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Hamilton's rule, imprinting and parent–offspring conflict over seed mass in partially selfing plants
Author(s) -
DE JONG T. J.,
VAN DIJK H.,
KLINKHAMER P. G. L.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of evolutionary biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.289
H-Index - 128
eISSN - 1420-9101
pISSN - 1010-061X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2004.00856.x
Subject(s) - biology , selfing , outcrossing , imprinting (psychology) , offspring , parent–offspring conflict , genomic imprinting , evolutionary biology , pollen , genetics , gene , botany , demography , pregnancy , population , gene expression , sociology , dna methylation
When genes in the offspring control the provisioning of the seed, the optimal seed size can be calculated exactly by applying Hamilton's rule. When seed size is a compromise between mother and offspring, we predict that outcrossing plant species produce larger seeds than selfers. This trend was found in the British flora and in a number of well‐studied plant families. The analysis was extended to imprinting, a conditional strategy in which a gene in the offspring takes more resources when derived from the father than from the mother. The conditions for imprinting to be selected were rather restrictive. The analysis is relevant for the current debate about the evolution of imprinting in Arabidopsis thaliana .