Projektbeschreibung
Untersuchung der Interaktion zwischen Bestäuber und Blume
Die Rolle der Bestäuber und der pflanzlichen sexuellen Vielfalt in der Evolution der Flora mittelmeerähnlicher Ökosysteme ist für die Erforschung und Erhaltung der biologischen Vielfalt in Europa von unermesslichem Interesse. Das EU-finanzierte Projekt FLAXMATE wird einen neuen quantitativen Ansatz verfolgen, um die Evolution der Paarungsphänotypen (d. h. die Lage der floralen Geschlechtsorgane) in einer Gruppe von 74 Linum-Arten zu untersuchen. Diese Arten sind mit dem gemeinen Lein verwandt, sind aber im Mittelmeerbecken und der Region Cape Floral in Südafrika heimisch. Das Projekt wird zwei neuartige Ansätze auf der Basis von 3D-geometrischer Morphometrie und Quantenpunkten anwenden, um die Effizienz der Bestäubung als treibender Faktor der biologischen Vielfalt auf makro- und mikroevolutionärer Ebene zu analysieren.
Ziel
The role of pollinators and plant sexual diversity in the evolution of Mediterranean-Type Ecosystems (MTE) floras is a silver bullet target for biodiversity research and conservation in Europe. The setting of the floral sexual organs (the mating phenotype) has the most crucial implication in the function of the pollinator - flower interaction, i.e. in the efficiency of pollen transfer. However, it has never been studied quantitatively and in depth in evolutionary biology. FLAXMaTE will approach the evolution of the mating phenotypes in Linum, an intrinsically Mediterranean genus and a classic study system for the evolution of heterostyly with all its polymorphic species located in two MTE regions: the Mediterranean Basin (MB) and the Cape Floristic Region (CFR). In contrast with previous studies based in phenotypic categorisation or two-dimensional measures, I will for the first time characterize the mating phenotype of Linum species and their pollinators through an innovative three-dimensional geometric morphometric approach using computed tomography. To disentangle the macroevolutionary patterns of the mating phenotypes in Linum and the convergence of polymorphisms in MTEs, I will build a phylogeny of Old World yellow flaxes and I will use comparative methods to relate the evolution of the mating phenotypes with the MTE distribution, the pollination niche of species, and the diversification rates of the clade. The genomic basis of the convergence will be also studied through the sequencing of the S-locus in polymorphic MB and CFR species. To test the role of pollinators and the mating function as biodiversity drivers and agents of the evolutionary convergence of stylar polymorphisms, I will test the similarity in the mating function of Linum in pairs of populations and species from the MB and CFR through pollen transfer experiments using a novel methodology based in quantum dots.
Wissenschaftliches Gebiet
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiological morphologycomparative morphology
- engineering and technologymedical engineeringdiagnostic imagingcomputed tomography
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrytransition metals
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesevolutionary biology
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
Schlüsselbegriffe
Programm/Programme
Thema/Themen
Aufforderung zur Vorschlagseinreichung
Andere Projekte für diesen Aufruf anzeigenFinanzierungsplan
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Koordinator
41004 Sevilla
Spanien