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Montazeaud G, Keller L. Greenbeards in plants? THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2024; 242:870-877. [PMID: 38403933 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Greenbeards are selfish genetic elements that make their bearers behave either altruistically towards individuals bearing similar greenbeard copies or harmfully towards individuals bearing different copies. They were first proposed by W. D. Hamilton over 50 yr ago, to illustrate that kin selection may operate at the level of single genes. Examples of greenbeards have now been reported in a wide range of taxa, but they remain undocumented in plants. In this paper, we discuss the theoretical likelihood of greenbeard existence in plants. We then question why the greenbeard concept has never been applied to plants and speculate on how hypothetical greenbeards could affect plant-plant interactions. Finally, we point to different research directions to improve our knowledge of greenbeards in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Germain Montazeaud
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
- AGAP, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, Montpellier, 34000, France
| | - Laurent Keller
- Social Evolution Unit, Cornuit 8, BP 855, Chesières, Switzerland
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Xu C, Sato Y, Yamazaki M, Brasser M, Barbour MA, Bascompte J, Shimizu KK. Genome-wide association study of aphid abundance highlights a locus affecting plant growth and flowering in Arabidopsis thaliana. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230399. [PMID: 37621664 PMCID: PMC10445015 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
Plant life-history traits, such as size and flowering, contribute to shaping variation in herbivore abundance. Although plant genes involved in physical and chemical traits have been well studied, less is known about the loci linking plant life-history traits and herbivore abundance. Here, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of aphid abundance in a field population of Arabidopsis thaliana. This GWAS of aphid abundance detected a relatively rare but significant variant on the third chromosome of A. thaliana, which was also suggestively but non-significantly associated with the presence or absence of inflorescence. Out of candidate genes near this significant variant, a mutant of a ribosomal gene (AT3G13882) exhibited slower growth and later flowering than a wild type under laboratory conditions. A no-choice assay with the turnip aphid, Lipaphis erysimi, found that aphids were unable to successfully establish on the mutant. Our GWAS of aphid abundance unexpectedly found a locus affecting plant growth and flowering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chongmeng Xu
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Yasuhiro Sato
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Research Institute for Food and Agriculture, Ryukoku University, Yokotani 1-5, Seta Oe-cho, Otsu, Shiga 520-2194, Japan
| | - Misako Yamazaki
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Marcel Brasser
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Matthew A. Barbour
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Départemente de Biologie, Université de Sherbrooke, 2500 boulevard de l'Université, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada J1K 2R1
| | - Jordi Bascompte
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Kentaro K. Shimizu
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Kihara Institute for Biological Research, Yokohama City University, Maioka 641-12, Totsuka-ward, Yokohama 244-0813, Japan
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Wuest SE, Schulz L, Rana S, Frommelt J, Ehmig M, Pires ND, Grossniklaus U, Hardtke CS, Hammes UZ, Schmid B, Niklaus PA. Single-gene resolution of diversity-driven overyielding in plant genotype mixtures. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3379. [PMID: 37291153 PMCID: PMC10250416 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39130-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023] Open
Abstract
In plant communities, diversity often increases productivity and functioning, but the specific underlying drivers are difficult to identify. Most ecological theories attribute positive diversity effects to complementary niches occupied by different species or genotypes. However, the specific nature of niche complementarity often remains unclear, including how it is expressed in terms of trait differences between plants. Here, we use a gene-centred approach to study positive diversity effects in mixtures of natural Arabidopsis thaliana genotypes. Using two orthogonal genetic mapping approaches, we find that between-plant allelic differences at the AtSUC8 locus are strongly associated with mixture overyielding. AtSUC8 encodes a proton-sucrose symporter and is expressed in root tissues. Genetic variation in AtSUC8 affects the biochemical activities of protein variants and natural variation at this locus is associated with different sensitivities of root growth to changes in substrate pH. We thus speculate that - in the particular case studied here - evolutionary divergence along an edaphic gradient resulted in the niche complementarity between genotypes that now drives overyielding in mixtures. Identifying genes important for ecosystem functioning may ultimately allow linking ecological processes to evolutionary drivers, help identify traits underlying positive diversity effects, and facilitate the development of high-performance crop variety mixtures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel E Wuest
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Zollikerstrasse 107, 8008, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Department of Geography, Remote Sensing Laboratories, University of Zurich, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Agroscope, Group Breeding Research, Mueller-Thurgau-Strasse 29, 8820, Waedenswil, Switzerland.
| | - Lukas Schulz
- Plant Systems Biology, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 85354, Freising, Germany
| | - Surbhi Rana
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
- Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Colney Ln, Norwich, NR4 7UH, United Kingdom
| | - Julia Frommelt
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Merten Ehmig
- Department of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, University of Zurich, Zollikerstrasse 107, 8008, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Nuno D Pires
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Zollikerstrasse 107, 8008, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Ueli Grossniklaus
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Zollikerstrasse 107, 8008, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Christian S Hardtke
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Ulrich Z Hammes
- Plant Systems Biology, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 85354, Freising, Germany
| | - Bernhard Schmid
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Geography, Remote Sensing Laboratories, University of Zurich, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Pascal A Niklaus
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies and Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
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Sato Y, Takeda K, Nagano AJ. Neighbor QTL: an interval mapping method for quantitative trait loci underlying plant neighborhood effects. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2021; 11:jkab017. [PMID: 33709120 PMCID: PMC8022948 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkab017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Phenotypes of sessile organisms, such as plants, rely not only on their own genotypes but also on those of neighboring individuals. Previously, we incorporated such neighbor effects into a single-marker regression using the Ising model of ferromagnetism. However, little is known regarding how neighbor effects should be incorporated in quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping. In this study, we propose a new method for interval QTL mapping of neighbor effects, designated "neighbor QTL," the algorithm of which includes: (1) obtaining conditional self-genotype probabilities with recombination fraction between flanking markers; (2) calculating conditional neighbor genotypic identity using the self-genotype probabilities; and (3) estimating additive and dominance deviations for neighbor effects. Our simulation using F2 and backcross lines showed that the power to detect neighbor effects increased as the effective range decreased. The neighbor QTL was applied to insect herbivory on Col × Kas recombinant inbred lines of Arabidopsis thaliana. Consistent with previous results, the pilot experiment detected a self-QTL effect on the herbivory at the GLABRA1 locus. Regarding neighbor QTL effects on herbivory, we observed a weak QTL on the top of chromosome 4, at which a weak self-bolting QTL was also identified. The neighbor QTL method is available as an R package (https://cran.r-project.org/package=rNeighborQTL), providing a novel tool to investigate neighbor effects in QTL studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuhiro Sato
- Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (PRESTO), Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi 332-0012, Japan
- Research Institute for Food and Agriculture, Ryukoku University, Shiga 520-2194, Japan
| | - Kazuya Takeda
- Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Shiga 520-2113, Japan
| | - Atsushi J Nagano
- Faculty of Agriculture, Ryukoku University, Shiga 520-2194, Japan
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