Genetic diversity and population structure of a global invader Mayweed chamomile (Anthemis cotula): management implications

Mayweed chamomile (Anthemis cotula) is a globally invasive, troublesome annual weed but knowledge of its genetic diversity, population structure in invaded regions and invasion patterns remains unstudied. Therefore, germplasm from 19 A. cotula populations (sites) from three geographically distinct invaded regions: the Walla Walla Basin (located in southern Washington) and the Palouse (located in both northern Idaho and eastern Washington), Pacific Northwest, USA and Kashmir Valley, India were grown in the greenhouse for DNA extraction and sequencing. A total of 18 829 single-nucleotide polymorphisms were called and filtered for each of 89 samples. Pairwise F-ST, Nei's genetic distance, heterozygosity, Wright's inbreeding coefficient (F) and self-fertilization rates were estimated for populations within and among the three regions with a total of 19 populations comprised of 89 individuals. Overall measurements of genetic variation were low but significant among regions, populations and individuals. Despite the weak genetic structure, two main genetic clusters were evident, one comprised of populations from Palouse and Kashmir Valley, the other comprised of populations from the Walla Walla Basin. Significant selfing was observed in populations from the Walla Walla Basin and Palouse but not from Kashmir Valley, indicating that Mayweed chamomile in the Pacific Northwest, USA could persist with low pollinator or pollen donor densities. Although F-ST values between the regions indicate Palouse populations are more closely related to Kashmir Valley than to Walla Walla Basin populations, based on Migrate-n analysis, panmixis was the most likely model, suggesting an unrestricted gene flow among all three regions. Our study indicated that Kashmir Valley populations either originated from or shared the origin with the Palouse populations, suggesting human-mediated migration of A. cotula between regions.

Automated summary

The study investigated the genetic diversity and population structures of Mayweed chamomile from different invaded regions, identifying low but significant genetic variations among regions, populations, and individuals. Despite weak genetic structure, two main genetic clusters were identified, indicating potential gene flow among populations from different regions in the Pacific Northwest, USA.