From a phylogenetic tree to a reticulated network

In many phylogenetic problems, assuming that species have evolved from a common ancestor by a simple branching process is unrealistic. Reticulate phylogenetic models, however, have been largely neglected because the concept of reticulate evolution have not been supported by using appropriate analytical tools and software. The reticulate model can adequately describe such complicated mechanisms as hybridization between species or lateral gene transfer in bacteria. In this paper, we describe a new algorithm for inferring reticulate phylogenies from evolutionary distances among species. The algorithm is capable of detecting contradictory signals encompassed in a phylogenetic tree and identifying possible reticulate events that may have occurred during evolution. The algorithm produces a reticulate phylogeny by gradually improving upon the initial solution provided by a phylogenetic tree model. The new algorithm is compared to the popular SplitsGraph method in a reanalysis of the evolution of photosynthetic organisms. A computer program to construct and visualize reticulate phylogenies, called T-Rex (Tree and Reticulogram Reconstruction), is available to researchers at the following URL: www.fas.umontreal.ca/biol/casgrain/en/labo/t-rex.