Evidence of horizontal gene transfer between land plant plastids has surprising conservation implications.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is an important evolutionary mechanism because it transfers genetic material that may code for traits or functions between species or genomes. It is frequent in mitochondrial and nuclear genomes but has not been demonstrated between plastid genomes of different green land plant species.

Methods

We Sanger-sequenced the nuclear internal transcribed spacers (ITS1 and 2) and the plastid rpl16 G2 intron (rpl16). In five individuals with foreign rpl16 we also sequenced atpB-rbcL and trnLUAA-trnFGAA.

Key results

We discovered 14 individuals of a moss species with typical nuclear ITSs but foreign plastid rpl16 from a species of a distant lineage. None of the individuals with three plastid markers sequenced contained all forei

SUBMITTER: Hedenas L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8225274 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature