Article
Geographic distance and landscape ruggedness shape genome-wide divergence and admixture in Leucostele cacti across the Atacama-central Chile biodiversity hotspot.
Annals of botany - 21 Apr 2026
García-Beltrán José Angel, Toledo Sandy, Melo-Gaymer María Paz, Rosas Marcelo R, Cisternas-Fuentes Anita, Guerrero Pablo C
Abstract excerpt
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The hyperarid-semiarid gradient of the western Andes, from the coastal Atacama Desert to central Mediterranean Chile, hosts exceptional plant endemism driven by palaeoclimatic oscillations, rugged topography and long-term isolation. Here, we use the columnar cactus genus Leucostele as a model to (1) quantify the influence of geographic isolation and topographic heterogeneity on...
Topics
- Chile
- Cactaceae
- Genome, Plant
- Genetic Variation
- Biodiversity
- Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
- Geography
- Gene Flow
- Genetics, Population