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Incomplete lineage sorting is common in extant gibbon genera
Jeffrey D Wall1, Sung K Kim, Francesca Luca
1Institute for Human Genetics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America. wallj@humgen.ucsf.edu
Plos One
|January 24, 2013
Summary
This study sequenced gibbon DNA to explore evolutionary relationships. Results show uncertain phylogenetic trees due to limited data, suggesting whole-genome sequencing is needed for definitive gibbon genus relationships.
Area of Science:
- Primatology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genomics
Background:
- Gibbons, the smallest apes, represent four distinct genera: Nomascus, Hylobates, Symphalangus, and Hoolock.
- Understanding gibbon evolutionary history is crucial for primate phylogeny.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolutionary relationships among the four extant gibbon genera.
- To assess phylogenetic scenarios using reduced representation sequencing data.
Main Methods:
- Sequencing of reduced representation libraries using Illumina technology.
- Generation of over 1.5 Mb of orthologous sequence data.
- Phylogenetic analyses evaluating likelihoods of all possible bifurcating trees.
Main Results:
- Weak support was found for a specific phylogenetic tree (Nomascus/Hylobates sister taxa, Hoolock/Symphalangus sister taxa).
- Bootstrap resampling indicated other phylogenetic scenarios are plausible.
- Uncertainty is attributed to short internal branch lengths and incomplete lineage sorting.
Conclusions:
- Current data provide limited resolution for definitive gibbon genus evolutionary relationships.
- Further investigation using extensive whole-genome sequencing is recommended for accurate phylogenetic reconstruction.
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