1. The FORGENIUS genomic resources : new genotyping tools and genomic data for 23 forest tree species and their genetic conservation unitsSara Pinosio, Francesca Bagnoli, Camilla Avanzi, Maria Beatrice Castellani, Arcangela Frascella, Susan McEvoy, Sanna Olsson, Ilaria Spanu, Elia Vajana, Marko Bajc, Gregor Božič, Rok Damjanić, Natalija Dovč, Luka Krajnc, Marija Kravanja, Gal Oblišar, Gregor Skoberne, Marjana Westergren, 2026, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Genetic diversity is a critical but often overlooked component of biological diversity. The European H2020 FORGENIUS project is aimed at increasing the quality and quantity of genetic data to start monitoring the European network of forest Genetic Conservation Units (GCUs). A first step in this direction was developing standardised genomic resources for 23 forest tree species, spanning from rare and scattered (e.g., Abies nebrodensis and Torminalis glaberrima) to widespread and stand-forming, economically relevant ones (e.g., Fagus sylvatica, Picea abies and Pinus sylvestris). Here, we describe the development and application of targeted genotyping tools, primarily based on Single Primer Enrichment Technology (SPET), along with existing SNP arrays for the selected species. The SPET panels developed in FORGENIUS were designed to capture ⁓10,000 loci per species, balancing species-specific and randomly distributed regions to ensure broad genome coverage and minimise ascertainment bias. Across 7220 genotyped trees, we identified over 1.8 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) covering approximately 50 Mb of DNA sequence. SPET panels demonstrated high genotyping efficiency and cross-species transferability, especially within genera such as Quercus and Abies. They represent a cost-effective, flexible, and scalable solution for population-level genetic assessments across diverse taxa, enabling standardised, genome-wide characterisation of the GCU network. These resources not only promote the establishment of genetic monitoring, support genetically informed conservation strategies and improve our understanding of adaptive responses in European forests, but also enhance species delimitation and hybrid detection, and enable the characterisation of phylogenetically related but previously underexplored species.
Ključne besede: forest tree species, genetic conservation units, genetic diversity, genetic monitoring, single primer enrichment technology, targetedgenotyping, SNP, SPET
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 06.03.2026; Ogledov: 288; Prenosov: 241
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2. A long-term ecological research data set from the marine genetic monitoring program ARMS-MBON 2018–2020Nauras Daraghmeh, Katrina Exter, Justine Pagnier, Piotr Balazy, Ibon Cancio, Giorgos Chatzigeorgiou, Eva Chatzinikolaou, Maciej Chelchowski, Borut Mavrič, 2025, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Molecular methods such as DNA/eDNA metabarcoding have emerged as useful tools to document the biodiversity of complex communities over large spatio-temporal scales. We established an international Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (ARMS-MBON) combining standardised sampling using autonomous reef monitoring structures (ARMS) with metabarcoding for genetic monitoring of marine hard-bottom benthic communities. Here, we present the data of our first sampling campaign comprising 56 ARMS units deployed in 2018–2019 and retrieved in 2018–2020 across 15 observatories along the coasts of Europe and adjacent regions. We describe the open-access data set (image, genetic and metadata) and explore the genetic data to show its potential for marine biodiversity monitoring and ecological research. Our analysis shows that ARMS recovered more than 60 eukaryotic phyla capturing diversity of up to ~5500 amplicon sequence variants and ~1800 operational taxonomic units, and up to ~250 and ~50 species per observatory using the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and 18S rRNA marker genes, respectively. Further, ARMS detected threatened, vulnerable and non-indigenous species often targeted in biological monitoring. We show that while deployment duration does not drive diversity estimates, sampling effort and sequencing depth across observatories do. We recommend that ARMS should be deployed for at least 3–6 months during the main growth season to use resources as efficiently as possible and that post-sequencing curation is applied to enable statistical comparison of spatio-temporal entities. We suggest that ARMS should be used in biological monitoring programs and long-term ecological research and encourage the adoption of our ARMS-MBON protocols.
Ključne besede: 18S rRNA, COI, essential biodiversity variables, European marine omics biodiversity observation network, genetic monitoring, invasive species, ITS
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 18.04.2025; Ogledov: 981; Prenosov: 530
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3. Monitoring of species’ genetic diversity in Europe varies greatly and overlooks potential climate change impactsPeter Pearman, Olivier Broennimann, Tsipe Aavik, Tamer Albayrak, Paulo Célio Alves, Filipos Aravanopoulos, Laura Bertola, Aleksandra Biedrzycka, Elena Bužan, Vlatka Čubrić Čurik, Katja Kavčič Sonnenschein, Marjana Westergren, 2024, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Genetic monitoring of populations currently attracts interest in the context of the Convention on Biological Diversity but needs long-term planning and investments. However, genetic diversity has been largely neglected in biodiversity monitoring, and when addressed, it is treated separately, detached from other conservation issues, such as habitat alteration due to climate change. We report an accounting of efforts to monitor population genetic diversity in Europe (genetic monitoring effort, GME), the evaluation of which can help guide future capacity building and collaboration towards areas most in need of expanded monitoring. Overlaying GME with areas where the ranges of selected species of conservation interest approach current and future climate niche limits helps identify whether GME coincides with anticipated climate change effects on biodiversity. Our analysis suggests that country area, financial resources and conservation policy influence GME, high values of which only partially match species’ joint patterns of limits to suitable climatic conditions. Populations at trailing climatic niche margins probably hold genetic diversity that is important for adaptation to changing climate. Our results illuminate the need in Europe for expanded investment in genetic monitoring across climate gradients occupied by focal species, a need arguably greatest in southeastern European countries. This need could be met in part by expanding the European Union’s Birds and Habitats Directives to fully address the conservation and monitoring of genetic diversity.
Ključne besede: genetics, monitoring, population genetic diversity, Europe
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 22.01.2024; Ogledov: 1680; Prenosov: 963
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5. Reconstruction of brown bear population dynamics in Slovenia in the period 1998-2019 : ǂa ǂnew approach combining genetics and long-term mortality dataKlemen Jerina, Andrés Ordiz, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Povzetek: Reliable data and methods for assessing changes in wildlife population size over time are necessary for management and conservation. For most species, assessing abundance is an expensive and labor-intensive task that is not affordable on a frequent basis. We present a novel approach to reconstructing brown bear population dynamics in Slovenia in the period 1998-2019, based on the combination of two CMR non-invasive genetic estimates (in 2007 and 2015) and long-term mortality records, to show how the latter can help the study of population dynamics in combination with point-in-time estimates. The spring (i.e. including newborn cubs) population size estimate was 383 (CI: 336-432) bears in 1998 and 971 (CI: 825-1161) bears in 2019. In this period, the average annual population growth rate was 4.5 %. The predicted population size differed by just 7 % from the non-invasive genetic size estimate after eight years, suggesting that the method is reliable. It can predict the evolution of the population size under different management scenarios and provide information on key parameters, e.g. background mortality and the sex- and age-structure of the population. Our approach can be used for several other wildlife species, but it requires reliable mortality data over time.
Ključne besede: genetic estimates of population size, mortality records, population monitoring, population size, predictive modelling, brown bear
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 28.03.2021; Ogledov: 6033; Prenosov: 3387
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6. The interplay between forest management practices, genetic monitoring, and other long-term monitoring systemsDarius Kavaliauskas, Barbara Fussi, Marjana Westergren, Filipos Aravanopoulos, Domen Finžgar, Roland Baier, Paraskevi Alizoti, Gregor Božič, Evangelia V. Avramidou, Monika Konnert, Hojka Kraigher, 2018, pregledni znanstveni članek Povzetek: The conservation and sustainable use of forests and forest genetic resources (FGR) is a challenging task for scientists and foresters. Forest management practices can affect diversity on various levels: genetic, species, and ecosystem. Understanding past natural disturbance dynamics and their level of dependence on human disturbances and management practices is essential for the conservation and management of FGR, especially in the light of climate change. In this review, forest management practices and their impact on genetic composition are reviewed, synthesized, and interpreted in the light of existing national and international forest monitoring schemes and concepts from various European projects. There is a clear need and mandate for forest genetic monitoring (FGM), while the requirements thereof lack complementarity with existing forest monitoring. Due to certain obstacles (e.g., the lack of unified FGM implementation procedures across the countries, high implementation costs, large number of indicators and verifiers for FGM proposed in the past), merging FGM with existing forest monitoring is complicated. Nevertheless, FGM is of paramount importance for forestry and the natural environment in the future, regardless of the presence or existence of other monitoring systems, as it provides information no other monitoring system can yield. FGM can provide information related to adaptive and neutral genetic diversity changes over time, on a species and/or on a population basis and can serve as an early warning system for the detection of potentially harmful changes of forest adaptability. In addition, FGM offers knowledge on the adaptive potential of forests under the changing environment, which is important for the long-term conservation of FGR
Ključne besede: forest monitoring, forest genetic monitoring, forest genetic diversity, silviculture
Objavljeno v DiRROS: 20.02.2020; Ogledov: 3298; Prenosov: 2386
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