Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya

The Lake Victoria drainage basin (LVD) in Kenya is home to ten nominal species of small barbs (Enteromius) and one of large barbs (Labeobarbus altianalis). A recent molecular study genetically characterized small barbs in this region and found evidence of introgression between certain species, compl...

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Main Authors: Violet M. Ndeda, Mariana Mateos, Luis A. Hurtado
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: PeerJ Inc. 2018-10-01
Series:PeerJ
Subjects:
Online Access:https://peerj.com/articles/5762.pdf
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author Violet M. Ndeda
Mariana Mateos
Luis A. Hurtado
author_facet Violet M. Ndeda
Mariana Mateos
Luis A. Hurtado
author_sort Violet M. Ndeda
collection DOAJ
description The Lake Victoria drainage basin (LVD) in Kenya is home to ten nominal species of small barbs (Enteromius) and one of large barbs (Labeobarbus altianalis). A recent molecular study genetically characterized small barbs in this region and found evidence of introgression between certain species, complicating the taxonomy and species identification of these fishes. This study aimed to extend our understanding on the evolution of these fishes by: (1) determining whether putatively pure individuals of Enteromius cercops are found in the Kenyan LVD, as the previous study only found hybrid individuals of this species in this region; (2) testing the sister relationship between Enteromius profundus, endemic to Lake Victoria, and Enteromius radiatus, also found in Lake Victoria, which had been previously synonymized; (3) examining the phylogenetic relationships of small barbs of the Kenyan LVD with those reported from other ichthyological provinces of Africa; and (4) examining the phylogenetic relationships of Labeobarbus altianalis with other Labeobarbus species. To this end, we obtained mitochondrial Cytochrome b and nuclear Growth Hormone (GH) intron 2 gene sequences of nine Enteromius species from the LVD in Kenya, as well as cytochrome b sequences for L. altianalis. We conducted Maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic analyses to establish their evolutionary relationships in relation to many other barbs specimens from Africa. Phylogenetic analyses did not reveal instances of hybridization/introgression among the individuals sequenced by us. A sister relationship between E. profundus and E. radiatus was not found. This latter species shows instead a sister relationship with a lineage comprised of two species from West Africa. Other sister relationships between taxa from the East coast and other ecoregions from Africa are observed, suggesting that past drainage connections and vicariant events contributed to the diversification of Enteromius. Finally, only a single haplotype was recovered among the L. altianalis individuals examined, which is most similar to a specimen from Lake Edward in Uganda.
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spelling doaj.art-0b4bba2eae57409eb2eb2b85af2016382023-12-03T09:07:58ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592018-10-016e576210.7717/peerj.5762Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, KenyaViolet M. Ndeda0Mariana Mateos1Luis A. Hurtado2Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States of AmericaWildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States of AmericaWildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States of AmericaThe Lake Victoria drainage basin (LVD) in Kenya is home to ten nominal species of small barbs (Enteromius) and one of large barbs (Labeobarbus altianalis). A recent molecular study genetically characterized small barbs in this region and found evidence of introgression between certain species, complicating the taxonomy and species identification of these fishes. This study aimed to extend our understanding on the evolution of these fishes by: (1) determining whether putatively pure individuals of Enteromius cercops are found in the Kenyan LVD, as the previous study only found hybrid individuals of this species in this region; (2) testing the sister relationship between Enteromius profundus, endemic to Lake Victoria, and Enteromius radiatus, also found in Lake Victoria, which had been previously synonymized; (3) examining the phylogenetic relationships of small barbs of the Kenyan LVD with those reported from other ichthyological provinces of Africa; and (4) examining the phylogenetic relationships of Labeobarbus altianalis with other Labeobarbus species. To this end, we obtained mitochondrial Cytochrome b and nuclear Growth Hormone (GH) intron 2 gene sequences of nine Enteromius species from the LVD in Kenya, as well as cytochrome b sequences for L. altianalis. We conducted Maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic analyses to establish their evolutionary relationships in relation to many other barbs specimens from Africa. Phylogenetic analyses did not reveal instances of hybridization/introgression among the individuals sequenced by us. A sister relationship between E. profundus and E. radiatus was not found. This latter species shows instead a sister relationship with a lineage comprised of two species from West Africa. Other sister relationships between taxa from the East coast and other ecoregions from Africa are observed, suggesting that past drainage connections and vicariant events contributed to the diversification of Enteromius. Finally, only a single haplotype was recovered among the L. altianalis individuals examined, which is most similar to a specimen from Lake Edward in Uganda.https://peerj.com/articles/5762.pdfMitochondrialPhylogenyCytochrome bBarbusEnteromiusBiogeography
spellingShingle Violet M. Ndeda
Mariana Mateos
Luis A. Hurtado
Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
PeerJ
Mitochondrial
Phylogeny
Cytochrome b
Barbus
Enteromius
Biogeography
title Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
title_full Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
title_fullStr Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
title_full_unstemmed Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
title_short Evolution of African barbs from the Lake Victoria drainage system, Kenya
title_sort evolution of african barbs from the lake victoria drainage system kenya
topic Mitochondrial
Phylogeny
Cytochrome b
Barbus
Enteromius
Biogeography
url https://peerj.com/articles/5762.pdf
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