Maintenance of Species Differences in Closely Related Tetraploid Parasitic Euphrasia (Orobanchaceae) on an Isolated Island.

ABSTRACT: Polyploidy is pervasive in angiosperm evolution and plays important roles in adaptation and speciation. However, polyploid groups are understudied due to complex sequence homology, challenging genome assembly, and taxonomic complexity. Here, we study adaptive divergence in taxonomically complex eyebrights (Euphrasia), where recent divergence, phenotypic plasticity, and hybridization blur species boundaries. We focus on three closely related tetraploid species with contrasting ecological preferences that are sympatric on Fair Isle, a small isolated island in the British Isles. Using a common garden experiment, we show a genetic component to the morphological differences present between these species. Using whole-genome sequencing and a novel k-mer approach we call "Tetmer", we demons

SUBMITTER: Becher H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7748025 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature