title: Phylogeographic study of Apodemus ilex (Rodentia: Muridae) in Southwest China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Mountains of southwest China have complex river systems and a profoundly complex topography and are among the most important biodiversity hotspots in the world. However, only a few studies have shed light on how the mountains and river valleys promote genetic diversity. Apodemus ilex is a fine model for investigating this subject.
  
  
  RESULTS
  To assess the genetic diversity and biogeographic patterns of Apodemus ilex, the complete cytochrome b gene sequences (1,140 bp) were determined from 203 samples of A. draco/ilex that were collected from southwest China. The results obtained suggested that A. ilex and A. draco are sistergroups and diverged from each other approximately 2.25 million years ago. A. ilex could be divided into Eastern and Western phylogroups, each containing two sub-groups and being widespread in different geographical regions of the southern Hengduan Mountains and the western Yunnan - Guizhou Plateau. The population expansions of A. ilex were roughly from 0.089 Mya to 0.023 Mya.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our result suggested that A. ilex is a valid species rather than synonym of A. draco. As a middle-high elevation inhabitant, the phylogenetic pattern of A. ilex was strongly related to the complex geographical structures in southwest China, particularly the existence of deep river valley systems, such as the Mekong and Salween rivers. Also, it appears that the evolutionary history of A. ilex, such as lineage divergences and population expansions were strongly affected by climate fluctuation in the Late Pleistocene.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Qi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: C William
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Kilpatrick
authors.forename: Shao-Ying
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Fa-Hong
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Xue-Long
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002681:China; D045303:Cytochromes b / Q000235:genetics; D049810:Genetic Speciation; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005843:Geography; D009115:Muridae / Q000235:genetics*; D058974:Phylogeography / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D045303:Cytochromes b