Effects of mode of reproduction on genetic polymorphism and divergence in wild yams (Dioscoreaceae: <i>Dioscorea</i>).

ABSTRACT: Evolutionary transitions from sexual to asexual reproduction should have significant influences on genetic divergence and polymorphism at the genome level. Plant lineages with diverse reproductive systems provide opportunities to investigate this question using comparative approaches and studies of molecular evolution. We investigated evidence for differences among the transcriptomes of 19 Dioscorea species (wild yams) with diverse reproductive systems. These included sexual species, those that propagate primarily by bulbils, and those with mixed sexual and asexual reproductive modes. We examined how transitions between these reproductive systems affected between-species divergence and within-species polymorphism. Primarily asexual species exhibited a reduced efficacy of natural sel

SUBMITTER: Wang X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11873583 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature