Transposition and duplication of MADS-domain transcription factor genes in annual and perennial <i>Arabis</i> species modulates flowering
Eva Madrid, Edouard Severing, Elisa de Ansorena, Christiane Kiefer, Luise H. Brand, Rafael Martínez-Gallegos, Stefan Woetzel, Ulla Kemi, Wen‐Biao Jiao, Korbinian Schneeberger, George Coupland
Abstract
Significance Annual and perennial species differ in their timing and intensity of flowering, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. We hybridized closely related annual and perennial plants and used genetics, transgenesis, and genomics to characterize differences in the activity and function of their flowering-time genes. We identify a gene encoding a transcription factor that moved between chromosomes and is retained in the annual but absent from the perennial. This gene strongly delays flowering, and we propose that it has been retained in the annual to compensate for reduced activity of closely related genes. This study highlights the value of using direct hybridization between closely related plant species to characterize functional differences in fast-evolving reproductive traits.