Anseriformes, or waterfowl, are related to Galliformes (chickens and kin), together forming the most basal sister of Neoaves. The order is generally considered to comprise four families: Presbyornithidae (Late Cretaceous - Eocene); Anseranatidae (Paleocene-present); Anhimidae (Oligocene-present); Anatidae (Oligocene-present), but the giant Tertiary flightless taxa Dromornithidae (Australia), Gastornithidae (Eurasia) and Diatrymidae (North America) have also been referred to the order. Australasia presently has a unique waterfowl fauna characterized by low species diversity but high phylogenetic diversity: the Magpie Goose Anseranas (the sole surviving anseranatid), several monotypic endemic anatid genera of uncertain relationships (Cape Barren Goose Cereopsis, Freckled Duck Stictonetta, Pinkeared Duck Malacorhynchus and Musk Duck Biziura), several relatively primitive taxa (the aforementioned plus whistling ducks Dendrocygna and Blue-billed Duck Oxyura). The evolutionary history of this fauna has, until now, not been examined via the fossil record. In this thesis, the literature for the global fossil record of Anseranatidae and Anatidae is reviewed. The Neogene (Oligocene-Pliocene) fossil record of Anseriformes, exclusive of dromornithids, is studied from both New Zealand and Australia. For New Zealand, all materials derive from the St Bathans Fauna, Early Miocene (19-16 Ma), Otago. Herein, the first description of this fauna is provided, with four anatid genera (Manuherikia, Dunstanetta, Matanas and Miotadorna) established for five species, with a sixth taxon reported (Chapter 2). The phylogenetic affinities of Manuherikia, Dunstanetta and Miotadorna are examined using parsimony analysis of morphological data (133 characters) in Chapter 3. Miotadorna is a shelduck related to tadornines, perhaps sister to Tadorna, and Manuherikia and Dunstanetta are oxyurines related to the Stictonetta, Malacorhynchus, Oxyura and Biziura). A further species of Manuherikia and the existence of definite anserines, probably related to Cereopsis, are described in Chapter 4. The fossil record of Australian anseriforms is described in Chapters 5-8. The Oligo- Miocene record derives principally from the Etadunna and Namba Formations (26-24 Ma) in the Lake Eyre and Frome Basins, respectively, in South Australia. Four taxa are described, with all occurring both in the Namba and Etadunna Formations: a single genus, Pinpanetta, is established for three species and another, Australotadorna, for a tadornine. Phylogenetic analyses (parsimony and Bayesian) of a dataset (150 characters, 61 taxa) show Pinpanetta is an oxyurine and confirm the previously found oxyurine affinity of Manuherikia and Dunstanetta. A monophyletic clade with moderate support is found for an expanded Oxyurinae that has Stictonetta basal, followed successively by Mionetta (Oligo- Miocene of Europe), Malacorhynchus, Pinpanetta, Manuherikia, Dunstanetta, Oxyura and Nomonyx, Biziura and Thalassornis. This same analysis finds anserines the most basal group in Anatidae, so changing position with Dendrocygna, considered by recent authors to be the most basal anatid. A new genus and species of anseranatid is described from a Faunal Zone A (System A, Late Oligocene) deposit at Riversleigh, northwestern Queensland (Chapter 6). This first pre-Pliocene record of the family in Australia is of equivalent age to the youngest European fossil anseranatid, Anserpica from France, but younger than the Eocene Anatalavis of England. Only one of three other waterfowl bones known from Riversleigh deposits is identifiable and is referred to a species of Pinpanetta found in the Etadunna Formation. Mid-Late Miocene deposits containing waterfowl are restricted in Australia to just the Waite Formation (c. 8 Ma) at Alcoota in the Northern Territory. Three bones indicate an undetermined tadornine and an undetermined anatid, different from any known species. The Pliocene record of anseriforms in South Australia is described from the Tirari Formation (Kanunka and Toolapinna Faunas) (Chapter 7). Nine modern species (Anseranas semipalmata, Cereopsis novaehollandiae, Cygnus atratus, Tadorna tadornoides, Biziura lobata, Oxyura australis, Anas cf A. castanea, A. cf A. gracilis and Aythya australis) are represented. A single extinct species, Tirarinetta kanunka, is described and referred to Oxyurinae. From the Parilla Sands, Late Pliocene, at Bookmark Cliffs on the Murray River, a single humerus is described (Chapter 8) and referred to Tadorna cf. T. tadornoides. A total of 11 anatid taxa is described from latest Oligocene-Early Miocene deposits in Australasia, which considerably adds to the global record of seven species previously reported for this period. Considering also the anseranatids, the Late Oligocene – Early Miocene fauna of Australia is thus established as having equivalent diversity to that from similar-aged deposits in Europe, but by the late Early Miocene, the New Zealand fauna was more diverse than any other Oligo-Miocene fauna known. The more limited samples available, compared to those from New Zealand, probably explain the lack of a similar diversity being revealed for Australia from this period. In both Australia and New Zealand, the Oligo-Miocene faunas are dominated by oxyurine taxa, as were those in Europe. The presence of a tadornine in Australia in the latest Oligocene and another in New Zealand in the Early Miocene precede the appearance of this subfamily in the Northern Hemisphere by 10 Ma, implying a southern origin for this group. The Late Oligocene presence of Mionetta in Europe and of Pinpanetta in Australia, and their referral to Oxyurinae, establishes a minimum age for the origin of this subfamily in the latest Oligocene. The establishment of a fauna comprised of modern species by the Pliocene indicates substantial faunal turnover probably in the Late Miocene. This turnover is due in part to immigration of taxa (Cygnus, Anas, Aythya) and in situ evolution (all endemic genera), as occurred in other Australian vertebrates (rodents, snakes, bats). Thus faunal composition in Australia appears to have been more affected by attainment of some threshold in proximity to Asia being breached by the northward continental drift of Australia, than by aridification, which has been ongoing since the Middle Miocene. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1339803 / Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Adelaide, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, 2008

Anseriformes, or waterfowl, are related to Galliformes (chickens and kin), together forming the most basal sister of Neoaves. The order is generally considered to comprise four families: Presbyornithidae (Late Cretaceous - Eocene); Anseranatidae (Paleocene-present); Anhimidae (Oligocene-present); Anatidae (Oligocene-present), but the giant Tertiary flightless taxa Dromornithidae (Australia), Gastornithidae (Eurasia) and Diatrymidae (North America) have also been referred to the order. Australasia presently has a unique waterfowl fauna characterized by low species diversity but high phylogenetic diversity: the Magpie Goose Anseranas (the sole surviving anseranatid), several monotypic endemic anatid genera of uncertain relationships (Cape Barren Goose Cereopsis, Freckled Duck Stictonetta, Pinkeared Duck Malacorhynchus and Musk Duck Biziura), several relatively primitive taxa (the aforementioned plus whistling ducks Dendrocygna and Blue-billed Duck Oxyura). The evolutionary history of this fauna has, until now, not been examined via the fossil record. In this thesis, the literature for the global fossil record of Anseranatidae and Anatidae is reviewed. The Neogene (Oligocene-Pliocene) fossil record of Anseriformes, exclusive of dromornithids, is studied from both New Zealand and Australia. For New Zealand, all materials derive from the St Bathans Fauna, Early Miocene (19-16 Ma), Otago. Herein, the first description of this fauna is provided, with four anatid genera (Manuherikia, Dunstanetta, Matanas and Miotadorna) established for five species, with a sixth taxon reported (Chapter 2). The phylogenetic affinities of Manuherikia, Dunstanetta and Miotadorna are examined using parsimony analysis of morphological data (133 characters) in Chapter 3. Miotadorna is a shelduck related to tadornines, perhaps sister to Tadorna, and Manuherikia and Dunstanetta are oxyurines related to the Stictonetta, Malacorhynchus, Oxyura and Biziura). A further species of Manuherikia and the existence of definite anserines, probably related to Cereopsis, are described in Chapter 4. The fossil record of Australian anseriforms is described in Chapters 5-8. The Oligo- Miocene record derives principally from the Etadunna and Namba Formations (26-24 Ma) in the Lake Eyre and Frome Basins, respectively, in South Australia. Four taxa are described, with all occurring both in the Namba and Etadunna Formations: a single genus, Pinpanetta, is established for three species and another, Australotadorna, for a tadornine. Phylogenetic analyses (parsimony and Bayesian) of a dataset (150 characters, 61 taxa) show Pinpanetta is an oxyurine and confirm the previously found oxyurine affinity of Manuherikia and Dunstanetta. A monophyletic clade with moderate support is found for an expanded Oxyurinae that has Stictonetta basal, followed successively by Mionetta (Oligo- Miocene of Europe), Malacorhynchus, Pinpanetta, Manuherikia, Dunstanetta, Oxyura and Nomonyx, Biziura and Thalassornis. This same analysis finds anserines the most basal group in Anatidae, so changing position with Dendrocygna, considered by recent authors to be the most basal anatid. A new genus and species of anseranatid is described from a Faunal Zone A (System A, Late Oligocene) deposit at Riversleigh, northwestern Queensland (Chapter 6). This first pre-Pliocene record of the family in Australia is of equivalent age to the youngest European fossil anseranatid, Anserpica from France, but younger than the Eocene Anatalavis of England. Only one of three other waterfowl bones known from Riversleigh deposits is identifiable and is referred to a species of Pinpanetta found in the Etadunna Formation. Mid-Late Miocene deposits containing waterfowl are restricted in Australia to just the Waite Formation (c. 8 Ma) at Alcoota in the Northern Territory. Three bones indicate an undetermined tadornine and an undetermined anatid, different from any known species. The Pliocene record of anseriforms in South Australia is described from the Tirari Formation (Kanunka and Toolapinna Faunas) (Chapter 7). Nine modern species (Anseranas semipalmata, Cereopsis novaehollandiae, Cygnus atratus, Tadorna tadornoides, Biziura lobata, Oxyura australis, Anas cf A. castanea, A. cf A. gracilis and Aythya australis) are represented. A single extinct species, Tirarinetta kanunka, is described and referred to Oxyurinae. From the Parilla Sands, Late Pliocene, at Bookmark Cliffs on the Murray River, a single humerus is described (Chapter 8) and referred to Tadorna cf. T. tadornoides. A total of 11 anatid taxa is described from latest Oligocene-Early Miocene deposits in Australasia, which considerably adds to the global record of seven species previously reported for this period. Considering also the anseranatids, the Late Oligocene – Early Miocene fauna of Australia is thus established as having equivalent diversity to that from similar-aged deposits in Europe, but by the late Early Miocene, the New Zealand fauna was more diverse than any other Oligo-Miocene fauna known. The more limited samples available, compared to those from New Zealand, probably explain the lack of a similar diversity being revealed for Australia from this period. In both Australia and New Zealand, the Oligo-Miocene faunas are dominated by oxyurine taxa, as were those in Europe. The presence of a tadornine in Australia in the latest Oligocene and another in New Zealand in the Early Miocene precede the appearance of this subfamily in the Northern Hemisphere by 10 Ma, implying a southern origin for this group. The Late Oligocene presence of Mionetta in Europe and of Pinpanetta in Australia, and their referral to Oxyurinae, establishes a minimum age for the origin of this subfamily in the latest Oligocene. The establishment of a fauna comprised of modern species by the Pliocene indicates substantial faunal turnover probably in the Late Miocene. This turnover is due in part to immigration of taxa (Cygnus, Anas, Aythya) and in situ evolution (all endemic genera), as occurred in other Australian vertebrates (rodents, snakes, bats). Thus faunal composition in Australia appears to have been more affected by attainment of some threshold in proximity to Asia being breached by the northward continental drift of Australia, than by aridification, which has been ongoing since the Middle Miocene. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1339803 / Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Adelaide, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, 2008

Phylogeny of 25 Hemidactylus frenatus populations from Taiwan and adjecent islands were resloved by mitochondrial cytochrome b nucleotide sequences and morphological characters. A total of 327 bp were sequenced. Using neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony methods, the phylogenetic trees divide Hemidactylus frenatus into 8 regional groups: Tungshia group; Chiaohsi group; northwest group; central group; Chiayi-Tainan group; south-Penghu group; east-Hengchun group; and southeast group. The results suggest that, the dispersal center should be in the northwest, and then dispersed to the east and the south. Phylogenetic state of Chiaohsi population is not clear. It may be immigrated from northwest or outside of Taiwan. The Penghu and Kaohsiung populations have a short genetic distance, maybe caused from frequently genetic interflow, as well as the Chihpen, Tunghe, Lutao and Lanyu populations. The Principle Component Analysis and Canonical Discriminate Analysis of 16 morphological characters, showed that no differences exist populations.

Flowers from members of the genus Leucadendron have colourful bracts and long vase life that make them highly desirable cut-flowers. Breeding programs based on interspecific hybridization would encounter difficulty if pre- or post-fertilization barriers exist in the distant crosses. Embryo rescue is one of the commonly used approaches to overcome post-fertilization barriers in wide hybridization. In this study, intersectional and intersubsectional hybridization of Leucadendron was attempted. Observation of pollen-pistil interactions revealed that post-zygotic rejection was the main reason for the incompatibility of the crosses, therefore embryo rescue was adopted and a protocol was developed to raise the hybrids. To better understand the genome structure in the genus, karyotypes of selected species were analyzed. Chromosome examination indicated that all (27) Leucadendron species examined were diploid and had a chromosome number of 2n = 26. The chromosomes were small in size and had predominantly median to submedian centromeres. The karyotypes of the species were rather symmetrical and seemed to be primitive according to Stebbins' karyotype classification. DNA based PCR-RFLP and RAMP markers were developed to identify Leucadendron hybrids at an early age. RAMP analysis showed more discrimination in identifying Leucadendron hybrids than did PCR-RFLP. The occurrence of PCR recombination also proved to be a troublesome issue when using the PCR-RFLP method, whereas the clarity of the interpretion of the RAMP method was not influenced by PCR recombination. Interspecific hybridization in a breeding program can provide valuable information on grouping of the species for systematic purposes. Regression analysis between cross success rate and cpDNA character difference revealed that there was a highly significant correlation between them. Patterns of success for intersectional hybridizations in Leucadendron were generally consistent with current taxonomic hypotheses regarding the sectional division of the genus. Success was generally lower for intersectional crosses than for intrasectional crosses.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:03:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 NathaliaMCM_DISSERT.pdf: 2544480 bytes, checksum: eab320fea2fc6e6b04c8d45099041a93 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-21 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / The genome of all organisms constantly suffers the influence of mutagenic factors from endogenous and/or exogenous origin, which may result in damage for the genome. In order to keep the genome integrity there are different DNA repair pathway to detect and correct these lesions. In relation to the plants as being sessile organisms, they are exposed to this damage frequently. The Base Excision DNA Repair (BER) is responsible to detect and repair oxidative lesions. Previous work in sugarcane identified two sequences that were homologous to Arabidopsis thaliana: ScARP1 ScARP3. These two sequences were homologous to AP endonuclease from BER pathway. Then, the aim of this work was to characterize these two sequence using different approaches: phylogenetic analysis, in silico protein organelle localization and by Nicotiana tabacum transgenic plants with overexpression cassette. The in silico data obtained showed a duplication of this sequence in sugarcane and Poaceae probably by a WGD event. Furthermore, in silico analysis showed a new localization in nuclei for ScARP1 protein. The data obtained with transgenic plants showed a change in development and morphology. Transgenic plants had slow development when compared to plants not transformed. Then, these results allowed us to understand better the potential role of this sequence in sugarcane and in plants in general. More work is important to be done in order to confirm the protein localization and protein characterization for ScARP1 and ScARP3 / O genoma de todos os organismos sofre constantemente a influ?ncia de fatores mutag?nicos que podem ser de origem end?gena e/ou ex?gena, estes podem resultar em danos ao material gen?tico. Se esses danos n?o forem corrigidos pode levar ao aparecimento de muta??es. As plantas por serem organismos sesseis est?o continuamente expostas a estes fatores. Considerando isto, os organismos (animais e vegetais) possuem diferentes vias de reparo de DNA para manter a integridade do material gen?tico. Dentro destas vias, h? a via de Reparo por Excis?o de Bases (BER) que ? composta por diferentes enzimas, e dentro dessa via h? a enzima AP endonuclease que ? alvo deste estudo. Trabalhos anteriores em cana-de-a??car identificaram duas sequ?ncias de cDNA hom?logas a esta prote?na que foram denominadas ScARP1 e ScARP3. Com isso, o objetivo deste trabalho foi caracterizar estas duas sequ?ncias por meio de an?lises filogen?ticas utilizando sequ?ncias presentes dentro do reino Plantae, e de an?lises estruturais dos genes de AP endonuclease por an?lise in silico e por plantas transg?nicas contendo cassetes de super-express?o. Al?m disso, foi realizado transforma??es e a obten??o plantas transg?nicas de Nicotiana tabacum contendo cassetes de super-express?o em orienta??o anti-senso. Foi tamb?m analisado a rela??o filogen?tica de genes DNA ligase I presentes no organismo vegetal de estudo. Os resultados obtidos permitiram verificar que as sequ?ncias ScARP1 e ScARP3 correspondem a uma duplica??o, provavelmente devido a um processo de duplica??o do genoma como um todo (WGD) que deve ter ocorrido no grupo das gram?neas (Poaceae). Refor?ando estes dados, foi verificado um poss?vel direcionamento da prote?na para organelas diferentes, sendo que a ScARP1 pode ser encontrada no n?cleo e a ScARP3 em mitocondrias e/ou cloroplasto. Com rela??o as plantas transg?nicas contendo o cassete em orienta??o anti-senso foi observado que estas apresentaram crescimento lento quando comparado com a planta selvagem (n?o transformada). Al?m disso, seu fen?tipo abrange altera??es morfol?gicas no crescimento foliar, baixa estatura e diminui??o na produ??o de sementes. Entretanto, ainda se faz necess?rio a obten??o da linhagem homozigota para aprofundar essas observa??es. Desta forma, estes resultados permitem compreender um pouco melhor do poss?vel papel da enzima AP endonuclease em cana-de-a??car e em plantas