Project Detail

Microevolutionary aspects of residual sexuality in apomictic plants: detection, rate and manifestation in populations of Hieracium subgen. Pilosella

Name:	Microevolutionary aspects of residual sexuality in apomictic plants: detection, rate and manifestation in populations of Hieracium subgen. Pilosella
Researchers:	Krahulcová Anna (researcher)
Provider:	GAČR
Realization from:	2007
Realization to:	2009
Summary:	Facultative apomixis combines usually dominant asexual seed production and occasional hybridization of maternal plants (residual sexuality). Advantages of both apomixis (conservation and spread of adapted genotypes) and sexuality (increase of progeny variation by recombination and segregation) often contribute to invasion of such biotypes to new habitats. Besides sexual biotypes, also facultative apomicts do hybridize in our model system of Hieracium subgenus Pilosella. Thus, both recent hybrids and stabilized hybridogenous taxa occur in nature. The project is aimed at 1) detection and quantification of hybrid progeny of apomitic mothers after experimental crosses and open pollination in the field, and 2) evaluation of progeny variation generated by apomictic versus sexual mothers in selected mixed populations. Comparison to population structures in the wild will provide an estimate of establishment of new biotypes originated in the same way and elucidate the role of natural selection.