Katja Reichel

Freie Universität Berlin | FUB · Division of Botany

Most plastid genome sequences are assembled from short-read whole-genome sequencing data, yet the impact that sequence coverage and the choice of assembly software can have on the accuracy of the resulting assemblies is poorly understood. In this study, we test the impact of both factors on plastid genome assembly in the threatened and rare endemic...

Plant diversity is decreasing mainly through anthropogenic factors like habitat fragmentation, which lead to spatial separation of remaining populations and thereby affect genetic diversity and structure within species. Twenty populations of the threatened grassland species Crepis mollis were studied across Germany (578 individual plants) based on...

Background: Partially clonal organisms are very common in nature, yet the influence of partial asexuality on the temporal dynamics of genetic diversity remains poorly understood. Mathematical models accounting for clonality predict deviations only for extremely rare sex and only towards mean inbreeding coefficient [Formula: see text]. Yet in parti...

Evaluating the consequences of the decline of threatened species on their population genetic structure is crucial for establishing effective conservation strategies in the strongly fragmented landscapes of Central Europe. Laserpitium prutenicum is a bi- to perennial forb occurring in intermittently wet meadows and light oak forests throughout centr...

Neutral patterns of population genetic diversity in species with complex life cycles are difficult to anticipate. Cyclical parthenogenesis (CP), in which organisms undergo several rounds of clonal reproduction followed by a sexual event, is one such life cycle. Many species, including crop pests (aphids), human parasites (trematodes) or models used...

Background: Markov chains are a common framework for individual‐based state and time discrete models in evolu‐ tion. Though they played an important role in the development of basic population genetic theory, the analysis of more complex evolutionary scenarios typically involves approximation with other types of models. As the number of states incr...

Les systèmes reproducteurs déterminent comment le matériel génétique est transmis d’une génération à la suivante […]. Les espèces qui combinent de la reproduction sexuée et asexuée/clonale sont très répandues [… mais] l’effet de leur système reproducteur sur leur évolution reste énigmatique et discuté.L’objectif de cette thèse est de modéliser la d...

Les organismes partiellement asexués sont très fréquents et/ou importants dans la plupart des écosystèmes. Nous nous attachons à comprendre comment les modes de reproduction partiellement asexués impactent la diversité génétique. Pour ce faire, nous utilisons des modèles mathématiques stochastiques qui permettent de formaliser l’évolution des pools...

Markov chains are a common framework for individual-based state and time discrete models in ecology and evolution. Their use, however, is largely limited to systems with a low number of states, since the transition matrices involved pose considerable challenges as their size and their density increase. Big, dense transition matrices may easily defy...

Partially asexual organisms are able to reproduce both sexually and asexually (clonally). They occur throughout all the earth’s biomes and often play ecologically important roles (colonizers, ecosystem engineers, parasites, invasives). We are interested in the effect of partial asexuality on evolution. Using a discrete-time Markov chain model based...

Population genetics provides powerful tools for assessing the genetic diversity of populations, and may therefore be helpful for predicting their potential for adaptation and survival. As more and more studies make use of these tools, the demand for more sophisticated data analysis methods also increases. One particular problem is the applicability...

Being capable of both sexual and asexual reproduction is a common feature of many organisms throughout the earth’s biomes. Yet, what does it imply for the short-term dynamics of genotypicdiversity? We used a state-based stochastic model (Markov chain) to compare evolutionary trajectories in a simplistic diploid, single locus 2-allele model of a pop...

Laserpitium prutenicum, once a „characteristic summer plant of the Oberlausitz“, has experienced a loss of about 90% of its populations in Eastern Saxony. This is connected to changes in land use during the last 70 years. L. prutenicum occurs in two types of habitat, „forest“ and „meadow“, which were further characterized based on vegetation survey...