title: Molecular phylogeny and biogeography of the fern genus Pteris (Pteridaceae).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Pteris (Pteridaceae), comprising over 250 species, had been thought to be a monophyletic genus until the three monotypic genera Neurocallis, Ochropteris and Platyzoma were included. However, the relationships between the type species of the genus Pteris, P. longifolia, and other species are still unknown. Furthermore, several infrageneric morphological classifications have been proposed, but are debated. To date, no worldwide phylogenetic hypothesis has been proposed for the genus, and no comprehensive biogeographical history of Pteris, crucial to understanding its cosmopolitan distribution, has been presented.
  
  
  METHODS
  A molecular phylogeny of Pteris is presented for 135 species, based on cpDNA rbcL and matK and using maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference approaches. The inferred phylogeny was used to assess the biogeographical history of Pteris and to reconstruct the evolution of one ecological and four morphological characters commonly used for infrageneric classifications.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The monophyly of Pteris remains uncertain, especially regarding the relationship of Pteris with Actiniopteris + Onychium and Platyzoma. Pteris comprises 11 clades supported by combinations of ecological and morphological character states, but none of the characters used in previous classifications were found to be exclusive synapomorphies. The results indicate that Pteris diversified around 47 million years ago, and when species colonized new geographical areas they generated new lineages, which are associated with morphological character transitions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This first phylogeny of Pteris on a global scale and including more than half of the diversity of the genus should contribute to a new, more reliable infrageneric classification of Pteris, based not only on a few morphological characters but also on ecological traits and geographical distribution. The inferred biogeographical history highlights long-distance dispersal as a major process shaping the worldwide distribution of the species. Colonization of different niches was followed by subsequent morphological diversification. Dispersal events followed by allopatric and parapatric speciation contribute to the species diversity of Pteris.
authors.affiliation: The Experimental Forest, National Taiwan University, Nantou, Taiwan Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yi-Shan
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Chao
authors.affiliation: Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, UMR CNRS 7205, Herbier National, 16 rue Buffon CP39, 75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Germinal
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rouhan
authors.affiliation: Central Mindanao University, Musuan, Bukidnon, Philippines.
authors.forename: Victor B
authors.initials: VB
authors.lastname: Amoroso
authors.affiliation: Division of Botanical Garden, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, Taipei, Taiwan chiou@tfri.gov.tw.
authors.forename: Wen-Liang
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Chiou
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D018742:DNA, Chloroplast / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D049810:Genetic Speciation; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007438:Introns / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D058974:Phylogeography; D032495:Pteris / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D018742:DNA, Chloroplast
keywords: Actiniopteris; Onychium; Platyzoma; Pteridaceae; Pteris; allopatric speciation; biogeography; brake ferns; long-distance dispersal; matK; morphological character evolution; parapatric speciation; phylogeny; rbcL