Banca de DEFESA: GLEYCE MEDEIROS DA SILVA

Uma banca de DEFESA de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : GLEYCE MEDEIROS DA SILVA
DATE: 27/03/2026
TIME: 14:00
LOCAL: Sala de videoconferência CC/UFRN
TITLE:

Phylogenomics and taxonomy of Symphypleona (Arthropoda: Hexapoda: Collembola): Is the discovery of evolutionary history through modern methodologies compatible with traditional systematics?

KEY WORDS:

Eusymphypleona, genomic, phylogenetic, soil-dwelling fauna, springtails.

PAGES: 178
BIG AREA: Ciências Biológicas
AREA: Zoologia
SUBÁREA: Taxonomia dos Grupos Recentes
SUMMARY:

Springtails are terrestrial microarthropods regarded as valuable bioindicators of soil health and play a significant role in soil respiration processes. The class Collembola (Arthropoda, Hexapoda) comprises four orders (Entomobryomorpha, Poduromorpha, Symphypleona, and Neelipleona) which are currently accepted as independent lineages. However, despite studies published over recent decades on the evolution and systematics of Collembola, the phylogenetic relationships among the orders and part offamilies and subfamilies remain largely unresolved, with limited consensus. Symphypleona, one of the four orders, has undergone several systematic revisions over time. Nevertheless, despite some more accepted hypotheses, the relationships among its internal groups remain mostly unsolved. Given this gap in knowledge, the present study aims to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Symphypleona based on molecular data, investigating the internal relationships within the order. Additionally, it seeks to trace the morphological characters currently used to identify and delimit taxa and to describe potential new species. To achieve this, we conducted field sampling, morphotyped and identified specimens housed in the Collembola Collection of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), as well as material provided by collaborating researchers. Part of the material identified as potential new species was separated and prepared for taxonomic description following specialized literature. Another portion was taken to Nanjing Agricultural University and Shanghai Natural History Museum, where pre-sequencing procedures were carried out, including DNA extraction, purification, and amplification. Following sequencing, genomes were assembled, and Universal Single-Copy Orthologous Nuclear Genes (USCOs) and Ultra-Conserved Elements (UCEs) were extracted. Mitogenomes were also assembled and annotated, and the 13 protein-coding genes were used to generate a mitochondrial phylogeny. Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood phylogenetic analyses were conducted for the USCOs, UCEs, and the 13 mitochondrial genes. The consensus tree was subsequently used as input for molecular clock estimation. Morphological character mapping was also performed, including inference of potential ancestral states. With the execution of this project, we were able to describe: a new subfamily of Dicyrtomidae, two new genera (one for Dicyrtomidae and one for Sminthurididae), and five new species within the families Collophoridae, Dicyrtomidae, and Sminthurididae. Additionally, a phylogeny based on different molecular markers was obtained, including representatives of all nine families of Symphypleona. This phylogeny partially validates the traditional systematics of the group, with the main tree supporting its two suborders (Sminthuridida and Appendiciphora) and superfamilies Sminthuroidea, Dicyrtomoidea, and Sturmiioidea, but proposing a new arrangement for Katiannoidea and recognizing a new superfamily. Molecular clock estimates suggest that Symphypleona originated in the Carboniferous and experienced its greatest radiation during the Cretaceous. It is concluded that the traditional systematics of the Symphypleona is partially compatible with molecular phylogenies; and that, with the description of new taxa, the diversity of Symphypleona still holds significant potential to be explored in Brazil and in the Neotropical region as a whole.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Interna - 3152261 - ANAMARIA DAL MOLIN
Presidente - 1879211 - BRUNO CAVALCANTE BELLINI
Externa à Instituição - PAOLLA GABRYELLE CAVALCANTE DE SOUZA - UFPB
Externa ao Programa - 1715271 - RENATA ANTONACI GAMA - nullExterno à Instituição - RICARDO KOROIVA - UFPB