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<p>Morphological characters from the gametophyte and sporophyte generations have been used in land plants to infer relationships and construct classifications, but sporophytes provide the vast majority of data for the systematics of vascular plants. In bryophytes both generations are well developed and characters from both are commonly used to classify these organisms. However, because morphological traits of gametophytes and sporophytes can have different genetic bases and experience different selective pressures, taxonomic emphasis on one generation or the other may yield incongruent classifications. The moss order Hookeriales has a controversial taxonomic history because previous classifications have focused almost exclusively on either gametophytes or sporophytes. The Hookeriales provide a model for comparing morphological evolution in gametophytes and sporophytes, and its impact on alternative classification systems. Sometimes, placement of certain groups within Hookeriales remains challenging even at the molecular level. That is the case of the genus <italic>Calyptrochaeta</italic>. We study diversification dynamics in this genus to elucidate possible mechanisms obscuring its placement and we address biogeographic questions using the Tropical Conservatism scenario as our null hypothesis. Furthermore, to better understand biogeographic patterns in the Southern Hemisphere, infraspecific molecular patterns are compared in two species of the genus <italic>Calyptrochaeta</italic> (i.e., <italic>C. apiculata</italic> and <italic>C. asplenioides</italic>) and vicariance and recent long distance dispersal are tested to explain the disjunct distributions observed in these species. </p><p>In this study we reconstruct relationships among pleurocarpous mosses in or associated to the Hookeriales, in <italic>Calyptrochaeta</italic>, and within <italic>Calyptrochaeta</italic>. Six molecular markers are explored in total from all three genome compartments to reconstruct the evolution of morphological characters and habitat preferences in our phylogenies. Divergence times are estimated in a Bayesian framework using a relaxed molecular clock, and diversification rates are calculated on the chronograms resulting from these estimations. </p><p>As a result, we found that the Hookeriales, as currently circumscribed, are monophyletic and that both sporophyte and gametophyte characters are labile. We documented parallel changes and reversals in traits from both generations. We show that diversification rates in <italic>Calyptrochaeta</italic> have changed through its history. Also, though we lack support to clearly reject the tropical conservatism hypothesis, our data point to a more complex scenario where both temperate and tropical species can be ancient and give rise to one another, since shifts between tropical and temperate regions seem to be possible in any direction. Finally, we have show that recent long distance dispersal best explains the distribution of both <italic>C. apiculata</italic> and <italic>C. asplenioides</italic> in the Southern Hemisphere.</p> / Dissertation

DNA content varies significantly over land plants, and is known to correlate with various aspects of plant form and function. In the present study, two measures of DNA content were examined in taxa across the land plant phylogeny: genome size (or C-value) and endopolyploidy (or endoreduplication index, EI). Additionally, the relationships between DNA content and various morphological and ecological traits were assessed. DNA content was determined for 64 liverwort species from 33 families. There was a large range in 1C-values from 0.27 to 20.46 pg, but no endopolyploidy was observed. There was no correlation between genome size and breeding system (monoecy vs. dioecy). Genome size and degree of endopolyploidy were determined for 74 moss species from 21 families. Genome sizes were constrained in this group, with 1C-values ranging from 0.25 to 1.21 pg. Endopolyploidy was high in all species except from the Sphagnaceae. Additionally, 1C-value was negatively correlated with desiccation tolerance but was not correlated with breeding system. DNA content variation was determined in 31 monilophyte (fern) species (including three horsetails) and 6 lycophyte (clubmoss) species. There was a wide range in 1C-values from 2.79 to 26.90 pg, and there was no indication of endopolyploidy in any of the species. Multivariate analyses were used to explore the relative contribution of traits and phylogenetic placement to DNA content varation in 41 angiosperm species. Six measures of DNA content (2C-value, 1Cx-value, leaf EI, stem EI, petal EI and root EI) were assessed. Phylogeny explained more of the variation observed in the six measures of DNA content than 21 ecological and morphological traits. However, many of the traits were able to explain some of the variation in DNA content, both with and without phylogeny included as a covaraite. One trait that was consistently correlated with DNA content was the association with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. In a controlled experiment, the EI in root cells colonized by AM fungi significantly increased compared to non-mycorrhizal plants. This thesis increases our knowledge regarding the extent and significance of variation in DNA content in land plants.

In this thesis, the uptake kinetics of Cd by the liverwort D. hirsuta and the moss A. androgynum were investigated. In preliminary experiments, the toxicity of Cd to the bryophytes was investigated by characterising the effects of Cd on photosynthesis and K loss. Experiments were carried out to explain the existence of variation between different collections observed in uptake kinetics in the liverwort D. hirsuta. Photosynthesis in D. hirsuta was more sensitive to Cd than photosynthesis in A. androgynum. The sensitivity was directly related to intracellular Cd concentrations. D. hirsuta accumulated considerably higher concentration of intracellular Cd than A. androgynum. Cd caused intracellular K loss in D. hirsuta but not in A. androgynum. Extracellular Cd uptake was rapid and independent of metabolism. Intracellular Cd uptake as a function of Cd concentrations followed Michael is-Menten kinetics. Intracellular Cd uptake in D. hirsuta was affected by age of the plant, K pretreatment and the site where plants were collected. The moss A. androgynum displayed Cd uptake acclimation when uptake was measured at low temperatures. The results indicated that uptake kinetics could be affected by seasonal variation. Tolerance of Cd in the moss A. androgynum could be induced by pretreating the plants with low concentrations. The moss possibly excludes Cd from the cytoplasm and thus reduces the concentration of Cd in the cytoplasm to below toxic level. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1997.

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the World Wide Web.

Regeneration from stem and branch fragments of the moss Helodium blandowii was examined in common garden and field experiments. The treatments included one cm long terminal stem fragments and branches of one cm and half cm length with and without the terminal and their regeneration was observed in course of 3 months in the common garden experiment and 15 months in the field. Dynamics of Helodium patches was observed in course of 2 years in permanent plots of the nature reserve Ruda. Genetic stucture of all recent Czech populations of Helodium blandowii was investigated and compared with a pilot survey of populations from Scandinavia and Lithuania using the microsatellite markes developed for this study.

Regeneration from stem and branch fragments of the moss Helodium blandowii was examined in common garden and field experiments. The treatments included one cm long terminal stem fragments and branches of one cm and half cm length with and without the terminal and their regeneration was observed in course of 3 months in the common garden experiment and 15 months in the field. Dynamics of Helodium patches was observed in course of 2 years in permanent plots of the nature reserve Ruda. Genetic stucture of all recent Czech populations of Helodium blandowii was investigated and compared with a pilot survey of populations from Scandinavia and Lithuania using the microsatellite markes developed for this study.

Dry grassland are among the most endangered plant communities mainly due to the overgrowth of a number of localities. That is why from the beginning of the 21st century pasture with mixed herds of sheep and goats is restored on the most valuable dry grassland sites in the Bohemian Karst as the way of maintaining these habitats. Concurrently, research sites each 1x1 m in size were set up at four pastured localities, and were paired with control sites equipped with a fence for the research of grazing effect on vegetation. The main aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of grazing on the diversity of bryophytes at the forty pairs of the above-mentioned areas in three types of calcareous dry grasslands. In addition to the inventory of bryophytes, data on the most important abiotic and biotic factors of the environment were recorded on individual sites. The total number of bryophyte species found at the research sites is 46. 37 species were found at the grazing areas and the same number was at the fenced areas. Minimal differences in the number of species of grazed and unspoilt areas were also found in the comparison of individual localities. The grazing effect was shown up more significantly on species richness in the comparison of individual types of communities, especially in broad-leaved dry grassland (T3.4). There was a 40% increase in the number of species on grazing areas. The environmental factors have a positive effect on the species abundance mainly due to the higher slope of the terrain and the correlation with the larger occurrence of the stones, the smaller coverage of the herb layer and the litter. These conditions prevailed in areas with rock outcrop vegetation with Festuca pallens (T3.1), where the largest species richness of bryophytes in area was found. In the obtained data, the influence of grazing on the species composition of bryophytes on grazed and unspoilt areas was also assessed with the statistical methods and the Sörensen test of beta-diversity. The results show that grazing significantly influences the species composition towards open grassland and supports the growth of the bryophytes T3.1 plant community at the expense of the T3.4 plant community

Submitted by Geandra Rodrigues (geandrar@gmail.com) on 2018-06-14T15:03:52Z No. of bitstreams: 1 marcelladealmeidapassarella.pdf: 2836466 bytes, checksum: fbbb0b0cabcf2306412b24731f01fa85 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2018-06-27T14:43:46Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 marcelladealmeidapassarella.pdf: 2836466 bytes, checksum: fbbb0b0cabcf2306412b24731f01fa85 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-06-27T14:43:46Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 marcelladealmeidapassarella.pdf: 2836466 bytes, checksum: fbbb0b0cabcf2306412b24731f01fa85 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-26 / A família Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. inclui musgos acrocárpicos, de tamanho pequeno a médio, que crescem, predominantemente como tufos e ocorrem, geralmente, sobre rochas e solo. A circunscrição da família é controversa, sendo sua monofilia sustentada por dados moleculares. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo realizar o estudo palinológico de espécies de Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. ocorrentes nas Américas e interpretar as relações entre as características palinológicas e as estratégias ecológicas das espécies estudadas, que pertencem aos gêneros Amphidium Schimp.; Arctoa Bruch & Schimp.; Cynodontium Schimp; Dichodontium Schimp.; Dicranoweisia Lindb. ex Milde; Kiaeria I. Hagen; Oncophorus (Brid.) Brid.; Oreas Brid.; Oreoweisia (Bruch & Schimp.) De Not.; Rhabdoweisia Limpr. Os esporos foram observados sob microscópio de luz antes e após acetólise e sob microscópio eletrônico de varredura e de transmissão. Para a avaliação das relações entre a morfologia dos esporos e as estratégias ecológicas foi realizada a análise de agrupamento, considerando os tipos de elementos de ornamentação, espessura do esporoderma polaridade, condição de tamanho, área apertural, forma de vida e substrato. As espécies estudadas apresentam esporos de tamanho pequeno a médio, com simetria radial e âmbito subcircular, são heteropolares ou apolares. O esporoderma é formado por intina, exina e perina. Os elementos de ornamentação permitiram a caracterização de quatro tipos morfológicos. Das 23 espécies estudadas, nove, incluídas em três gêneros apresentam esporos anisomórficos, sendo aqui relatados pela primeira vez. Os esporos das espécies de Amphidium Schimp. apresentam características palinológicas que permitem diferenciá-las das demais espécies integrantes de Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. Os padrões de ornamentação da superfície do esporoderma mais frequentes foram o baculoide e o granuloide; cerca de 80% das espécies analisadas apresentam área apertural diferenciada; dentre as carcterísticas ecológicas, rocha foi o substrato mais frequente, seguido por solos e a maioria das espécies apressentm tufo como forma de vida. As espécies de Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. analisadas neste trabalho foram agrupadas através de características palinológicas e ecológicas. / The family Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. includes small to medium sized acrocarpic mosses that grow predominantly as tufts and usually occur on rocks and soil. The circumscription of the family is controversial, and its monophyly is supported by molecular data. The present work aims to carry out the palynological study of species of Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. occurring in the Americas and to interpret the relationships between the palynological and ecological strategic characteristics of the species studied, which belong to the genera Amphidium Schimp.; Arctoa Bruch & Schimp.; Cynodontium Brid.; Dichodontium Schimp.; Dicranoweisia Lindb. ex Milde; Kiaeria I. Hagen; Oncophorus (Brid.) Brid.; Oreas Brid.; Oreoweisia (Bruch & Schimp.) De Not.; Rhabdoweisia Limpr. The spores were observed under light microscopy before and after acetolysis and under scanning and transmission electron microscopy. For the evaluation of the relationships between the spore morphology and the ecological strategies, the grouping analysis was performed considering the types of ornamentation elements, sporoderma polarity thickness, size condition, aesthetic area, life form and substrate. The species studied present small to medium spores, with radial symmetry and subcircular extent, are heteropolar or nonpolar. The sporoderm is formed by intina, exina and perina. The ornamentation elements allowed the characterization of four morphological types. Of the 23 species studied, nine, included in three genera present anisomorphic spores, being reported here for the first time. The spores of Amphidium Schimp. species have palynological characteristics that allow them to differentiate them from the other Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr species. The most frequent patterns of ornamentation of the sporoderm surface were baculoid and granuloid; about 80% of the analyzed species present a distinct aperural area. Among the ecological characteristics, rock was the most frequent substrate, followed by soils and most species apressentm tuff as a way of life. The species of Rhabdoweisiaceae Limpr. analyzed in this work were grouped through palynological and ecological characteristics.

As non-vascular, early land plants with an aquatic ancestry, mosses do not regulate internal water conditions separate from that of their environment and as a result, evolved mechanisms to survive in a terrestrial world out of water. Yet, there is a widely accepted dogma that moss reproductive success is solely dependent on rainfall events carrying swimming, bi-flagellate sperm across the landscape to reproductively mature and receptive female mosses--but this classic view of moss reproduction may be too simplistic. In this dissertation I test the assumptions of reproductive limitation in mosses and present novel findings in a basal, yet understudied terrestrial plant mating system. I find evidence of environmental desiccation tolerance in moss sperm, thus offering the potential for stress-tolerant gametes on the landscape possibly suited for various transport vectors, reminiscent of a pollen grain. To investigate the broad evolutionary implications of this newfound complexity in moss sexual reproduction, I tested classic tenets of plant-pollinator theory on the ancient mosses and their ubiquitous microarthropod inhabitants. Experimental results show that mosses and microarthropods are engaged in a "pollination-like" syndrome guided by sex-specific volatile cues that differentially affect microarthropod behavior. These data indicate an existing complex mutualistic relationship and provides new evidence of sexually dimorphic investment by male and female mosses into reproductive success. Further, these data put forth the idea that female mosses challenge an inherent mate limitation by investing into reproductive assurance via maintaining a relationship with microarthropods. Experimental work further confirms a role for invertebrates in moss reproductive success and tests mutualism theory through ongoing experiments. Such experiments include an assessment of moss genetic diversity, paternity, and male fitness traits as it relates to mosses with or without the presence of microarthropods, thereby testing for fitness benefits gained by mosses possibly engaged in a transport mutualism with microarthropods. I further tested mutualism, community ecology and moss sexual reproduction concepts in extreme geothermal moss populations living at the edges of inhabitable Earth, and results show that even geothermal moss canopies are diverse and host differential and abundant life. In a first field test of mutualism I found that although extreme heat stress may constrain sexual reproduction in mosses, a correlation between within-population moss genetic diversity and microarthropod abundances exists. To further examine mosses in extreme environments, and how these environments may constrain sexual reproductive success, I evaluated the effects of simulated warming on Antarctic moss physiology and reproductive biology. Data indicates that simulated warming relieves mosses of physiological stress, and results in a greater investment into primary productivity and sexual reproduction. These data support the hypothesis that with less stress, sexual reproduction is increased. Mosses are an ideal system by which to understand organisms that exist in environments ranging from the mesic to the extreme, in the laboratory and the field and even in the classroom, where the small functioning ecosystem of mosses can be used for discovery-based biology education as described in the Mosscosms curriculum. This work contributes significantly to the field of bryophyte and plant biology by revealing novel insights into the biotic and abiotic drivers of sexual reproduction in mosses.