Navigating the Challenges in Apomixis Population Genetics: Insights from Past, Present, and Future Perspectives

作者：P. Karunarathne, A. V. Reutemann, Jennifer E. James, Qiujie Zhou, A. Sassone, Laura E. Rose, D. Hojsgaard · 发表于：Critical reviews in plant sciences · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1080/07352689.2024.2440296 · 被引用次数：5

Abstract Navigating the challenges in apomixis population genetics requires a comprehensive understanding of its unique genetic consequences. This review explores the population genetics of apomixis, comparing sexual and apomictic populations, research challenges, and outlining future directions. Apomictic plants form clonal seeds, and arise from sexual species through hybridization and/or polyploidy. Sexual species generate genetic variation via meiotic recombination, random mating, and gradual accumulation of beneficial mutations. In contrast, apomicts rely on similar mechanisms to generate genetic variation but at a much slower rate, primarily through ´residual´ sexuality. Clonality in apomicts also promotes the accumulation of deleterious mutations. Additionally, recurrent origins of apomicts from sexual progenitors, especially via hybridization contribute to genetic diversity in apomictic populations. These processes, with varying rates of recombination, gene flow, and genotype fixation, lead to distinct genetic structures between sexual and apomictic populations. Reevaluating the evolutionary mechanisms like gene flow, genetic drift, mutation rates, and selection pressures is, therefore, crucial for understanding the processes driving genetic differentiation and genomic structure in apomictic populations. Research on apomixis has advanced from early documentation in the 18th century to modern cytological and genomic approaches. Early theoretical models of apomixis inher...