TY - JOUR T1 - Seed plant families with diverse mycorrhizal states have higher diversification rates JF - bioRxiv DO - 10.1101/824441 SP - 824441 AU - María Isabel Mujica AU - María Fernanda Pérez AU - Gustavo Burin AU - Tiago Quental Y1 - 2019/01/01 UR - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/11/07/824441.abstract N2 - Most of plant species have mycorrhizas, which can be classified in four types: Arbuscular (AM), Ecto (EM), Orchid (OM) and Ericoid Mycorrhiza (ER). Since the AM ancestral state, some plant lineages have switched partner (EM, OM and ER) or lost the association (NM). Evolutionary transitions to a novel mycorrhizal state (MS) might allow plant lineages to access new resources, enhancing diversification rates. However, some clades are not restricted to one MS, and this variability might promote diversification. Here, we address the relationship between MS diversity and seed plant diversification. Using the Fungal-root database, which compiles plant species and their MS, we assigned a single MS to each plant family, calculated the MS heterogeneity and estimated their diversification rates using the method-of-moments. Our results showed higher diversification rates in families with mixed MS, and a positive relationship between MS heterogeneity and diversification rates, which suggests that MS lability promotes plant diversification. ER -