Breeding system of diploid sexuals within the Ranunculus auricomus complex and its role in a geographical parthenogenesis scenario.

ABSTRACT: The larger distribution area of asexuals compared with their sexual relatives in geographical parthenogenesis (GP) scenarios has been widely attributed to the advantages of uniparental reproduction and polyploidy. However, potential disadvantages of sexuals due to their breeding system have received little attention so far. Here, we study the breeding system of five narrowly distributed sexual lineages of Ranunculus notabilis s.l. (R. auricomus complex) and its effects on outcrossing, inbreeding, female fitness, and heterozygosity. We performed selfing and intra- and interlineage crossings by bagging 481 flowers (59 garden individuals) followed by germination experiments. We compared seed set and germination rates, and related them to genetic distance and genome-wide heterozy

SUBMITTER: Karbstein K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7771175 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature