Genome resequencing reveals multiscale geographic structure and extensive linkage disequilibrium in the forest tree Populus trichocarpa

Abstract

Population genomics of forest trees provides crucial information for breeding, conservation, and bioenergy feedstock development. As part of a large-scale association study, we resequenced 16 genomes of the model tree Populus trichocarpa to an average depth of 39. Analyses of the resulting data revealed surprisingly extensive population genetic structure and decay of linkage disequilibrium over much larger physical distances than the expected based on previous, smaller-scale studies. Rates of recombination varied widely across the genome but were largely predictable based on DNA sequence and methylation patterns. Our results suggest that genomewide association studies and accurate prediction of phenotypes from DNA data are more feasible in Populus than previously assumed, thereby laying the foundation for a step change in our understanding of tree biology.