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Phenotypic plasticity triggers rapid morphological convergence

View ORCID ProfileJosé M. Gómez, Adela González-Megías, Eduardo Narbona, View ORCID ProfileLuis Navarro, View ORCID ProfileFrancisco Perfectti, View ORCID ProfileCristina Armas
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.05.25.445642
José M. Gómez
1Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA-CSIC), Almería, Spain
2Research Unit Modeling Nature, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
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  • ORCID record for José M. Gómez
  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
Adela González-Megías
2Research Unit Modeling Nature, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
3Dpto. de Zoología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
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  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
Eduardo Narbona
4Dpto. de Biología Molecular e Ingeniería Bioquímica, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Sevilla, Spain
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  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
Luis Navarro
5Dpto. de Biología Vegetal y Ciencias del Suelo, Universidad de Vigo, Vigo, Spain
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  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
Francisco Perfectti
2Research Unit Modeling Nature, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
6Dpto. de Genética, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
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  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
Cristina Armas
1Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA-CSIC), Almería, Spain
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  • ORCID record for Cristina Armas
  • For correspondence: jmgreyes@eeza.csic adelagm@ugr.es enarfer@upo.es lnavarro@uvigo.es fperfect@ugr.es cris@eeza.csic.es
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Abstract

Phenotypic convergence, the independent evolution of similar traits, is ubiquitous in nature, happening at all levels of biological organizations and in most kinds of living beings. Uncovering its mechanisms remains a fundamental goal in biology. Evolutionary theory considers that convergence emerges through independent genetic changes selected over long periods of time. We show in this study that convergence can also arise through phenotypic plasticity. We illustrate this idea by investigating how plasticity drives Moricandia arvensis, a mustard species displaying within-individual polyphenism in flowers, across the morphological space of the entire Brassicaceae family. By compiling the multidimensional floral phenotype, the phylogenetic relationships, and the pollination niche of over 3000 Brassicaceae species, we demonstrated that Moricandia arvensis exhibits a plastic-mediated within-individual floral disparity greater than that found not only between species but also between higher taxonomical levels such as genera and tribes. As a consequence of this divergence, M. arvensis moves outside the morphospace region occupied by its ancestors and close relatives, crosses into a new region where it encounters a different pollination niche and converges phenotypically with distant Brassicaceae lineages. Our study suggests that, by inducing phenotypes that explore simultaneously different regions of the morphological space, plasticity triggers rapid phenotypic convergence.

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.
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Posted May 26, 2021.
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Phenotypic plasticity triggers rapid morphological convergence
José M. Gómez, Adela González-Megías, Eduardo Narbona, Luis Navarro, Francisco Perfectti, Cristina Armas
bioRxiv 2021.05.25.445642; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.05.25.445642
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Phenotypic plasticity triggers rapid morphological convergence
José M. Gómez, Adela González-Megías, Eduardo Narbona, Luis Navarro, Francisco Perfectti, Cristina Armas
bioRxiv 2021.05.25.445642; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.05.25.445642

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