The Impact of Pleistocene Glacial Cycles on the Evolutionary Diversification of the Arctic-Alpine Silene acaulis Species Complex.

ABSTRACT: Arctic-alpine species are highly sensitive to long-term temperature changes and associated glacial cycles due to their occurrence in cold environments to which they are adapted and spatially restricted. Unravelling their evolutionary responses to past climatic fluctuations can provide new insights into their diversification. In this study, we investigated the evolutionary history of the Silene acaulis species complex and how it was shaped by past glacial cycles. We assembled the first high-quality reference genome for S. acaulis and analysed reduced representation sequencing data from 955 individuals spanning 132 populations across the Holarctic distribution range of these arctic-alpine cushion plants. We identified five evolutionary lineages and assessed their phylogeographical structure

SUBMITTER: Reutimann O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12831043 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature