Using enigmatic germplasm collections to investigate the role of polyploidy and introgression in the origin and evolution of the sweet potato (Ipomoea

甘薯是世界范围内一种至关重要的主食，特别是对发展中国家干旱易发地区的小农而言，富含维生素a的甘薯品种被证明是对抗营养不良的宝贵工具。本项目旨在解决甘薯多倍体的途径、基因流的作用以及可食用贮藏根在甘薯起源和进化中的发展等悬而未决的问题。这样做将产生对世界上最重要的作物之一及其近亲的进化史和当代多样性的全面描述，并将为多倍体和基因渗入在进化适应和作物驯化过程中的作用提供更广泛的见解。这些见解在可持续地提高农业生产方面具有潜在的用途，可以促进从作物野生近缘种中吸收有益性状，从而促进全球粮食安全和适应环境变化。

Sweet potato is a vital staple food worldwide, particularly for small-scale farmers in drought-prone areas of the developing world, with Vitamin A-rich varieties proving an invaluable tool in combatting malnutrition. This project aims to resolve outstanding questions about the route to polyploidy, role of gene-flow, and development of edible storage roots in the origin and evolution of the sweet potato. Doing so will generate a comprehensive account of the evolutionary history and contemporary diversity of one of the world's most important crops and its closest relatives, and will also provide wider insights into the role of polyploidy and introgression in the processes of evolutionary adaptation and crop domestication. Such insights are of potential use in sustainably enhancing agricultural production by facilitating the incorporation of beneficial traits from crop wild relatives to promote Global Food Security and adaptation to environmental change.