Himalayan mountains imposing a barrier on geneflow of wheat yellow rust pathogen in the bordering regions of Pakistan and China

Fungal Genet Biol. 2022 Nov 26:103753. doi: 10.1016/j.fgb.2022.103753. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe wheat yellow rust pathogen has been shown to be diverse and potentially originated in the Himalayan region. Although Himalayan populations of Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan have been previously compared little is known about the relative divergence and diversity in Puccinia striiformis populations of Pakistan and China. To assess the relative diversity and divergence in the regions of Pakistan (Gilgit-Baltistan, Hazara and Azad Jammu Kashmir) and China (Xinjiang, Qinghai, Tibet, Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan), a total 1245 samples were genotyped using 17 microsatellite SSR markers. A clear divergence was observed between bordering regions of Pakistan and China (FST = 0.28) without any resampling of genetic groups and multilocus genotypes across two sides of Himalayan mountains. The closest subpopulations across two countries were Xinjiang and Gilgit-Baltistan (Nei's distance = 0.147), which were close geographically. A very high diversity and recombinant population structure was observed in both populations, though slightly higher in China (Genotypic diversity = 0.970; r¯d = 0.000) than Pakistan (Genotypic diversity = 0.902; r¯d = 0.065). The distribution of genetic groups and resampling of MLGs revealed more geneflow across Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan regions in China, while between Hazara and Azad-Jammu Kashmir in Pakistan. The lack of gene flow between Pakistan and China po...
Source: Fungal Genetics and Biology - Category: Biology Authors: Source Type: research