DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Genetic Architecture of Resistance in a Coevolving Plant-Fungus Pathosystem

生物与其敌人之间的共同进化是一种广泛存在的现象，可能有助于生物多样性的产生。被认为是植物和它们的敌人之间关系的遗传机制，被称为基因对基因的概念，被认为涉及植物基因和草食基因的成对相互作用。我们将研究天然植物-真菌（宿主-寄生虫）系统的遗传学，以确定植物-病原体共同进化的基因对基因模型是否准确地描述了该系统中的抗性进化。对该系统病理的前期研究将作为表征耐药性遗传基础的起点。由于该系统包括多个宿主物种，因此将获得更多的见解，为宿主-病原体共同进化提供更现实的多物种背景。虽然共同进化的遗传学已经在许多农业植物系统中进行了研究，但在自然系统中很少研究这种相互作用。了解自然植物-病原体共同进化的机制和影响将有助于制定长期维持抗性的策略，随着种植日益全球化，以及人类活动导致自然病原体越来越多地引入濒危或栽培植物种群，这将变得越来越重要。

Coevolution between organisms and their enemies is a widespread phenomenon that may contribute to the generation of biological diversity. The genetic mechanism believed to underlie relationships between plants and their enemies, termed the gene-for-gene concept, is thought to involve pairwise interactions of plant genes and herbivore genes. The genetics of a natural plant-fungus (host-parasite) system will be examined to determine whether the evolution of resistance in this system is accurately described by the gene-for-gene model of plant-pathogen coevolution. Prior research on the pathology of this system will serve as a starting point for characterizing the genetic basis of resistance. Additional insight will be gained because the system includes multiple host species, providing a more realistic multispecies context for host-pathogen coevolution.Though the genetics of coevolution has been studied in many agricultural plant systems, few such interactions have been studied in natural systems. Understanding the mechanisms and impacts of natural plant-pathogen coevolution should help in the development of strategies for long term maintenance of resistance, which will become ever more important as cultivation becomes increasingly globalized, and as human activity results in increased introduction of natural pathogens to endangered or cultivated plant populations.