Diversification of liverworts – adaptation to ecosystem change in an ancient lineage

Xiaolan He-NygrÉn,Yu Sun, Jaakko KangasjÄrvi, Sanna Laaka-Lindberg, David Glenny, Lars Paulin & Niklas WikstrÖm.

To further investigate liverwort evolutionary history and clarify deep phylogeny in lineages that are incomplete e.g. due to extinction, and to minimize false phylogenetic signal caused by the likes of convergent molecular substitutions in DNA sequence data, we are conducting a research project aimed at determining complete nucleotide sequences of chloroplast genomes for some key liverwort species and using large-scale genomic characters. The species chosen for the whole genome sequencing are in phylogetically important positions and represent a wide range of morphological diversity. They are Blasia pusilla L., Haplomitrium hookeri (Sm.) Nees, Jungermannia leiantha L., Metzgeria furcata (L.) Dumort., Pellia neesiana (Gottsche) Limpr., Porella platyphylla (L.) Pfeiff., Ptilidium pulcherrimum (F.Weber) Hampe, Schistochila laminigera (Hook.f. & Taylor) A.Evans and Treubia lacunosa (Colenso) Prosk.

Other two research areas of this project lie in estimating divergence times of liverworts based on multiple chloroplast genes and fossil records in order to explore the dynamics associated with the origin and diversification of the liverworts, and in studying population level responses to environmental changes in liverworts focusing on adaptive strategies in order to further understand liverwort life histories and evolution.