Article
Evaluating the role of morphological characters in the phylogeny of some trypanosomatid genera (Excavata, Kinetoplastea, Trypanosomatida)
Registro en:
SILVA JUNIOR, Renato da; PAIVA, Thiago da Silva. Evaluating the role of morphological characters in the phylogeny of some trypanosomatid genera (Excavata, Kinetoplastea, Trypanosomatida). Cladistics, v.34, p.167-180, 2018.
0748-3007
10.1111/cla.12199
1096-0031
Autor
Silva Júnior, Renato da
Paiva, Thiago da Silva
Resumen
Over the last three decades, it has been progressively assumed that morphology has become obsolete for trypanosomatid systematics.
Traditional taxonomy, based on the occurrence of specific kinds of cell morphotypes during life cycles and the morphometry
of such cells, is often rejected by molecular phylogenies inferred mostly from 18S rDNA alone or combined with
GAPDH. In such context, we hypothesized the affinities of 35 representatives of seven trypanosomatid genera from separated
and combined cladistics analyses of morphological and 18S matrices. Morphology is shown to be more consistent and to have
stronger synapomorphy retention than the 18S data. The strict consensus of cladograms from separated analyses was mostly
unresolved, while combined analysis produced a meaningful and robust phylogenetic pattern, as evidenced by partition congruence
index, Bremer support and frequencies of groups present/contradicted. The results (1) corroborate the separation of Angomonas
and Strigomonas from Crithidia, which is now shown to be monophyletic, (2) support the revalidation of the genus
Wallaceina, and (3) place the genera Herpetomonas, Leptomonas and Phytomonas within a single clade. Overall, we demonstrate
the belief that morphological characters are inferior to molecular ones for trypanosomatid systematics is a consequence of
neglecting their inclusion in phylogenetic analyses. 2030-01-01