COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: Genetic and developmental changes associated with the evolution of a hummingbird-pollination floral syndrome

花的形式多种多样，令人类观察者惊叹不已，但对植物的繁殖成功至关重要，而花的多样性很大程度上是由花和传粉者之间的进化相互作用形成的。从蜜蜂授粉的花到鸟类授粉的花的进化转变已经发生了无数次，并对花的多样性做出了重大贡献。然而，有两个核心问题在很大程度上仍未得到探索。是什么基因变化允许从蜜蜂授粉花综合症向鸟类授粉花综合症的进化过渡？类似的基因变化是否解释了许多为鸟类授粉而优化的花朵的独立转变？彭斯敦属是少数几个适合于解决这些问题的开花植物群之一-鸟类授粉已经独立进化了十多次，许多物种是可异育的，这使得可以通过遗传方法来确定与鸟类授粉相关的一系列复杂的花卉性状的基因。该项目将在两个近缘关系密切的蜜蜂授粉和鸟类授粉的彭斯通物种中开发分子遗传工具。这些工具将包括转基因方法、基因组测序和基因图谱，使研究人员能够探索从蜜蜂授粉到鸟类授粉的花卉性状转变所需的基因变化。这些对授粉系统转变遗传学的早期见解将为一种新的、高度整合的方法奠定基础，该方法涉及进化、生态、遗传和发育研究，以确定复杂性状进化的基础过程。该项目将帮助培养植物进化遗传学和发育领域的博士后研究人员和本科生，并为新兴一代科学家提供将下一代测序技术应用于性状进化关键问题的技能。堪萨斯大学将通过国家资助的项目招收本科生，该项目旨在增加STEM领域代表不足的群体的参与。

Flowers exhibit a multitude of forms that are astounding to human observers, but critical to the reproductive success of plants, and much of floral diversity has been shaped by evolutionary interactions between flowers and pollinators. Evolutionary shifts from bee- to bird-pollinated flowers have occurred numerous times, and contributed significantly to flower diversity. Yet there are two central issues that remain largely unexplored. What are the genetic changes that allow for an evolutionary transition from bee- to bird-pollination floral syndrome? And do similar genetic changes explain the many independent transitions to flowers optimized for bird pollination? The genus Penstemon is one of a few flowering plant groups well suited to address these questions - bird pollination has evolved more than ten times independently, and many species are inter-fertile, allowing for a genetic approach to determine the genes responsible for a complex suite of floral traits associated with bird-pollination. This project will develop molecular genetic tools in two closely related bee- and bird-pollinated Penstemon species. Tools will include transgenic approaches, genome sequencing and genetic mapping that will allow the researchers to explore the genetic changes necessary for a transition from bee- to bird-pollination floral traits. These early insights into the genetics of a pollination system shift will establish the foundation for a novel, highly integrative approach involving evolutionary, ecological, genetic and developmental studies to determine processes that underlie the evolution of complex traits. This project will contribute to the training of a postdoctoral researcher and undergraduate students at the interface of plant evolutionary genetics and development, and provide individuals from the emerging generation of scientists with skills in applying next-generation sequencing technology to critical questions of trait evolution. Undergraduates will be recruited through nationally funded programs at the University of Kansas aimed at increasing participation of underrepresented groups in STEM fields.