1. Highlands are ideal research areas for improving our understanding of the influence of ecological factors on the diversity and spatial patterns of natural species. Elevation‐driven physical and environmental isolation greatly affect the evolution of plants. The mechanisms and essential drivers underlying these processes may differ among research scales, habitats and landscapes. Wetlands are important elements of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, which is the highest plateau in the world, and these habitats harbour high aquatic organismal diversity. However, how the environments shape the genetic variation and structure of hydrophilous plants is poorly understood.
2. Using microsatellite markers and a chloroplast fragment, we quantified the genetic diversity and spatial genetic pattern of Stuckenia filiformis, one of the most widespread aquatic plants on the plateau. The relative contributions of geography, climate and local conditions to intra‐ and interpopulation variation were estimated. The results showed that intrapopulation genetic variation of the plant is moderate to high and not constrained by high‐altitude environments. Topographical isolation mainly contributes to the genetic structure of S. filiformis, as inferred by simple sequence repeats and chloroplast DNA data. Significant effects of environmental variables on the spatial genetic patterns of this freshwater species were also suggested by landscape genetic analysis.
3. Infrequent long‐distance dispersal, sexual recruitment and annual growth are probably important for the maintenance and distribution of this variation. Our findings imply a combined effect of geography and elevation‐driven environmental heterogeneity on the evolution of aquatic organisms in highlands.

中文翻译：

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高原某湿地植物的空间遗传结构：海拔驱动的地理隔离和环境异质性的影响

1. 高地是理想的研究领域，可增进我们对生态因素对自然物种多样性和空间格局的影响的理解。海拔驱动的物理和环境隔离极大地影响了植物的进化。这些过程背后的机制和基本驱动力可能因研究规模，栖息地和景观而异。湿地是青藏高原的重要元素，青藏高原是世界上最高的高原，这些生境具有高度的水生生物多样性。但是，人们对环境如何影响亲水植物的遗传变异和结构知之甚少。
2. 使用微卫星标记和叶绿体片段，我们量化了高原地区最普遍的水生植物之一的丝状Stuckenia filformis的遗传多样性和空间遗传模式。估计了地理，气候和当地条件对种群内和种群间变化的相对贡献。结果表明，该植物种群内的遗传变异为中等至高度，不受高海拔环境的限制。通过简单的序列重复和叶绿体DNA数据可以推断，地形隔离主要有助于丝状链霉菌的遗传结构。景观遗传分析还表明环境变量对这种淡水物种的空间遗传模式具有重要影响。
3. 不经常的长途分散，性征募集和年增长对于维持和分布这种变异可能很重要。我们的发现暗示着地理和海拔驱动的环境异质性对高地水生生物进化的综合影响。