title: Genetic structure of Hepatica nobilis var. japonica, focusing on within population flower color polymorphism.
abstract: How phenotypic or genetic diversity is maintained in a natural habitat is a fundamental question in evolutionary biology. Flower color polymorphism in plants is a common polymorphism. Hepatica nobilis var. japonica on the Sea of Japan (SJ) side of the Japanese mainland exhibits within population flower color polymorphism (e.g., white, pink, and purple), while only white flowers are observed on the Pacific Ocean (PO) side. To determine the relationships between flower color polymorphism, within and among populations, and the genetic structure of H. nobilis var. japonica, we estimated the genetic variation using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. First, we examined whether cryptic lineages corresponding to distinct flower colors contribute to the flower color polymorphisms in H. nobilis var. japonica. In our field observations, no bias in color frequency was observed among populations on Sado Island, a region with high variation in flower color. Simple sequence repeat (SSR) analyses revealed that 18% of the genetic variance was explained by differences among populations, whereas no genetic variation was explained by flower color hue or intensity (0% for both components). These results indicate that the flower color polymorphism is likely not explained by cryptic lineages that have different flower colors. In contrast, populations in the SJ and PO regions were genetically distinguishable. As with the other plant species in these regions, refugial isolation and subsequent migration history may have caused the genetic structure as well as the spatially heterogeneous patterns of flower color polymorphisms in H. nobilis var. japonica.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Yoshida, Nihonmatsu-cho, Sakyoku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan. kameoka.shinichiro.42n@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Shinichiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kameoka
authors.affiliation: Sado Station, Field center for sustainable agriculture and forestry, Faculty of agriculture, Niigata University, 94-2 Koda, Sado, Niigata, 952-2206, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitoshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sakio
authors.affiliation: Sado Station, Field center for sustainable agriculture and forestry, Faculty of agriculture, Niigata University, 94-2 Koda, Sado, Niigata, 952-2206, Japan.
authors.forename: Harue
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Abe
authors.affiliation: Institute of Plant Science and Resources, Okayama University, 2-20-1 Chuo, Kurashiki, Okayama, 710-0046, Japan.
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Yoshida, Nihonmatsu-cho, Sakyoku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Setoguchi
mesh_terms: D003116:Color; D035264:Flowers / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D007564:Japan; D010858:Pigmentation; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D029626:Ranunculaceae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
keywords: AMOVA; Flower color polymorphism; Hepatica; Microsatellite; Ranunculaceae; STRUCTURE