”

Advances in Plant Taxonomy and Systematics

“…In the Special Issue “Advances in Plant Taxonomy and Systematics”, all the topics previously mentioned were addressed in 15 high-quality and original studies, involving plant groups and researchers from all continents. In particular, the phylogeny and biogeography of Mammilloid cacti from Mexico (Cactaceae, eudicots) [ 22 ], Euphorbiaceae subfam. Acalyphoideae (Malpighiales, eudicots) in the Americas [ 23 ], Astragalus sect.…”