Nitrogen limitation as a driver of genome size evolution in a group of karst plants.

ABSTRACT: Genome size is of fundamental biological importance with significance in predicting structural and functional attributes of organisms. Although abundant evidence has shown that the genome size can be largely explained by differential proliferation and removal of non-coding DNA of the genome, the evolutionary and ecological basis of genome size variation remains poorly understood. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are essential elements of DNA and protein building blocks, yet often subject to environmental limitation in natural ecosystems. Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we test this hypothesis by determining whether leaf N and P availability affects genome sizes in 99 species of Primulina (Gesneriaceae), a group of soil specialists adapted to limestone karst environment in south Chin

SUBMITTER: Kang M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4479984 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature