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Updated: Aug 27, 2025

Observation and Quantification of Mating Behavior in the Pinewood Nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus
Published on: December 25, 2016
Genomic insights into inter- and intraspecific mating system shifts in Primulina
Huiqin Yi1,2, Jieyu Wang1, Jing Wang1
1Key Laboratory of Plant Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.
Abstract:
The mating system shift from outcrossing to selfing is one of the most frequent evolutionary trends in flowering plants. However, the genomic consequences of this shift remain poorly understood. Specifically, the relative importance of the demographic and genetic processes causing changes in genetic variation and selection efficacy associated with the evolution of selfing is unclear. Here we sequenced the genomes of two Primulina species with contrasting mating systems: P. eburnea (outcrossing) versus P. tabacum (outcrossing, mixed-mating and selfing populations). Whole-genome resequencing data were used to investigate the genomic consequences of mating system shifts within and between species. We found that highly selfing populations of P. tabacum display loss of genetic diversity, increased deleterious mutations, higher genomic burden and fewer adaptive substitutions. However, compared with outcrossing populations, mixed-mating populations did not display loss of genetic diversity and accumulation of genetic load. We find no evidence of population bottlenecks associated with the shift to selfing, which suggests that the genetic effects of selfing on Ne and possibly linked selection, rather than demographic history, are the primary drivers of diversity reduction in highly selfing populations. Our results highlight the importance of distinguishing the relative contribution of mating system and demography on the genomic consequences associated with mating system evolution in plants.
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