(Press-News.org) Tsukuba, Japan—Hinoki cypress is a commercially vital species used as a high-quality building material, second only to sugi cedar in planted forest area and timber production in Japan. Natural hinoki cypress forests extend from Fukushima Prefecture in the north to Yakushima Island in the south. Taiwanese hinoki cypress is a variety and close relative of the Japanese hinoki, and its large-diameter timber was historically imported from Taiwan to Japan for constructing shrines and temples. By conducting a comprehensive population genetic analysis, this study aimed to elucidate genetic diversity, regional genetic structure, and evolutionary history across the entire natural distribution range of both species.
The results revealed clear genetic differentiation between Japanese and Taiwanese hinoki cypress, with divergence estimated to have occurred approximately 1 million years ago during the early Pleistocene epoch. The Ryukyu Arc, a chain of islands stretching from Southern Kyushu, Japan, to Taiwan, was once connected by a land bridge. Its eventual breakup led to geographic isolation between the two species. The study also indicates that Japanese hinoki is better adapted to warm, rainy summers, while Taiwanese hinoki cypress is suited to cold, rainy winters. Within Japan, genetic differences were observed among populations in Yakushima, central and western Honshu, and central and northern Honshu, with a generally increasing trend in population sizes. Populations at the northern (Fukushima) and southern (Yakushima) limits exhibited highly distinctive genetic characteristics, making them high-priority targets for conservation. On the other hand, in Taiwan, populations showed no clear geographic patterns of genetic differentiation and were estimated to be fragmented and declining.
The movement of Japanese hinoki cypress seedlings is currently regulated under the Forestry Seeds and Seedlings Transfer Act, which divides populations into three categories based primarily on climatic differences. However, the findings of this study signifiy the need for a revised classification system based on genetic regional characteristics. Outbreeding depression resulting from interbreeding between genetically distinct groups adapted to local environments may lead to reduced environmental adaptability. Therefore, conservation of natural forests as genetic resources requires careful management of seedling transfer to preserve local genetic integrity.
###
This work was supported by Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI (Grant 23H00337 and 24H00055).
Original Paper
Title of original paper:
The historical biogeography of divergence in the relict cypress Chamaecyparis obtusa, and the implications for conservation and management in East Asia
Journal:
Ecology and Evolution
DOI:
10.1002/ece3.72240
Correspondence
Researcher AIHARA, Takaki
Professor Emeritus TSUMURA, Yoshihiko
Institute of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
Related Link
Institute of Life and Environmental Sciences
END
Natural Japanese and Taiwanese hinoki cypresses genetically differentiated 1 million years ago
2025-10-22
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
GemPharmatech announces research collaboration with leading cancer center to advance antibody discovery
2025-10-22
SAN DIEGO, CALIF. — GemPharmatech, a global leader in preclinical research solutions and genetically-engineered mouse models, today announced a collaboration with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) to accelerate the discovery of new therapeutic antibodies.
Through the non-exclusive agreement, researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering will have access to GemPharmatech’s extensive preclinical service capabilities and resources, utilizing the NeoMab® platform — a next-generation ...
Deciding whether a breathing tube is best for a child
2025-10-22
NEW YORK, NY – Oct. 22, 2025 – The emotional strain on parents and other caregivers faced with deciding whether a tracheotomy is the best treatment for their child is hard to measure. The latest clinical practice guideline from the American Thoracic Society aims to give clinicians and parents/caregivers a way forward so they can navigate difficult decisions to ensure better outcomes for young patients. The guideline was published early online today, Wednesday, Oct. 22, in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
A tracheostomy is a tube that is surgically placed through an ...
A ‘dead’ 1800s idea rises again... with clues to the mystery of the universe’s missing antimatter
2025-10-22
In 1867, Lord Kelvin imagined atoms as knots in the aether. The idea was soon disproven. Atoms turned out to be something else entirely. But his discarded vision may yet hold the key to why the universe exists.
Now, for the first time, Japanese physicists have shown that knots can arise in a realistic particle physics framework, one that also tackles deep puzzles such as neutrino masses, dark matter, and the strong CP problem. Their findings, in Physical Review Letters, suggest these “cosmic knots” could have formed and briefly dominated in the turbulent newborn ...
Roboticists reverse engineer zebrafish navigation
2025-10-22
A paradox of neuroscience is that while brains evolve within specific sensory and physical environments, neural circuits are usually studied in isolation under controlled laboratory conditions. But we can’t fully understand how environmental factors shape brain function without considering the body in which that brain evolved.
The BioRobotics Lab in EPFL’s School of Engineering specializes in developing bioinspired robots to tease apart the brain-body interactions involved in sensorimotor coordination. Now, they have published a study in Science Robotics that provides detailed insight into embodiment, or how the body ...
FAU historian traces the transformation of U.S. nursing homes into big business
2025-10-22
In postwar America, as suburbs spread and federal social welfare programs expanded, one underexamined building type quietly became a fixture of the American health care landscape: the nursing home.
In a new article published in the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, historian Willa Granger, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the School of Architecture within Florida Atlantic University’s Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, examines how a little-known company from midcentury Illinois helped lay ...
CABI study reveals major inequalities in global One Health research
2025-10-22
A study published in the journal CABI One Health has revealed major inequalities in One Health research.
The new study, which sheds light on global trends in One Health research over the past decade, has found that the volume of research labelled ‘One Health’ has increased exponentially since 2018, and Europe, Asia and Africa have experienced the most marked growth in originating research.
However, there are significant disparities in research decision-making between researchers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and those in high-income countries ...
Reptiles ‘pee’ crystals, and scientists are investigating what they’re made of
2025-10-22
Unless you’ve owned reptiles, you might not know that many of them “pee” crystals. Researchers publishing in the Journal of the American Chemical Society investigated the solid urine of more than 20 reptile species and found spheres of uric acid in all of them. This work reveals how reptiles uniquely package up and eliminate crystalline waste, which could inform future treatments for human conditions that also involve uric acid crystals: kidney stones and gout.
Most living things have some sort of excretory system — after all, what goes in must come out. In ...
Drug prevents congenital heart block recurrence in a high-risk pregnancy
2025-10-22
Congenital heart block, sometimes referred to as cardiac neonatal lupus, is a rare but potentially life-threatening condition that affects babies born to mothers with specific autoantibodies — called anti-SSA/Ro antibodies — which can attack the fetal heart via its electrical conduction system, leading to a slower heart rate. Most surviving infants with congenital heart block eventually require a pacemaker for life.
In a study of one pregnant mother with systemic lupus erythematosus and high levels of anti-SSA/Ro antibodies, NYU Langone Health researchers found a drug that ...
Wiley announces winners of Advanced Science Young Innovator Award
2025-10-22
HOBOKEN, NJ—Eleven researchers have earned one of the most competitive early-career honors in interdisciplinary science: the 2025 Advanced Science Young Innovator Award. Wiley, a global leader in authoritative content and research intelligence and publisher of Advanced Science, announced the award recipients today.
Selected from a highly competitive pool of 472 applicants across 40 countries, this year's winners represent the highest caliber of emerging scientists translating discoveries into real-world impact.
Now in its second year, ...
Towards new ionic liquid-modified zeolite membranes for efficient CO2 conversion
2025-10-22
An effective strategy to address increasing greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change is the capture and reuse of carbon dioxide (CO2). The reaction of CO2 and hydrogen (H2) can produce industrially useful chemicals, such as methanol and carbon monoxide, and synthetic fuels. However, in traditional reactors these chemical processes are limited by thermodynamic constraints and slow reaction rates, resulting in a low CO2 conversion. This is because these reactors reach equilibrium before all the reactants are converted into desired ...