Reproductive Performance of the Alpine Plant Species Ranunculus kuepferi in a Climatic Elevation Gradient: Apomictic Tetraploids Do Not Show a General Fitness Advantage over Sexual Diploids.
Ursula Ladinig, Elvira Hörandl, Simone Klatt, Johanna Wagner
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Previous studies on the mountain plant Ranunculus kuepferi concluded that apomictic self-compatible tetraploids have experienced a niche shift toward a colder climate during the Holocene, which suggests a fitness advantage over the sexual, self-sterile diploid parents under cold and stressful high-mountain conditions. However, there is still a lack of information on whether reproductive development would be advantageous for tetraploids. Here, we report on microsporogenesis, megagametogenesis, the dynamics of flower and seed development, and the consequences for reproductive success in a common garden experiment along a 1000 m climatic elevation gradient and in natural populations. Flower buds were initiated in the year preceding anthesis and passed winter in a pre-meiotic stage. Flower morphology differed in the known cytotype-specific way in that tetraploid flowers produced about twice as many carpels and fewer petals, stamens, and pollen grains than diploid flowers. Tetraploids developed precociously aposporous embryo sacs and showed a high rate of developmental disturbances. Sexual seed formation prevailed in diploids and pseudogamous apomixis in tetraploids. Along the elevation gradient, stigma pollen load, pollen performance, and seed output decreased. Combinations of reproductive traits, namely, bypass of meiosis irregularities and uniparental reproduction, might have promoted the vast expansion of apomictic R. kuepferi lines across the European Alps.
Life-BaselBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology-General Biochemistry,Genetics and Molecular Biology
CiteScore
4.30
自引率
6.20%
发文量
1798
审稿时长
11 weeks
期刊介绍:
Life (ISSN 2075-1729) is an international, peer-reviewed open access journal of scientific studies related to fundamental themes in Life Sciences, especially those concerned with the origins of life and evolution of biosystems. Our aim is to encourage scientists to publish their experimental and theoretical results in as much detail as possible. There is no restriction on the length of the papers.