Scientists have collected snapdragon flowers in the Pyrenees to study their genetic makeup and understand how two varieties remain distinct despite sharing the same habitat.
Why it matters: The research reveals the crucial role of flower color genes in maintaining the separation between magenta and yellow snapdragon varieties, even when they hybridize in the same environment.
The details:
- Researchers from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) have been collecting snapdragons in the Pyrenees for 17 years, focusing on the village of Planoles in Spain.
- The study compared two hybrid zones, Planoles and Avellanet, where magenta and yellow snapdragons coexist and hybridize.
- Whole-genomic sequencing revealed that while the genomes of snapdragons from the two zones were quite different, the genes responsible for flower color remained consistent.
- The key color genes—Rosea, Eluta, Rubia, Sulfurea, Flavia, Aurina, and Cremosa—help snapdragons remain distinct even when sharing the same environment.
The study highlights the importance of flower color in attracting pollinators and ensuring the survival and reproduction of snapdragons.
What they’re saying:
- “Hybrid zones are essentially ‘natural laboratories’ where you can study the process of speciation and evolution in nature, allowing nature to conduct the experiments for us instead of crossing them in greenhouses,” says Arka Pal, a biologist and Ph.D. student from the Barton group at ISTA.
- “You can think of the genome as an ‘encyclopedia of words.’ Within this encyclopedia, there are billions of letters which make up thousands of words—our genes. Yet, only a few key ‘words’ are important to keep species or varieties separate,” Pal explains.
The big picture: This research not only sheds light on the evolutionary path of snapdragons but also highlights the complex interplay of genetics in nature’s vast tapestry, providing insights into plant evolution, hybridization, and genetic diversity.
