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1. Genetic Control in Historical Perspective: The Legacy of India's Genetic Control of Mosquitoes Unit

   https://doi.org/10.1002/hast.1315  

   Wilbanks, Rebecca ( November 2021 , Hastings Center Report)
2. Low genetic diversity and limited genetic structure across the range of the critically endangered Mexican howler monkey ( Alouatta palliata mexicana )

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.23160  

   Melo‐Carrillo, Adrián ; Dunn, Jacob C. ; Cortés‐Ortiz, Liliana ( June 2020 , American Journal of Primatology)

   Genetic diversity provides populations with the possibility to persist in ever‐changing environments, where selective regimes change over time. Therefore, the long‐term survival of a population may be affected by its level of genetic diversity. The Mexican howler monkey (Alouatta palliata mexicana) is a critically endangered primate restricted to southeast Mexico. Here, we evaluate the genetic diversity and population structure of this subspecies based on 83 individuals from 31 groups sampled across the distribution range of the subspecies, using 29 microsatellite loci. Our results revealed extremely low genetic diversity (H_O = 0.21,H_E = 0.29) compared to studies of otherA. palliatapopulations and to otherAlouattaspecies. Principal component analysis, a Bayesian clustering method, and analyses of molecular variance did not detect strong signatures of genetic differentiation among geographic populations of this subspecies. Although we detect small but significantF_STvalues between populations, they can be explained by a pattern of isolation by distance. These results and the presence of unique alleles in different populations highlight the importance of implementing conservation efforts in multiple populations across the distribution range ofA. p. mexicanato preserve its already low genetic diversity. This is especially important given current levels of population isolation due to the extreme habitat fragmentation across the distribution range of this primate.

    

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3. Evolution of phenotypic plasticity: Genetic differentiation and additive genetic variation for induced plant defence in wild arugula Eruca sativa

   https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.13558  

   Ogran, Ariel ; Conner, Jeffrey ; Agrawal, Anurag A. ; Barazani, Oz ( November 2019 , Journal of Evolutionary Biology)

   Phenotypic plasticity is the primary mechanism of organismal resilience to abiotic and biotic stress, and genetic differentiation in plasticity can evolve if stresses differ among populations. Inducible defence is a common form of adaptive phenotypic plasticity, and long‐standing theory predicts that its evolution is shaped by costs of the defensive traits, costs of plasticity and a trade‐off in allocation to constitutive versus induced traits. We used a common garden to study the evolution of defence in two native populations of wild arugulaEruca sativa(Brassicaceae) from contrasting desert and Mediterranean habitats that differ in attack by caterpillars and aphids. We report genetic differentiation and additive genetic variance for phenology, growth and three defensive traits (toxic glucosinolates, anti‐nutritive protease inhibitors and physical trichome barriers) as well their inducibility in response to the plant hormone jasmonic acid. The two populations were strongly differentiated for plasticity in nearly all traits. There was little evidence for costs of defence or plasticity, but constitutive and induced traits showed a consistent additive genetic trade‐off within each population for the three defensive traits. We conclude that these populations have evolutionarily diverged in inducible defence and retain ample potential for the future evolution of phenotypic plasticity in defence.

    

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4. The population genetic test Tajima's D identifies genes encoding pathogen-associated molecular patterns and other virulence-related genes in Ralstonia solanacearum: Tajima's D in Ralstonia solanacearum PAMPs

   https://doi.org/10.1111/mpp.12688  

   Eckshtain-Levi, Noam ; Weisberg, Alexandra J. ; Vinatzer, Boris A. ( September 2018 , Molecular Plant Pathology)
5. Comparative genomics of Rhizophagus irregularis , R. cerebriforme , R. diaphanus and Gigaspora rosea highlights specific genetic features in Glomeromycotina

   https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15687  

   Morin, Emmanuelle ; Miyauchi, Shingo ; San Clemente, Hélène ; Chen, Eric C. H. ; Pelin, Adrian ; de la Providencia, Ivan ; Ndikumana, Steve ; Beaudet, Denis ; Hainaut, Mathieu ; Drula, Elodie ; et al ( February 2019 , New Phytologist)

   Glomeromycotina is a lineage of early diverging fungi that establish arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis with land plants. Despite their major ecological role, the genetic basis of their obligate mutualism remains largely unknown, hindering our understanding of their evolution and biology.

   We compared the genomes of Glomerales (Rhizophagus irregularis,Rhizophagus diaphanus,Rhizophagus cerebriforme) and Diversisporales (Gigaspora rosea) species, together with those of saprotrophic Mucoromycota,to identify gene families and processes associated with these lineages and to understand the molecular underpinning of their symbiotic lifestyle.

   Genomic features in Glomeromycotina appear to be very similar with a very high content in transposons and protein‐coding genes, extensive duplications of protein kinase genes, and loss of genes coding for lignocellulose degradation, thiamin biosynthesis and cytosolic fatty acid synthase. Most symbiosis‐related genes inR. irregularisandG. roseaare specific to Glomeromycotina. We also confirmed that the present species have a homokaryotic genome organisation.

   The high interspecific diversity of Glomeromycotina gene repertoires, affecting all known protein domains, as well as symbiosis‐related orphan genes, may explain the known adaptation of Glomeromycotina to a wide range of environmental settings. Our findings contribute to an increasingly detailed portrait of genomic features defining the biology ofAMfungi.

    

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