Single-gene resolution of diversity-driven overyielding in plant genotype mixtures

Single-gene resolution of diversity-driven overyielding in plant genotype mixtures

In plant communities, diversity often increases productivity and functioning, but the specific underlying drivers are difficult to identify. Most ecological theories attribute positive diversity effects to complementary niches occupied by different species or genotypes. However, the specific nature...

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Published in:Nature communications Vol. 14; no. 1; p. 3379
Main Authors: Wuest, Samuel E., Schulz, Lukas, Rana, Surbhi, Frommelt, Julia, Ehmig, Merten, Pires, Nuno D., Grossniklaus, Ueli, Hardtke, Christian S., Hammes, Ulrich Z., Schmid, Bernhard, Niklaus, Pascal A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 08-06-2023
Nature Publishing Group
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Subjects:
45/23
45/43
631/449/2491
631/449/2668
704/158/2464
704/158/670
82/80
Arabidopsis thaliana
Biodiversity
Biology
Complementarity
Divergence
Ecological effects
Ecological function
Ecosystem biology
Gene mapping
Genes
Genetic diversity
Genetic engineering
Genotype & phenotype
Genotypes
Humanities and Social Sciences
Mixtures
multidisciplinary
Niches
Plant communities
Plant growth
Plant sciences
Plant tissues
Productivity
Research parks
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Substrates
Sucrose
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Summary:In plant communities, diversity often increases productivity and functioning, but the specific underlying drivers are difficult to identify. Most ecological theories attribute positive diversity effects to complementary niches occupied by different species or genotypes. However, the specific nature of niche complementarity often remains unclear, including how it is expressed in terms of trait differences between plants. Here, we use a gene-centred approach to study positive diversity effects in mixtures of natural Arabidopsis thaliana genotypes. Using two orthogonal genetic mapping approaches, we find that between-plant allelic differences at the AtSUC8 locus are strongly associated with mixture overyielding. AtSUC8 encodes a proton-sucrose symporter and is expressed in root tissues. Genetic variation in AtSUC8 affects the biochemical activities of protein variants and natural variation at this locus is associated with different sensitivities of root growth to changes in substrate pH. We thus speculate that - in the particular case studied here - evolutionary divergence along an edaphic gradient resulted in the niche complementarity between genotypes that now drives overyielding in mixtures. Identifying genes important for ecosystem functioning may ultimately allow linking ecological processes to evolutionary drivers, help identify traits underlying positive diversity effects, and facilitate the development of high-performance crop variety mixtures. Biodiversity often increases the functioning and productivity of ecosystems or communities. This work shows that such a positive diversity effect, namely overyielding in mixtures of two divergent Arabidopsis thaliana genotypes, can be genetically mapped and resolved to a single gene.
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ISSN:2041-1723
2041-1723
DOI:10.1038/s41467-023-39130-z