Single gene mutation in a plant MYB transcription factor causes a major shift in pollinator preference
| Autor: | Martina N. Lüthi, Andrea E. Berardi, Therese Mandel, Loreta B. Freitas, Cris Kuhlemeier |
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| Rok vydání: | 2022 |
| Předmět: |
UV color
Flavonols behavioral assays Flowers 580 Plants (Botany) Bees General Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular Biology 580 Pflanzen (Botanik) Anthocyanins speciation Gene Expression Regulation Plant hawkmoths and bees Manduca Mutation Animals CRISPR mutants General Agricultural and Biological Sciences Pollination syndromes MYB transcription factor Transcription Factors Plant Proteins |
| Zdroj: | Lüthi, Martina N; Berardi, Andrea E; Mandel, Therese; Freitas, Loreta B; Kuhlemeier, Cris (2022). Single gene mutation in a plant MYB transcription factor causes a major shift in pollinator preference. Current biology, 32(24), 5295-5308.e5. Cell Press 10.1016/j.cub.2022.11.006 |
| ISSN: | 1879-0445 0960-9822 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.cub.2022.11.006 |
| Popis: | Understanding the molecular basis of reproductive isolation and speciation is a key goal of evolutionary genetics. In the South American genus Petunia, the R2R3-MYB transcription factor MYB-FL regulates the biosynthesis of UV-absorbing flavonol pigments, a major determinant of pollinator preference. MYB-FL is highly expressed in the hawkmoth-pollinated P. axillaris, but independent losses of its activity in sister taxa P. secreta and P. exserta led to UV-reflective flowers and associated pollinator shifts in each lineage (bees and hummingbirds, respectively). We created a myb-fl CRISPR mutant in P. axillaris and studied the effect of this single gene on innate pollinator preference. The mutation strongly reduced the expression of the two key flavonol-related biosynthetic genes but only affected the expression of few other genes. The mutant flowers were UV reflective as expected but additionally contained low levels of visible anthocyanin pigments. Hawkmoths strongly preferred the wild-type P. axillaris over the myb-fl mutant, whereas both social and solitary bee preference depended on the level of visible color of the mutants. MYB-FL, with its specific expression pattern, small number of target genes, and key position at the nexus of flavonol and anthocyanin biosynthetic pathways, provides a striking example of evolution by single mutations of large phenotypic effect. Current Biology, 32 (24) ISSN:0960-9822 ISSN:1879-0445 |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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