Genetic and phenotypic consequences of local transitions between sexual and parthenogenetic reproduction in the wild

Transitions from sexual to asexual reproduction have occurred in numerous lineages across the tree of life, but many questions remain about how such transitions occur and why asexual populations rarely persist. In facultatively parthenogenetic animals, all-female populations can arise when males are absent or become extinct and, if such populations can persist asexually for many generations, they could ultimately give rise to obligately asexual species. However, the initial stages of this process remain poorly understood. The facultatively parthenogenetic Australian phasmid Megacrania batesii exhibits a spatial mosaic of mixed-sex populations that reproduce predominantly sexually and all-female sites that reproduce exclusively via parthenogenesis. We used this system to compare genetic and phenotypic parameters among multiple natural populations that vary in reproductive mode and geographic location. Analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) collected from reduced representatio..., Wild M. batesii individuals were photographed on their host plants. We used ImageJ to analyse these photos and extract the phenotypic information found in \"megacrania_morphology.csv\". DNA was extracted from M. batesii individuals in the field and sent to Diversity Arrays for DaRTseq reduced representation whole genome sequencing. We received SNPs back found in \"Report_DMegac20-5687_SNP_1.csv\". These SNPs were filtered with the \"prep_for_BOTH_analyses.v.0.1.Rmd\" script and then both the phenotypic data and the genetic data was analysed using \"BOTH_analyses_clean.\"Â ,有性生殖向无性生殖的转变在生命之树的众多演化支中均有发生，但关于这类转变如何发生、为何无性种群极少得以存续，仍有诸多悬而未决的问题。 对于兼性孤雌生殖（facultatively parthenogenetic）动物而言，当雄性个体缺失或灭绝时，可形成全雌性种群；若此类种群能够通过无性方式存续多代，最终或可演化出专性无性生殖（obligately asexual）物种。然而，这一过程的初始阶段仍有待深入研究。 兼性孤雌生殖的澳大利亚竹节虫Megacrania batesii呈现出空间镶嵌分布的种群结构：一类为混合性别种群，主要以有性方式生殖；另一类为全雌性种群，仅通过孤雌生殖繁衍后代。 我们以此类群为研究系统，对多个生殖模式与地理位置各异的自然种群的遗传与表型参数开展对比分析。 我们对从简化代表性测序（reduced representation sequencing）[原文此处内容截断]获取的单核苷酸多态性（single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs）进行分析，并在其寄主植物上对野外采集的野生M. batesii个体进行拍摄留影。 我们使用ImageJ软件对这些照片进行分析，从"megacrania_morphology.csv"文件中提取表型信息。 我们从野外采集的M. batesii个体中提取DNA，并送至Diversity Arrays公司开展DaRTseq简化全基因组测序。 我们获取了来自"Report_DMegac20-5687_SNP_1.csv"文件的SNPs数据，并通过"prep_for_BOTH_analyses.v.0.1.Rmd"脚本对这些SNPs进行过滤。随后，我们使用"BOTH_analyses_clean."脚本对表型数据与遗传数据进行联合分析。