Dataset Information

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of Lysimachia arvensis in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

ABSTRACT: Flower color polymorphism, an infrequent but phylogenetically widespread condition in plants, is captivating because it can only be maintained under a few selective regimes but also because it can drive intra-morph assortative mating and promote speciation. Lysimachia arvensis is a polymorphic species with red or blue flowered morphs. In polymorphic populations, which are mostly Mediterranean, pollinators prefer blue-flowered plants to the red ones, and abiotic factors also favors blue-flowered plants. We hypothesize that the red morph is maintained in Mediterranean areas due to its selfing capacity. We assessed inbreeding depression in both color morphs in two Mediterranean populations and genetic diversity was studied via SSR microsatellites in 20 natural populations. Results showed that only 44-47% of selfed progeny of the red plants reached reproduction while about 72-91% of blue morph progeny did it. Between-morph genetic differentiation was high and the red morph had a lower genetic diversity and a higher inbreeding coefficient, mainly in the Mediterranean. Results suggest that selfing maintaining the red morph in Mediterranean areas despite its inbreeding depression. In addition, genetic differentiation between morphs suggests a low gene flow between them, suggesting reproductive isolation.

SUBMITTER: Jimenez-Lopez FJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7725749 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of <i>Lysimachia arvensis</i> in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

Jiménez-López Francisco J FJ Ortiz Pedro L PL Talavera María M Arista Montserrat M

Frontiers in plant science 20201126

Flower color polymorphism, an infrequent but phylogenetically widespread condition in plants, is captivating because it can only be maintained under a few selective regimes but also because it can drive intra-morph assortative mating and promote speciation. <i>Lysimachia arvensis</i> is a polymorphic species with red or blue flowered morphs. In polymorphic populations, which are mostly Mediterranean, pollinators prefer blue-flowered plants to the red ones, and abiotic factors also favors blue-fl ...[more]

PMID: 33324430

Similar Datasets

Project description:Background and aimsHerkogamy, or anther-stigma separation, is known to reduce self-pollen deposition, but little is known about the relative efficacy of different modes or conformations of herkogamy. We assessed the effectiveness of vertical versus lateral herkogamy in preventing or promoting self-pollen deposition in the annual herb Lysimachia arvensis, a plant with lineages that differ in flower colour, and in which flowers first display lateral and then vertical herkogamy. Because mating between the two lineages compromises fitness through the production of low-quality hybrid offspring, we tested the prediction that individuals sampled from sites occupied by both lineages should have flowers that promote autonomous self-pollen deposition and self-fertilization as a result of selection to reduce deleterious reproductive interference.MethodsWe characterized variation in herkogamy within and among 25 pure and mixed populations of L. arvensis in its European range and assessed the effectiveness of lateral versus vertical herkogamy in avoiding self-pollen deposition.ResultsLateral herkogamy was more effective than vertical herkogamy in limiting self-pollen deposition. In the case of vertical herkogamy, only approach herkogamy was effective. Lineages showed consistent differences in herkogamy traits. In general, angles were smaller for blue than red flowers in most populations, and blue flowers showed approach herkogamy, while red flowers showed predominantly reverse herkogamy. In sympatry, the red lineage showed a reduction of both herkogamy traits while for the blue lineage only lateral herkogamy was reduced.ConclusionsOur results demonstrate that pollen deposition is affected not only by the degree but also the spatial conformation of herkogamy. They also highlight reduced herkogamy as a potential mechanism for promoting reproductive assurance under pollen limitation, as well as for avoiding reproductive interference between genetically divergent lineages.

Project description:Anthocyanins are the primary pigments contributing to the variety of flower colors among angiosperms and are considered essential for survival and reproduction. Anthocyanins are members of the flavonoids, a broader class of secondary metabolites, of which there are numerous structural genes and regulators thereof. In western European populations of Lysimachia arvensis, there are blue- and orange-petaled individuals. The proportion of blue-flowered plants increases with temperature and daylength yet decreases with precipitation. Here, we performed a transcriptome analysis to characterize the coding sequences of a large group of flavonoid biosynthetic genes, examine their expression and compare our results to flavonoid biochemical analysis for blue and orange petals. Among a set of 140 structural and regulatory genes broadly representing the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway, we found 39 genes with significant differential expression including some that have previously been reported to be involved in similar flower color transitions. In particular, F3'5'H and DFR, two genes at a critical branchpoint in the ABP for determining flower color, showed differential expression. The expression results were complemented by careful examination of the SNPs that differentiate the two color types for these two critical genes. The decreased expression of F3'5'H in orange petals and differential expression of two distinct copies of DFR, which also exhibit amino acid changes in the color-determining substrate specificity region, strongly correlate with the blue to orange transition. Our biochemical analysis was consistent with the transcriptome data indicating that the shift from blue to orange petals is caused by a change from primarily malvidin to largely pelargonidin forms of anthocyanins. Overall, we have identified several flavonoid biosynthetic pathway loci likely involved in the shift in flower color in L. arvensis and even more loci that may represent the complex network of genetic and physiological consequences of this flower color polymorphism.

Dataset Information

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of Lysimachia arvensis in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

Publications

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of <i>Lysimachia arvensis</i> in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets

Dataset Information

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of Lysimachia arvensis in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

Publications

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of &lt;i&gt;Lysimachia arvensis&lt;/i&gt; in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets

Reproductive Assurance Maintains Red-Flowered Plants of <i>Lysimachia arvensis</i> in Mediterranean Populations Despite Inbreeding Depression.