DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Assessing the General Importance of Frequency-Dependent Selection in Plant Breeding Systems.

人们早就认识到，交配类型的成功取决于它在种群中的频率。虽然有一些经验的例子频率依赖性选择存在，其在植物交配的进化动力学的一般重要性还有待记录。拟议的研究将使用Solanum carolinense，一种在个体内携带雄性和两性花的物种，作为一个模型系统来回答：i）通过雌性和雄性适合度成分对雄花相对产量的选择模式是什么？ii）选择作用于这个特征的频率依赖性，正如理论所预测的那样吗？iii）如果是这样，这种频率依赖性选择是否解释了自然种群中雄花中间比例的维持？这些问题将通过田间和温室实验的结合以及个体植物的遗传指纹来解决。 这一建议的智力价值是测试性理论的基本预测，即男性偏向分配的选择是频率依赖性的，从而有助于更彻底地了解植物交配系统所需的信息。该项目的更广泛影响将通过鼓励不同群体的参与，特别是对科学感兴趣的本科生和拉丁美洲学生，加强学术界。

It has been long recognized that the success of a mating type depends on its frequency in the population. Although a few empirical examples of frequency-dependent selection exist, its general importance in the evolutionary dynamics of plant mating has yet to be documented. The proposed study will use Solanum carolinense, a species that carries both male and hermaphroditic flowers within individuals, as a model system to answer: i) What is the pattern of selection acting through both female and male components of fitness on the relative production of male flowers? ii) Is selection acting on this trait frequency-dependent, as predicted by theory? iii) If so, does this frequencydependent selection explain the maintenance of intermediate proportions of male flowers in natural populations? These questions will be addressed through a combination of field and greenhouse experiments, and genetic fingerprinting of individual plants. The intellectual merit of this proposal is to test a fundamental prediction in sexual theory, i.e. that selection on male-biased allocation is frequency-dependent, thus contributing information needed for a more thorough understanding of plant mating systems. The broader impact of this project will enhance the academic community by encouraging the participation of diverse groups, particularly undergraduate and Latino students with an interest in science.