Is post-polyploidization diploidization the key to the evolutionary success of angiosperms?
2015/11/05 by Steven Dodsworth, Mark W. Chase, Andrew R. Leitch · 179 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Biology #Botany #Chromosomal and Genetic Variations #Ecology #Evolutionary biology #Key (lock) #Plant Diversity and Evolution #Plant Taxonomy and Phylogenetics
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/boj.12357
published in Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 180(1), 1-5 (Oxford University Press)
openalex publication_date 2015/11/05 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Abstract
Advances in recent years have revolutionized our understanding of both the context and occurrence of polyploidy in plants. Molecular phylogenetics has vastly improved our understanding of plant relationships, enabling us to better understand trait and character evolution, including chromosome number changes. This, in turn, has allowed us to appreciate better the frequent occurrence and extent of polyploidy throughout the history of angiosperms, despite the occurrence of low chromosome numbers in some groups, such as in Arabidopsis (A. thaliana was the first plant genome to be sequenced and assembled). In tandem with an enhanced appreciation of phylogenetic relationships, the accumulation of genomic data has led to the conclusion that all angiosperms are palaeopolyploids, together with better estimates of the frequency and type of polyploidy in different angiosperm lineages. The focus therefore becomes when a lineage last underwent polyploidization, rather than simply whether a plant is ‘diploid’ or ‘polyploid’. This legacy of past polyploidization in plants is masked by large-scale genome reorganization involving repetitive DNA loss, chromosome rearrangements (including fusions and fissions) and complex patterns of gene loss, a set of processes that are collectively termed ‘diploidization’. We argue here that it is the diploidization process that is responsible for the ‘lag phase’ between polyploidization events and lineage diversification. If so, diploidization is important in determining chromosome structure and gene content, and has therefore made a significant contribution to the evolutionary success of flowering plants.
Cited by
- The Angiosperm Terrestrial Revolution and the origins of modern biodiversity
- Disparity, diversity, and duplications in the Caryophyllales
- Accurate Inference of the Polyploid Continuum Using Forward-Time Simulations
- A deep dive into bryophyte genome space reveals opposing evolutionary trends in the sister lineages, mosses and liverworts
- Dynamic genome evolution in a model fern
- A roadmap of phylogenomic methods for studying polyploid plant genera
- Causes of delayed angiosperm diversification: The photosynthetic revolution, increased opportunity costs of anti‐herbivore defenses, selection for qualitative toxins, and acceleration of plant–herbivore coevolution
- The Scaling of Genome Size and Cell Size Limits Maximum Rates of Photosynthesis with Implications for Ecological Strategies
- Genome chaos: Creating new genomic information essential for cancer macroevolution
- Plastid and nuclear phylogenomics of Cyphostemma (Vitaceae) provide new insights into genome size evolution across sub‐Saharan Africa
- Polyploidy, the Nucleotype, and Novelty: The Impact of Genome Doubling on the Biology of the Cell
- Integrating Networks, Phylogenomics, and Population Genomics for the Study of Polyploidy
- Evolution of floral diversity: genomics, genes and gamma. [europepmc]
- Constraining the timing of whole genome duplication in plant evolutionary history. [europepmc]
- Chromosome Evolution in Connection with Repetitive Sequences and Epigenetics in Plants. [europepmc]
- Genome Size Diversity and Its Impact on the Evolution of Land Plants. [europepmc]
- Decomposing Additive Genetic Variance Revealed Novel Insights into Trait Evolution in Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat. [europepmc]
- Different Modes of Gene Duplication Show Divergent Evolutionary Patterns and Contribute Differently to the Expansion of Gene Families Involved in Important Fruit Traits in Pear ( Pyrus bretschneideri ). [europepmc]
- Multiple Origins and Nested Cycles of Hybridization Result in High Tetraploid Diversity in the Monocot Prospero . [europepmc]
- Unbiased subgenome evolution following a recent whole-genome duplication in pear ( Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd.). [europepmc]
- Chromatin Evolution-Key Innovations Underpinning Morphological Complexity. [europepmc]
- Musa balbisiana genome reveals subgenome evolution and functional divergence. [europepmc]
- Identification of a Dominant Chlorosis Phenotype Through a Forward Screen of the Triticum turgidum cv. Kronos TILLING Population. [europepmc]
- What Is Karyotype Coding and Why Is Genomic Topology Important for Cancer and Evolution? [europepmc]
- Tissue-specific gene expression and protein abundance patterns are associated with fractionation bias in maize. [europepmc]
- Induction of Synthetic Polyploids and Assessment of Genomic Stability in Lippia alba . [europepmc]
- Maximum CO 2 diffusion inside leaves is limited by the scaling of cell size and genome size. [europepmc]
- Multiple Drivers of High Species Diversity and Endemism Among Alyssum Annuals in the Mediterranean: The Evolutionary Significance of the Aegean Hotspot. [europepmc]
- Genome-Wide Comparative Analysis of Flowering-Time Genes; Insights on the Gene Family Expansion and Evolutionary Perspective. [europepmc]
- Tracing the Evolution of the Angiosperm Genome from the Cytogenetic Point of View. [europepmc]
- Genome Insights into Autopolyploid Evolution: A Case Study in Senecio doronicum (Asteraceae) from the Southern Alps. [europepmc]
- A haploid pseudo-chromosome genome assembly for a keystone sagebrush species of western North American rangelands. [europepmc]
- Dynamic genome evolution in a model fern. [europepmc]
- Evolutionary and Genomic Diversity of True Polyploidy in Tetrapods. [europepmc]
- Intra-Varietal Diversity and Its Contribution to Wheat Evolution, Domestication, and Improvement in Wheat. [europepmc]
- The Impact of Chromosomal Rearrangements in Speciation: From Micro- to Macroevolution. [europepmc]
- Biased Retention of Environment-Responsive Genes Following Genome Fractionation. [europepmc]
Related