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Abstract
Populus trichocarpa is an ecologically important tree across western North America. We used a large population sample of 498 accessions over a wide geographical area genotyped with a 34K Populus SNP array to quantify geographical patterns of genetic variation in this species (landscape genomics). We present evidence that three processes contribute to the observed patterns: (1) introgression from the sister species P. balsamifera (2) isolation-by-distance and (3) natural selection. Introgression was detected only at the margins of the species’ distribution. Isolation-by-distance was significant across the sampled area as a whole, but no evidence of restricted gene flow was detected in a core of drainages from southern British Columbia. We identified a large number of FST outliers. GO analyses revealed that FST outliers are overrepresented in genes involved in circadian rhythm and response to red/far-red light when the entire dataset is considered, while in southern British Columbia heat response genes are overrepresented. We also identified strong correlations between geoclimate variables and allele frequencies at FST outlier loci that provide clues regarding the selective pressures acting at these loci.
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FOR_DRYAD_TandB_fwd_june2013_434