Are adaptive loci transferable across genomes of related species? Outlier and environmental association analyses in Alpine Brassicaceae species

Local adaptation is one possible response of organisms to survive in a changing environment. However, the genetic basis of adaptation is not well understood, especially in nonmodel species. To infer recurrent patterns of local adaptation, we investigated whether the same putative adaptive loci reoccur in related species. We performed genome scans using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers on populations of five Alpine Brassicaceae species sampled across a wide range of environmental conditions. To identify markers potentially under directional selection, we performed outlier and environmental association analyses using a set of topo-climatic variables available as GIS layers. Several AFLP loci showed signatures of adaptation, of which one, found in Cardamine resedifolia (Cre_P1_212.5), was associated with precipitation. We sequence-characterized this candidate locus and genotyped single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) found within this locus for all species. Testing for...