Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 30, 2026

Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting for the Isolation of Scleractinian Cell Populations
Published on: May 31, 2020
The highly cross-fertile coral species, Acropora hyacinthus and Acropora cytherea, constitute statistically
L M Márquez1, M J H Van Oppen, B L Willis
1Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Marine Biology, James Cook University, Townsville 4811, Australia. lmarquez@ivic.ve
Abstract:
A major challenge for understanding the evolutionary genetics of mass-spawning corals is to explain the maintenance of discrete morphospecies in view of high rates of interspecific fertilization in vitro and nonmonophyletic patterns in molecular phylogenies. In this study, we focused on Acropora cytherea and A. hyacinthus, which have one of the highest potentials for interspecific fertilization. Using sequences of a nuclear intron, we performed phylogenetic and nested clade analyses (NCA). Both species were polyphyletic in molecular phylogenies, but the NCA indicated that they constitute statistically distinguishable lineages. Phylogenetic analysis using an intergenic region of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), was inconclusive because of low levels of variability in this marker. The position of these two species differed between the nuclear DNA (nDNA) and mtDNA phylogenies and was also at odds with a cladistic analysis based on morphology. We conclude that despite the potential for high levels of hybridization and introgression, A. cytherea and A. hyacinthus constitute statistically distinguishable lineages and their taxonomic status is consistent with the cohesion species concept.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Diversity of Protists III
Red Algae
Other Algae
Evolutionary Relationships through Genome Comparisons
Overview of Algae
Trihybrid Crosses
Some of Mendel’s crosses examined three pairs of contrasting characteristics. Such a cross is called a trihybrid cross. A trihybrid cross is a combination of three individual monohybrid crosses. For example, plant height (tall vs. short), seed shape (round vs. wrinkled), and seed color (yellow vs. green).
The F1 generation plants of a trihybrid cross are heterozygous for all three traits and produce eight gametes. Upon self-fertilization, these gametes have an equal chance to...

