Abstract Detail
Genetics Section Bissell, Erin [1], Diggle, Pamela K. [1]. Floral integration and the genetics of evolutionary modularity in Nicotiana spp. Nicotiana alata and N. forgetiana are closely related species that differ dramatically in floral size and shape. Analyses of the genetic basis of floral integration in the two species as well as their fourth generation artificial hybrids identified two suites of correlated characters that we define as phenotypic modules. One module includes corolla limb characters that are often involved in pollinator attraction. The other includes measures of corolla tube and reproductive organ length, characters associated with pollen transfer. Comparative quantitative genetic analyses provide evidence for maintenance of phenotypic modules in both species that is resistant to recombination during hybridization. We propose that pleiotropy is responsible for maintenance of floral modularity in these species. There is also evidence for change in some characters associated with the modules, indicating that selection and/or genetic drift have modified the genetic architecture of the species during their divergence.
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1 - University of Colorado, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, UCB 334, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA
Keywords:
Integration
quantitative genetics
floral morphology
modularity
Nicotiana.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: CP14
Location: Lake Huron/Hilton
Date: Monday, July 9th, 2007
Time: 4:45 PM
Number: CP14015
Abstract ID:1915 | 