'Root of all success': Plasticity in root architecture of invasive wild radish for adaptive benefit.

ABSTRACT: Successful plant establishment in a particular environment depends on the root architecture of the seedlings and the extent of edaphic resource utilization. However, diverse habitats often pose a predicament on the suitability of the fundamental root structure of a species that evolved over a long period. We hypothesized that the plasticity in the genetically controlled root architecture in variable habitats provides an adaptive advantage to worldwide-distributed wild radish (Raphanus raphanistrum, Rr) over its close relative (R. pugioniformis, Rp) that remained endemic to the East Mediterranean region. To test the hypothesis, we performed a reciprocal comparative analysis between the two species, growing in a common garden experiment on their native soils (Hamr

SUBMITTER: Bhattacharya S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9709435 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature