The evolutionary significance of polyploidy

The Evolutionary Consequences of Polyploidy

Polyploidization, the addition of a complete set of chromosomes to the genome, represents one of the most dramatic mutations known to occur. Nevertheless, polyploidy is well tolerated in many groups of eukaryotes. Indeed, the majority of flowering plants and vertebrates have descended from polyploid ancestors. This Review examines the short-term effects of polyploidization on cell size, body si...

Polyploidy and the Evolutionary History of Cotton

Evolutionary advantages of polyploidy in halophilic archaea.

Several species of haloarchaea have been shown to be polyploid and thus this trait might be typical for and widespread in haloarchaea. In the present paper, nine different possible evolutionary advantages of polyploidy for haloarchaea are discussed, including low mutation rate, radiation/desiccation resistance, gene redundancy and survival over geological times and at extraterrestrial sites. Ex...

Polyploidy: Doubling up for Evolutionary Success

How does having more than one genome give plant species an advantage when it comes to adaptive evolution? Recent molecular studies have shown that altered patterns of gene expression may offer polyploids a broader phenotypic range than that of their progenitors.

Plant polyploidy and the evolutionary ecology of plant/animal interactions

Until recently almost nothing was known about the effects of plant polyploidy on interactions with herbivores and pollinators. Studies of the saxifrage Heuchera grossulariifolia throughout its geographical range in the US northern Rockies have shown that autopolyploidy has probably arisen multiple times within this species since the end of the Pleistocene. Tetraploids from those different origi...