2015/05/05 by Eric J. Baack, Maria C. Melo, Loren H. Rieseberg +1 · 2 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Environmental Science · #Plant and animal studies #Plant Reproductive Biology #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies #Reproductive isolation #Biology #Evolutionary biology #Gene flow #Isolation (microbiology) #Natural selection #Adaptation (eye) #Genetic algorithm #Hybrid #Selection (genetic algorithm) #Ecology #Genetics #Gene #Population #Genetic variation #Bioinformatics #Botany
paper · doi:10.1111/nph.13424
openalex publication_date 2015/05/05 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Summary Reproductive isolation in plants occurs through multiple barriers that restrict gene flow between populations, but their origins remain uncertain. Work in the past decade has shown that postpollination barriers, such as the failure to form hybrid seeds or sterility of hybrid offspring, are often less strong than prepollination barriers. Evidence implicates multiple evolutionary forces in the origins of reproductive barriers, including mutation, stochastic processes and natural selection. Although adaptation to different environments is a common element of reproductive isolation, genomic conflicts also play a role, including female meiotic drive. The genetic basis of some reproductive barriers, particularly flower colour influencing pollinator behaviour, is well understood in some species, but the genetic changes underlying many other barriers, especially pollen–stylar interactions, are largely unknown. Postpollination barriers appear to accumulate at a faster rate in annuals compared with perennials, due in part to chromosomal rearrangements. Chromosomal changes can be important isolating barriers in themselves but may also reduce the recombination of genes contributing to isolation. Important questions for the next decade include identifying the evolutionary forces responsible for chromosomal rearrangements, determining how often prezygotic barriers arise due to selection against hybrids, and establishing the relative importance of genomic conflicts in speciation. Contents Summary 968 I. Introduction 968 II. Reproductive barriers in plants 970 III. Geographic patterns and the origin of reproductive isolation 971 IV. Genetic changes and evolutionary drivers behind reproductive isolation 973 V. The timing of reproductive barriers 979 VI. Synthesis and future directions 980 Acknowledgements 981 References 981