Open AccessAdaptive divergence in shoot gravitropism creates hybrid sterility in an Australian wildflower
Author(s) -
Melanie J. Wilkinson,
Federico Roda,
Greg M. Walter,
Maddie E. James,
Rick Nipper,
Jessica Walsh,
Scott L. Allen,
Henry L. North,
Christine A. Beveridge,
Daniel OrtizBarrientos
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.2004901118
Subject(s) - biology , natural selection , adaptation (eye) , gravitropism , population , adaptive evolution , wildflower , sterility , evolutionary biology , botany , genetics , arabidopsis , gene , demography , neuroscience , sociology , mutant
Significance New species originate as populations become reproductively isolated from one another. Despite recent progress in uncovering the genetic basis of reproductive isolation, it remains unclear whether intrinsic reproductive barriers, such as hybrid sterility, can evolve as a by-product of local adaptation to contrasting environments. Here, we show that differences in a plant’s response to the pull of gravity have repeatedly evolved amongst coastal populations of an Australian wildflower, thus implicating a role of natural selection in their evolution. We found a strong genetic association between variation in this adaptive trait and hybrid sterility, suggesting that intrinsic reproductive barriers contribute to the origin of new species as populations adapt to heterogeneous environments.