Inbreeding depression affects the growth of seedlings of an African timber species with a mixed mating reproductive system, Pericopsis elata (Harms) Meeuwen

Inbreeding depression affects the growth of seedlings of an African timber species with a mixed mating reproductive system, Pericopsis elata (Harms) Meeuwen | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Inbreeding depression affects the growth of seedlings of an African timber species with a mixed mating reproductive system, Pericopsis elata (Harms) Meeuwen Dieu Merci Angbonda, Crispin Ilunga-Mulala, Nils Bourland, Hans Beeckman, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4115010/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 01 Aug, 2024 Read the published version in Heredity → Version 1 posted 10 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Selfing or mating between related individuals can lead to inbreeding depression (ID), which can influence the survival, growth and evolution of populations of tree species. As selective logging involves a decrease in the density of congeneric partners, it could lead to increasing biparental inbreeding or self-fertilization, exposing the population to higher ID. We assessed the influence of inbreeding on the growth of a commercial timber species, Pericopsis elata (Fabaceae), which produced about 54% of self-fertilized seedlings in a natural population of the Congo basin. We followed the survival and growth of 540 plants raised in a plantation along a gradient of plant density (0.07 to 15.9 plants per m 2 ). Parentage analysis allowed us distinguishing selfed and outcrossed seedlings. The annual growth was higher for outcrossed than selfed plants, on average by 10.8% for diameter and 12.9% for height growth. Based on the above ground biomass after 41 months, we estimated ID at δ = 0.32, while a life-time estimate of ID based on the proportions of selfed plants at seedling and adult stages led to δ = 0.7. The level of ID on growth rate did not change significantly with age but tended to vanish under high competition. P. elata is a particularly interesting model because inbreeding depression is partial, with about 26% of reproducing adults resulting from selfing, contrary to most tropical tree species where selfed individuals usually die before reaching adulthood. Hence, the risks of ID must be considered in the management and conservation of the species. Biological sciences/Genetics/Consanguinity Biological sciences/Genetics/Inbreeding Inbreeding depression Selfing Nelder design Growth performances Pericopsis elata Full Text Additional Declarations There is no duality of interest Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 01 Aug, 2024 Read the published version in Heredity → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: revise 07 May, 2024 Review # 3 received at journal 05 May, 2024 Review # 2 received at journal 15 Apr, 2024 Review # 1 received at journal 10 Apr, 2024 Reviewer # 3 agreed at journal 04 Apr, 2024 Reviewer # 2 agreed at journal 22 Mar, 2024 Reviewer # 1 agreed at journal 21 Mar, 2024 Reviewers invited by journal 21 Mar, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 16 Mar, 2024 First submitted to journal 16 Mar, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4115010","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":282174805,"identity":"168cb9a2-620e-4e10-92be-961fe5fc7c7f","order_by":0,"name":"Dieu Merci 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As selective logging involves a decrease in the density of congeneric partners, it could lead to increasing biparental inbreeding or self-fertilization, exposing the population to higher ID. We assessed the influence of inbreeding on the growth of a commercial timber species, \u003cem\u003ePericopsis elata \u003c/em\u003e(Fabaceae), which produced about 54% of self-fertilized seedlings in a natural population of the Congo basin. We followed the survival and growth of 540 plants raised in a plantation along a gradient of plant density (0.07 to 15.9 plants per m\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e). Parentage analysis allowed us distinguishing selfed and outcrossed seedlings. The annual growth was higher for outcrossed than selfed plants, on average by 10.8% for diameter and 12.9% for height growth. 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