Abstract Several factors influence the citation impact. This paper constructed paths from funding to citation impact on a country basis. Country data came from Incites® (2011-2020). The (2013 to 2018) UNESCO database was used to define investments in Research and Development (R&D). An overall analysis and analyses by clusters formed by investments in R&D were carried out. Countries that invest relatively less in R&D tend to have less investment by businesses and publish fewer documents. Some differences exist in this pattern. For example, countries in the lowest investment group show higher international collaboration and publications in Open Access Journals. This leads to a higher impact but below countries with the highest investments in R&D. The paths from funding to high impact differed by cluster. While international collaboration appeared in several clusters, the % of papers in Q1 (Top) journal quartile, based on citations, was in almost all clusters. More investments in R&D and open access publishing do not necessarily lead to high impact.

Abstract Public universities, and science in general, in Brazil, are under attack from key persons of the government in interviews and articles published in non-scientific journals. Here we look at bibliography data from international science metric platforms (Scival® and Incites®) and official Brazilian agencies such as CAPES and CNPq to reach some conclusions based on scientific analysis. Brazilian Science has shown a steady improvement in quantity and quality over the last 20 years but has recently suffered (since 2015) under severe financial restrictions. An increase in international collaboration also increased citation impact, reaching almost five times the world average. While the medical and natural sciences show the highest impact and prominence, social sciences and the humanities also have spotlight areas with international excellence. Different research institutions and universities offer a variety of production profiles and impacts. This diagnosis shows the need for universities and research institutes in Brazil and funding agencies to undergo strategic planning for definition of mission/vision, goals to be reached, and areas for priority development. Continued support of public universities by the government is necessary for Brazilian autonomy in science and technology and its full integration in the world scientific community.

Abstract Caryocar brasiliense (Caryocaraceae) is a Neotropical tree species widely distributed in Brazilian Savannas. This species is very popular in central Brazil mainly by the use of its fruits in the local cuisine, and indeed it is one of the candidates, among Brazilian native plants, for fast track incorporation into cropping systems. Here we sequenced the complete chloroplast genome of C. brasiliense and used the data to access its genomic resources using high-throughput sequencing. The chloroplast exhibits a genome length of 165,793 bp and the typical angiosperm quadripartite structure with two copies of an inverted repeat sequence (IRa and IRb) of 34,902 bp each, separating a small single copy (SSC) region of 11,852 bp and a large single copy (LSC) region of 84,137 bp. The annotation analysis identified 136 genes being 87 protein-coding, eight rRNA and 37 tRNA genes. We identified 49 repetitive DNA elements and 85 microsatellites. A bayesian phylogenetic analysis helped to understand previously unresolved relationships in Malpighiales, placing Caryocaraceae as a separated group in the order, with high supported nodes. This study synthetizes valuable information for further studies allowing a better understanding of evolutionary patterns in the group and providing resources for future breeding programs.

Abstract Phylogenetic niche conservatism can be investigated at multiple scales on an explicit geographical context. Haplotype-based comparative analyses of lineages occupying the same region, and thus subjected to similar environmental factors, allow decoupling shared evolutionary and ecological patterns, as well as multiple dimensions of adaptive diversification. Here we aimed to assess the role of environmental drivers on diversification of subtropical grassland, based on haplotypic diversity of two plant genera. We sampled two closely related and co-distributed grassland plant genera, Petunia and Calibrachoa, across their entire distribution area. Eigenvectors extracted from pairwise distances based on chloroplast DNA haplotypes were used to fit Phylogenetic Signal-Representation (PSR) curves to estimate evolutionary patterns in 19 bioclimatic variables and altitude. The PSR curves showed that altitude, precipitation, and temperature variables changed at different rates with haplotype differentiation. Altitude and temperature traits evolved under conditions closer to a neutral dynamics, whereas precipitation traits differentiated following more complex models. Our results indicated that the diversification in the two genera was more limited by precipitation conditions. Based on these novel findings, we suggest that future studies should test the possible impact of precipitation variables on the process of ecological differentiation in these genera.

Abstract The Tropical Niche Conservatism hypothesis is one of the most relevant theories to explain why tropical diversity is high, although the mechanisms underlying this hypothesis require further clarification. A possible research avenue to address the underlying mechanisms includes determining population-level processes associated with such a hypothesis, in particular by trying to identify how adaptation may occur in extreme niche conditions at the edges of species ranges. However, the determinants of molecular diversity at the edges of geographical distributions of tropical taxa are still poorly known. Here we assessed which environmental variables determine diversity in nuclear and plastid genetic markers for populations of four Passiflora species in the southern limit of their geographical distributions. Climatic factors can drive genetic diversity, and their importance varies according to the marker. The primary predictors are variables representing higher temperatures during cold periods of the year and higher precipitation during dry periods. We concluded that, although these species are present in colder areas at the edge of their range, Tropical Niche Conservatism acts as a restraining force on genetic diversity in southern populations of Passiflora.

RESUMO O Cerrado é considerado um dos "hotspots" mundiais de biodiversidade, em função da grande extensão de vegetação natural que vem sendo continuamente perdida e do elevado número de espécies endêmicas de plantas, que muitas vezes têm sido listadas como prioridades em programas de conservação e para estudos de genética de populações. A fim de verificar tendências nos estudos de genética de populações das espécies de plantas deste bioma, uma avaliação cienciométrica dos artigos publicados e disponíveis em diferentes bases de dados foi realizada. Um total de 171 publicações provenientes de 48 periódicos foi encontrada, entre os anos de 1999 a 2014, com o número de publicações aumentando significativamente nesse período. Noventa e uma espécies com diferentes formas de vida foram estudadas, usando diferentes tipos de marcadores moleculares. A análise cienciometrica dos artigos encontrados permitiu uma melhor compreensão do conhecimento atual sobre a genética de populações de plantas do bioma Cerrado.

ABSTRACT The Cerrado biome is considered one of the biodiversity hotspots in the world, due to both the large extent of natural vegetation that has been continually lost and the high number of endemic plant species. It has often been listed as a priority in conservation programs and in population genetic studies. In order to determine trends in plant population genetic studies in this biome, a scientometric evaluation of published and available articles in different databases was performed. A total of 171 publications from 48 journals was found between the years 1999 and 2014, with the number of publications increasing significantly during this period. Ninety-one species with different life forms were studied, using different types of molecular markers. These analyses confer a better understanding of the current knowledge of plant population genetics in the Cerrado biome.

Eigenfunction analyses have been widely used to model patterns of autocorrelation in time, space and phylogeny. In a phylogenetic context, Diniz-Filho et al. (1998) proposed what they called Phylogenetic Eigenvector Regression (PVR), in which pairwise phylogenetic distances among species are submitted to a Principal Coordinate Analysis, and eigenvectors are then used as explanatory variables in regression, correlation or ANOVAs. More recently, a new approach called Phylogenetic Eigenvector Mapping (PEM) was proposed, with the main advantage of explicitly incorporating a model-based warping in phylogenetic distance in which an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (O-U) process is fitted to data before eigenvector extraction. Here we compared PVR and PEM in respect to estimated phylogenetic signal, correlated evolution under alternative evolutionary models and phylogenetic imputation, using simulated data. Despite similarity between the two approaches, PEM has a slightly higher prediction ability and is more general than the original PVR. Even so, in a conceptual sense, PEM may provide a technique in the best of both worlds, combining the flexibility of data-driven and empirical eigenfunction analyses and the sounding insights provided by evolutionary models well known in comparative analyses.

Neste trabalho, diferentes modelos climáticos, métodos de modelagem e cenários de emissão de carbono foram utilizados para avaliar os efeitos das mudanças climáticas sobre a distribuição geográfica de espécies de importância econômica e cultural das regiões abrangidas pelo bioma Cerrado. Assim como os resultados de vários trabalhos têm evidenciado ao longo dos anos, ainda há muitas incertezas relacionadas a essas projeções, apesar de os modelos bioclimáticos ainda serem a metodologia mais utilizada e eficaz para avaliar as consequências dessas mudanças climáticas para a biodiversidade. Neste artigo, foi possível observar que 90% dessas incertezas estão relacionadas aos métodos de modelagem. Contudo, independente disso, os resultados revelaram que as espécies estudadas reduzirão, em média, 78% de sua distribuição geográfica no Cerrado. Para que haja trabalho eficaz sobre a conservação dessas espécies, muitos estudos ainda precisam ser executados, apesar de já ser possível prever que as mudanças climáticas terão forte influência no padrão de distribuição dessas espécies.

Different climate models, modeling methods and carbon emission scenarios were used in this paper to evaluate the effects of future climate changes on geographical distribution of species of economic and cultural importance across the Cerrado biome. As the results of several studies have shown, there are still many uncertainties associated with these projections, although bioclimatic models are still widely used and effective method to evaluate the consequences for biodiversity of these climate changes. In this article, it was found that 90% of these uncertainties are related to methods of modeling, although, regardless of the uncertainties, the results revealed that the studied species will reduce about 78% of their geographic distribution in Cerrado. For an effective work on the conservation of these species, many studies still need to be carried out, although it is already possible to observe that climate change will have a strong influence on the pattern of distribution of these species.

The comparison of genetic divergence or genetic distances, estimated by pairwise F ST and related statistics, with geographical distances by Mantel test is one of the most popular approaches to evaluate spatial processes driving population structure. There have been, however, recent criticisms and discussions on the statistical performance of the Mantel test. Simultaneously, alternative frameworks for data analyses are being proposed. Here, we review the Mantel test and its variations, including Mantel correlograms and partial correlations and regressions. For illustrative purposes, we studied spatial genetic divergence among 25 populations of Dipteryx alata ("Baru"), a tree species endemic to the Cerrado, the Brazilian savannas, based on 8 microsatellite loci. We also applied alternative methods to analyze spatial patterns in this dataset, especially a multivariate generalization of Spatial Eigenfunction Analysis based on redundancy analysis. The different approaches resulted in similar estimates of the magnitude of spatial structure in the genetic data. Furthermore, the results were expected based on previous knowledge of the ecological and evolutionary processes underlying genetic variation in this species. Our review shows that a careful application and interpretation of Mantel tests, especially Mantel correlograms, can overcome some potential statistical problems and provide a simple and useful tool for multivariate analysis of spatial patterns of genetic divergence.

Several metrics have been developed for estimating phylogenetic signal in comparative data. These may be important both in guiding future studies on correlated evolution and for inferring broad-scale evolutionary and ecological processes (e.g., phylogenetic niche conservatism). Notwithstanding, the validity of some of these metrics is under debate, especially after the development of more sophisticated model-based approaches that estimate departure from particular evolutionary models (i.e., Brownian motion). Here, two of these model-based metrics (Blomberg's K-statistics and Pagel's λ) are compared with three statistical approaches [Moran's I autocorrelation coefficient, coefficients of determination from the autoregressive method (ARM), and phylogenetic eigenvector regression (PVR)]. Based on simulations of a trait evolving under Brownian motion for a phylogeny with 209 species, we showed that all metrics are strongly, although non-linearly, correlated to each other. Our analyses revealed that statistical approaches provide valid results and may be still particularly useful when detailed phylogenies are unavailable or when trait variation among species is difficult to describe by more standard Brownian or O-U evolutionary models.

A distribuição geográfica das espécies tem sido considerada como a unidade básica em macroecologia e biogeografia, mas ainda há dificuldades em mensurá-la de forma adequada, por diferentes razões. Há cerca de 20 anos atrás, os pesquisadores começaram a utilizar dados locais da ocorrência das espécies para estimar essas distribuições utilizando modelos de nicho ecológico. Entretanto, ainda há uma série de problemas na avaliação dos modelos e em suas aplicações, e uma das soluções é utilizar um consenso de diferentes modelos, projeções climáticas, cenários de emissão e combinação de variáveis, que são fontes de incerteza durante o processo de modelagem de nicho. Neste artigo nós discutimos essa abordagem de consenso e a dividimos em três fases, com níveis crescentes de complexidade. A Fase I é simplesmente a combinação de mapas e a obtenção e interpretação de um único mapa de consenso. A Fase II envolve a descrição das diferenças entre os mapas utilizando técnicas de análise multidimensional, enquanto que a Fase III consiste em analisar quantitativamente e mapear a magnitude relativa das diferentes fontes de incerteza. A fim de ilustrar essa abordagem, nós analisamos dados de ocorrência de Utetheisa ornatrix (Lepidoptera, Arctiidae), uma mariposa distribuída na região Neotropical, modelando sua distribuição geográfica com base em dados climáticos atuais e projeções de mudança climática.

Species' geographic ranges are usually considered as basic units in macroecology and biogeography, yet it is still difficult to measure them accurately for many reasons. About 20 years ago, researchers started using local data on species' occurrences to estimate broad scale ranges, thereby establishing the niche modeling approach. However, there are still many problems in model evaluation and application, and one of the solutions is to find a consensus solution among models derived from different mathematical and statistical models for niche modeling, climatic projections and variable combination, all of which are sources of uncertainty during niche modeling. In this paper, we discuss this approach of ensemble forecasting and propose that it can be divided into three phases with increasing levels of complexity. Phase I is the simple combination of maps to achieve a consensual and hopefully conservative solution. In Phase II, differences among the maps used are described by multivariate analyses, and Phase III consists of the quantitative evaluation of the relative magnitude of uncertainties from different sources and their mapping. To illustrate these developments, we analyzed the occurrence data of the tiger moth, Utetheisa ornatrix (Lepidoptera, Arctiidae), a Neotropical moth species, and modeled its geographic range in current and future climates.

O bioma Cerrado é o segundo maior da região Neotropical e é formado por mosaico de diferentes tipos de hábitats, desde campos abertos até florestas densas. Um recente e intensivo processo de ocupação humana tem transformado essa eco-região em uma das mais importantes regiões para agropecuária no Brasil. Uma abordagem macroecológica foi utilizada para elucidar padrões em amplas escalas espaciais de perdas de hábitat no Cerrado brasileiro, implementando técnicas de autocorrelação espacial e análises de regressão parcial para entender como a proporção de remanescentes de vegetação natural está correlacionada com variáveis socioeconômicas, expressando diferentes dimensões de ocupação humana e com variações climáticas. Em média, 59% da área é ocupada por remanescentes de vegetação, na escala da análise, mesmo que os padrões de perda de hábitat estejam fortemente estruturados no espaço, com o coeficiente de autocorrelação espacial de I de Moran igual a 0,825 ± 0,055 (p < 0 ,001). As análises de regressão parcial explicaram 89% da variação no percentual de remanescente de vegetação. A maior proporção da variância é explicada pela sobreposição múltipla entre a ocupação humana, variação climática e a estrutura geográfica (67%), bem como pelo componente estruturado climaticamente da ocupação humana (8%). Baseado no processo interativo no tempo e no espaço da ocupação humana no bioma, cenários futuros devem ser mais pessimistas. Se o movimento de ocupação continuar em direção a região Norte do bioma, como esperado, nós podemos predizer que as proporções de remanescente de vegetação natural irão declinar rapidamente, indicando assim uma forte perda da biodiversidade nas escalas do bioma.

The Cerrado biome, the second largest biome in Neotropical region, consists of a mosaic of different habitat types, ranging from open grasslands to dense woodlands and dry forests. An intensive recent occupation process has transformed it into the most important region for cattle ranching and intensive commodity crops in Brazil. In this study, a macroecological approach was used to evaluate broad-scale spatial patterns of habitat loss in the Brazilian Cerrado, applying a series of spatial autocorrelation and partial regression analyses to understand how the proportion of remaining natural habitats is correlated with socio-economic variables, expressing different dimensions of human occupation and climatic variation. On average, 59% of the area is occupied by natural remnants at the spatial scale analyzed, although patterns of habitat loss are strongly spatially structured, with a Moran's I spatial autocorrelation coefficient equal to 0.825 ± 0.055 (p < 0.001). The partial regression analysis explains 89% of variation in percentage of natural remnants. The highest proportion of variance is explained by the multiple overlap between human occupation, climatic variation and geographic structure (67%), as well as by the climatically structured component of human occupation (8%). Based on the space-time interactive process of human occupation in the biome, future scenarios should be rather pessimistic. If the wave of human occupation continues towards the northern parts of the biome, as expected, we can predict that percentages will decline rapidly including even stronger losses of habitat at the biome scale.

Caranguejos do gênero Uca Leach, 1814 (caranguejo "violinista") são um grupo bem conhecido e caracterizado por um acentuado dimorfismo sexual e assimetria da quela do macho. Atualmente, estão descritas 97 espécies no mundo. Objetivou-se estimar a distribuição geográfica potencial de 4 espécies do gênero Uca que ocorrem na costa do continente Americano: Uca maracoani Latreille, 1802-1803, U. uruguayensis Nobili, 1901, U. panacea Novak & Salmon, 1974 e U. monilifera Rathbun, 1914. Para modelar a distribuição dessas espécies nas Américas foram utilizados pontos de ocorrência compilados da literatura. Para a modelagem foram utilizados os programas Maxent e GARP a partir de 10 variáveis climáticas e três variáveis topográficas. Todas as variáveis foram convertidas para uma malha com resolução de 0,0417 graus. Nos dois modelos (Maxent e GARP) as espécies apresentaram distribuição geográfica maior do que sugerido por outros trabalhos de registro de ocorrência, com exceção de U. monilifera. Segundo o critério de área sob a curva (AUC), os modelos gerados pelo GARP apresentaram melhores resultados do que os modelos do Maxent. Entretanto, avaliando em conjunto os resultados dos dois modelos é possível melhor estabelecer planos de conservação para espécies com habitat restrito (U. panaceae e U. monilifera), além de recomendar um aumento na amostragem de U. maracoani no nordeste brasileiro e U. uruguyaensis no sudeste brasileiro, a fim de detectar possíveis aumentos na sua distribuição geográfica com base nas predições dos modelos de nicho.

The genus Uca Leach, 1814 (fiddler-crabs) is a well-know group characterized by a marked sexual dimorphism. Worldwide, there are 97 species of fiddler crabs described. Here, we predicted the potential geographical distribution of four species of this genus (Uca maracoani Latreille, 1802-1803, U. uruguayensis Nobili, 1901, U. panacea Novak & Salmon, 1974 e U. monilifera Rathbun, 1914), which occur in the American continent coast. Data used in the modeling were compiled from occurrence records available in the literature. We used Maxent and GARP programs for modelling, 10 climatic variables and three topographical variables. All variables were converted to a grid resolution of 0.0417 degrees. In both Maxent and GARP models the predicted geographical distribution of the species was larger than suggested by other observed data works, except for U. monilifera. According to the AUC criterion, the models generated by GARP were better than those obtained from Maxent. Evaluating the two models together, it is recommended conservation plans for species with restricted habitat (U. panaceae and U. monilifera) besides suggesting sampling of U. maracoani in the Brazilian northeast and U. uruguyaensis in the Brazilian southeast.

The use of phylogenetic comparative methods in ecological research has advanced during the last twenty years, mainly due to accurate phylogenetic reconstructions based on molecular data and computational and statistical advances. We used phylogenetic correlograms and phylogenetic eigenvector regression (PVR) to model body size evolution in 35 worldwide Felidae (Mammalia, Carnivora) species using two alternative phylogenies and published body size data. The purpose was not to contrast the phylogenetic hypotheses but to evaluate how analyses of body size evolution patterns can be affected by the phylogeny used for comparative analyses (CA). Both phylogenies produced a strong phylogenetic pattern, with closely related species having similar body sizes and the similarity decreasing with increasing distances in time. The PVR explained 65% to 67% of body size variation and all Moran's I values for the PVR residuals were non-significant, indicating that both these models explained phylogenetic structures in trait variation. Even though our results did not suggest that any phylogeny can be used for CA with the same power, or that “good” phylogenies are unnecessary for the correct interpretation of the evolutionary dynamics of ecological, biogeographical, physiological or behavioral patterns, it does suggest that developments in CA can, and indeed should, proceed without waiting for perfect and fully resolved phylogenies.