scholarly journals Computational biomechanics changes our view on insect head evolution

2017 ◽  
Vol 284 (1848) ◽  
pp. 20162412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Blanke ◽  
Peter J. Watson ◽  
Richard Holbrey ◽  
Michael J. Fagan

Despite large-scale molecular attempts, the relationships of the basal winged insect lineages dragonflies, mayflies and neopterans, are still unresolved. Other data sources, such as morphology, suffer from unclear functional dependencies of the structures considered, which might mislead phylogenetic inference. Here, we assess this problem by combining for the first time biomechanics with phylogenetics using two advanced engineering techniques, multibody dynamics analysis and finite-element analysis, to objectively identify functional linkages in insect head structures which have been used traditionally to argue basal winged insect relationships. With a biomechanical model of unprecedented detail, we are able to investigate the mechanics of morphological characters under biologically realistic load, i.e. biting. We show that a range of head characters, mainly ridges, endoskeletal elements and joints, are indeed mechanically linked to each other. An analysis of character state correlation in a morphological data matrix focused on head characters shows highly significant correlation of these mechanically linked structures. Phylogenetic tree reconstruction under different data exclusion schemes based on the correlation analysis unambiguously supports a sistergroup relationship of dragonflies and mayflies. The combination of biomechanics and phylogenetics as it is proposed here could be a promising approach to assess functional dependencies in many organisms to increase our understanding of phenotypic evolution.

2005 ◽  
Vol 272 (1572) ◽  
pp. 1577-1586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niklas Wahlberg ◽  
Michael F Braby ◽  
Andrew V.Z Brower ◽  
Rienk de Jong ◽  
Ming-Min Lee ◽  
...  

Phylogenetic relationships among major clades of butterflies and skippers have long been controversial, with no general consensus even today. Such lack of resolution is a substantial impediment to using the otherwise well studied butterflies as a model group in biology. Here we report the results of a combined analysis of DNA sequences from three genes and a morphological data matrix for 57 taxa (3258 characters, 1290 parsimony informative) representing all major lineages from the three putative butterfly super-families (Hedyloidea, Hesperioidea and Papilionoidea), plus out-groups representing other ditrysian Lepidoptera families. Recently, the utility of morphological data as a source of phylogenetic evidence has been debated. We present the first well supported phylogenetic hypothesis for the butterflies and skippers based on a total-evidence analysis of both traditional morphological characters and new molecular characters from three gene regions ( COI , EF-1α and wingless ). All four data partitions show substantial hidden support for the deeper nodes, which emerges only in a combined analysis in which the addition of morphological data plays a crucial role. With the exception of Nymphalidae, the traditionally recognized families are found to be strongly supported monophyletic clades with the following relationships: (Hesperiidae+(Papilionidae+(Pieridae+(Nymphalidae+(Lycaenidae+Riodinidae))))). Nymphalidae is recovered as a monophyletic clade but this clade does not have strong support. Lycaenidae and Riodinidae are sister groups with strong support and we suggest that the latter be given family rank. The position of Pieridae as the sister taxon to nymphalids, lycaenids and riodinids is supported by morphology and the EF-1α data but conflicted by the COI and wingless data. Hedylidae are more likely to be related to butterflies and skippers than geometrid moths and appear to be the sister group to Papilionoidea+Hesperioidea.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jolanta Brożek

The present study is a cladistic analysis of morphological characters focusing on the file of the mandible, the apices of the maxillae, the rupturing device on the maxillae, the internal structures of the mouthparts, and the external morphology of the labial segments as well as the distribution of labial sensilla in true water bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera, infraorder Nepomorpha). The study is based on data referring to sixty-two species representing all nepomorphan families (Heteroptera), together with one outgroup species representing the infraorders Gerromorpha (Mesoveliidae). The morphological data matrix consists of forty-eight characters. The present hypothesis supports the monophyly of the Nepomorpha and the monophyly of all families. The new modification in the systematic classification has been proposed: ((Nepidae + Belostomatidae), (Diaprepocoridae + Corixidae + Micronectidae), (Ochteridae + Gelastocoridae), Aphelocheiridae, Potamocoridae, Naucoridae, Notonectidae, and (Pleidae + Helotrephidae)).


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
MUHAMAD JALIL ◽  
AZIZ PURWANTORO ◽  
BUDI SETIADI DARYONO ◽  
Purnomo PURNOMO

Abstract. Jalil M, Purwantoro A, Daryono BS, Purnomo. 2020. Distribution, variation, and relationship of Curcuma soloensis Valeton in Java, Indonesia based on morphological characters. Biodiversitas 21: 3867-3877. Curcuma soloensis Valeton (locally called temu genyeh) was a plant originating from Solomon Islands and was synonymous with Curcuma longa L. This plant was often considered to be turmeric (Curcuma longa Linn.) or temulawak (Curcuma zanthorrhiza Roxb.), because the rhizome is almost the same color. The purpose of this study was to determine the distribution, variation, and relationship of C. soloensis in Java, Indonesia. Retrieval of data with exploratory roaming methods in 12 districts/cities in Java Island as a center for planting medicinal plants. Morphological character observations were made on habit, rhizome, roots, tubers, leaves, pseudo-stems, and flowers. Morphological data were analyzed by descriptive and numerical methods. Analysis of grouping with Gower Coefficients because it uses 45 binary and multistate data. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was performed to determine the role of each character in the grouping. Cluster analysis and PCA graphics were assisted with MVSP 3.1 software. The results of the study were obtained from 25 accessions of C. soloensis in East Java (Trenggalek, Pacitan, Ponorogo), Central Java (Wonogiri, Karanganyar, Magelang, Semarang), Yogyakarta (Yogyakarta City, Bantul, Gunungkidul), and West Java (Ciamis and Tasikmalaya). The variation of C. soloensis lies in habit, stem color, leaf shape, rhizome shape, rhizome flesh color, and tuber shape. The highest abundance percentage is in Pajangan, Tirtomoyo, and Tawangmangu. The dendrogram divides 32 OTUs into two clusters on the phenon line 0.617, namely cluster A (C. zanthorrhiza) and cluster B (C. soloensis and C. longa). PCA results showed that the characters that had the most role in grouping were leaf blade color, leaf blade length, rhizome shape, root color, rhizome taste, outer and inner rhizome flesh color.


2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 637-637
Author(s):  
Karla D. A. Soares ◽  
Marcelo R. de Carvalho

The genus Scyliorhinus is part of the family Scyliorhinidae, the most diverse family of sharks and of the subfamily Scyliorhininae along with Cephaloscyllium and Poroderma. This study reviews the phylogenetic relationships of species of Scyliorhinus in the subfamily Scyliorhininae. Specimens of all Scyliorhinus species were examined as well as specimens of four of the 18 species of Cephaloscyllium, two species of Poroderma, representatives of almost all other catshark (scyliorhinid) genera and one proscylliid (Proscyllium habereri). A detailed morphological study, including external and internal morphology, morphometry and meristic data, was performed. From this study, a total of 84 morphological characters were compiled into a data matrix. Parsimony analysis was employed to generate hypotheses of phylogenetic relationships using the TNT 1.1. Proscyllium habereri was used to root the cladogram. The phylogenetic analysis, based on implied weighting (k = 3; 300 replications and 100 trees saved per replication), resulted in three equally most parsimonious cladograms with 233 steps, with a CI of 0.37 and an RI of 0.69. The monophyly of the subfamily Scyliorhininae is supported as well as of the genus Scyliorhinus, which is proposed to be the sister group of Cephaloscyllium. The phylogenetic relationships amongst Scyliorhinus species are presented for the frst time.


Taxonomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 278-289
Author(s):  
Thiago Q. Araújo ◽  
André R. S. Garraffoni

A new species of marine Gastrotricha from the north coast of São Paulo state, Brazil, is described. Adults of Ptychostomella sebastiana sp. nov. are unique in that they possess a pair of dorsolateral “rod-like” cephalic sensory organs and subrectangular scales covering the lateral body surfaces. A cladistic analysis was performed to investigate the internal relationship of the representatives of the taxa based on morphological data. Our analysis supported the monophyly of the taxon Ptychostomella, but its internal phylogenetic relationships are not well established due to the low phylogenetic signal of morphological characters used in the present study.


Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4319 (3) ◽  
pp. 483
Author(s):  
XU-BO WANG ◽  
SAN-AN WU

The maple mealybug, Phenacoccus aceris (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), is a widespread polyphagous pest. The taxonomy of P. aceris and some congeners is controversial. This study utilized molecular analysis of one mitochondrial (cytochrome oxidase I) and two nuclear (EF-1α and 28S D2D3) genes, and morphological data, to investigate the P. aceris species-group based on 120 individuals collected from 16 localities in China. Analyses of the nucleotide sequence data recovered four well-supported clades that enabled us to reassess the taxonomic utility of some morphological characters used for species recognition in the P. aceris species-group, such as the number, location and width of circuli, and the distribution pattern of oral-collar tubular ducts on the dorsum. Polymorphism in the number of circuli indicated that this character-state alone is unreliable for species separation, but a combination of the number, location and relative width of the circuli provides a significant taxonomic character. The distribution of oral-collar tubular ducts on dorsal segments of the cephalothorax can be used also for species separation. In addition, specimens that keyed morphologically to P. aceris contained three putative species that are not separated by host-plant preferences. These putative species are genetically and morphologically different from P. aceris in France (the type locality of P. aceris) and are thus probably new to science. A network analysis of the COI haplotypes showed that the hosts Fraxinus spp. (Oleaceae) and Zanthoxylum bungeanum (Rutaceae) in North China are attacked by both P. aceris and P. azaleae, so previous identifications of this group based on the identity of these host plants is misleading. The taxonomic confusion in the P. aceris species-group may be due to the co-occurrence of multiple putative species. 


2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-395
Author(s):  
Karla D. A. Soares ◽  
Marcelo R. de Carvalho

The genus Scyliorhinus is part of the family Scyliorhinidae, the most diverse family of sharks and of the subfamily Scyliorhininae along with Cephaloscyllium and Poroderma. This study reviews the phylogenetic relationships of species of Scyliorhinus in the subfamily Scyliorhininae. Specimens of all Scyliorhinus species were examined as well as specimens of four of the 18 species of Cephaloscyllium, two species of Poroderma, representatives of almost all other catshark (scyliorhinid) genera and one proscylliid (Proscyllium habereri). A detailed morphological study, including external and internal morphology, morphometry and meristic data, was performed. From this study, a total of 84 morphological characters were compiled into a data matrix. Parsimony analysis was employed to generate hypotheses of phylogenetic relationships using the TNT 1.1. Proscyllium habereri was used to root the cladogram. The phylogenetic analysis, based on implied weighting (k = 3; 300 replications and 100 trees saved per replication), resulted in three equally most parsimonious cladograms with 233 steps, with a CI of 0.37 and an RI of 0.69. The monophyly of the subfamily Scyliorhininae is supported as well as of the genus Scyliorhinus, which is proposed to be the sister group of Cephaloscyllium. The phylogenetic relationships amongst Scyliorhinus species are presented for the first time.


2001 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 183-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. M. PLUNKETT

Phylogenetic relationships involving the angiosperm order Apiales (Apiaceae and Araliaceae) are troublesome at nearly every taxonomic level and have eluded several generations of botanists. Because of difficulties in interpreting and polarizing morphological character states at deeper phylogenetic levels, most studies in Apiales have focused on relationships between the two families and among/within the apialean genera. In the present study, however, recent contributions from molecular analyses are reviewed and combined using a ‘supertree’ approach to test traditional hypotheses of relationships involving Apiales, and to re-evaluate assumptions of character-state evolution in the order. Results from this study confirm that Apiales form a monophyletic group with Pittosporaceae (along with Griselinia G. Forst., Melanophylla Baker, Torricellia DC. and Aralidium Miq.), and should be transferred out of subclass Rosidae (away from both Cornales and Sapindales) to the Asteridae (in a position close to Asterales and Dipsacales). These findings are also supported by several lines of morphological, anatomical, and phytochemical evidence, and provide a more satisfactory framework for interpreting relationships and character-state evolution within the major clades of Apiales.


2020 ◽  
Vol 113 (5) ◽  
pp. 398-406
Author(s):  
Jesus A Davila-Barboza ◽  
Mario C Saucedo-Montalvo ◽  
Susana Favela-Lara ◽  
Gustavo- Ponce-Garcia ◽  
Ildefonso Fernandez-Salas ◽  
...  

Abstract Triatoma longipennis Usinger 1939, Triatoma pallidipennis (Stal, 1872), and Triatoma picturata Usinger 1939 are considered among the species with the highest transmission capacity of Chagas disease in Mexico, with an impact on health mainly in rural zones and places with worn-out dwellings. There have been previous studies on the phylogenetic relationship of these species of the Phyllosoma complex using molecular approaches, in addition to analyzing morphological characters. However, one of the problems in the field is the presence of hybrids that due to the short genetic distance between species, and such organisms have not yet been identified and could be confused with parental organisms. In this work, we analyzed genotypical and phenotypic characters, between the species and the three possible hybrids resulting from the cross between the species. In the analysis of wings morphology, we found that the dominant phenotype in hybrids was that of T. pallidipennis, having a higher dominance than T. longipennis. Besides, the use of the COI marker amplified in DNA of parentals and the three possible hybrids showed by neighbor-joining phylograms a greater association of the hybrids with T. longipennis, in agreement with the analysis of genetic distances and polymorphic sites. Thus, the morphological data demonstrate the high dominance of T. pallidipennis and the molecular data of T. longipennis in its hybrids, in such a way that it is possible to differentiate hybrids from parental species.


HortScience ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 1037A-1037 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian W. Trader ◽  
Holly L. Scoggins ◽  
Richard E. Veilleux

The genus Astilbe (Saxifragaceae) is comprised of approximately 20 species and is ranked consistently among the top ten landscape perennials. Through extensive hybridization, selection, and marketing, the lineage of many Astilbe has been lost. Subdioecious Astilbe biternata is the only species in the genus native to North America, while other members of the genus are endemic to Asia and monoecious. Due to the unusual geographic distribution of the species and the variation in floral development among them, investigation of morphological characters may help establish lineage within the genus. Herbarium material representing described species and varieties of Astilbe was acquired from several herbaria nationwide. Twenty-seven character states were selected to help distinguish members among the genus. Morphological character states chosen for inferring differences among species in Astilbe varied from degree of pubescence to leaf branching with an emphasis on floral characteristics such as sepal and petal variation. Character state matrix was assimilated for 20 taxa of Astilbe and analyzed using maximum parsimony. The monotypic genus Saxifragopsis was utilized as the outgroup taxa. Resulting phylogenetic trees show Astilbe simplicifolia as the species from which all members of the genus were derived. The American species, Astilbe biternata, separated away from other members within the genus. There is evidence from the phylogeny based on the morphological character states that some described species may actually represent variation within populations of species. Combination of this morphological data with molecular sequence information may be informative for further description of the Astilbe genus.


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