What is it about?
Wild relatives of wheats have a hybrid origin and are characterized by drastic genome evolution. Integration of available knowledge shows how chromosomal restructuring supported contrasted trajectories towards either 'obesity' or 'asymmetry' and highlights processes underlying the diversification of wild wheats.
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Why is it important?
Wild wheats offer an excellent model to address the mechanisms underlying genomes evolution and, more particularly, the role of chromosome restructuring in driving biological diversification. Following hybridization, complex genomes of wild wheats evolved towards either 'genomic obesity' or highly rearranged chromosomes. Integration of available knowledge shows how genome restructuring supported such contrasted trajectories and points to molecular as well as evolutionary processes having shaped chromosomal evolution in wheat relatives.
Perspectives
Wheat genomes are complex (more than 80% repetitive), hampering their study. Recent technological developments now make it feasible to sequence a wide diversity of wheats, including wild relatives that represent crucial resources for future food security.
Dr Christian Parisod
University of Neuchatel
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Chromosome restructuring among hybridizing wild wheats, New Phytologist, February 2020, Wiley,
DOI: 10.1111/nph.16415.
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