DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Evolution of floral symmetry in Lamiales

花在形状上表现出显著的变化，影响授粉昆虫识别它们的方式，但这种形式的进化还没有被很好地理解。薄荷花及其近缘植物是研究花朵形态演化的一个很好的类群，因为从径向对称到两侧对称再回来有很多变化。这个项目将检验这样的假设：(A)薄荷亲缘关系中从径向对称到双边对称的重大转变与花对称图案基因的额外拷贝和基因表达的变化有关；(B)由于相同基因的多样化，薄荷和它们的近缘植物通常被用作观赏植物，因此它们将为公众提供关于进化和发育以及植物与昆虫相互作用的良好后院范例。此外，该项目将涉及两名本科生的培训。

Flowers exhibit remarkable variation in form, affecting how pollinating insects recognize them, but the evolution of that form is not well understood. The mints and their relatives are a good group in which to study the evolution of floral shape, because there have been many changes from radial symmetry to bilateral symmetry and back. This project will test the hypothesis that (a) a major shift from radial symmetry to bilateral symmetry within the mint relatives correlates with extra copies of floral symmetry patterning genes, and changes in gene expression; (b) a return to radial symmetry occurred by diversification of the same genes.Mints and their relatives are commonly used as ornamental plants for their spectacular flowers; they will thus provide an excellent backyard example for the education of the general public on evolution and development, and plant-insect interactions. Additionally, the project will involve the training of two undergraduate students.