Format: ORAL

Tamara Villaverde1, Irene Villa Macho2, Nicols Echarren Lucendo1, Esther Garca Guilln3, Juli Caujape-Castells4, Isabel Sanmartn3, Ricarda Riina3

1 Conservation and Biodiversity Area, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain 2 Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis (MO), USA 3 Real Jardín Botánico (CSIC), Madrid, Spain 4 Jardín Botánico Canario "Viera y Clavijo" (CSIC), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

Ricinus communis is an economically and culturally important species. Today, it is used in the automotive, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries, as well as an ornamental plant. In the last decades, the species has become an exotic invasive species in many areas of the world. We aimed to characterize the genetic structure of R. communis in its native and invaded areas using genomic data. Our sampling included specimens worldwide, with a special focus on naturalized populations, and also whole-genome data from previously published studies. Capture success using HybSeq was high in samples collected in the early twentieth century. We also managed to sequence one of the oldest specimens ever included in a phylogenomic analysis, a sample collected by A.J. Cavanilles in Valencia (Spain) in 1792. Introgression of populations was detected, although unique genotypes were found in the putative native range of Ricinus (Ethiopia and Somalia). Our results revealed frequent events of admixture and introgression between regions of the world that are supported by historical herbarium records in Europe. This demonstrates the cultivation and naturalization of Ricinus in Europe at least during the Great Age of Exploration. Herbariomics and sampling of naturalized populations have uncovered a wide genomic breath, unseen in previous studies. Ricinus climatic niche shows that it occupies areas with novel climates, not present in its native range, indicating a wide ecological plasticity that might have facilitated its naturalization in all continents.