Dr. Andrea Berardi
Research Associate in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University
Fellow of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University

Title: Characterizing red floral color evolution in polyploids

Abstract: Determining how and why reproductive traits evolve between and within species is key to understanding patterns of speciation. In plants, both genome duplication as well as selection on floral traits, such as color, have been major drivers of angiosperm diversification. Silene (Caryophyllaceae) is a largely white- and pink-flowering diploid genus distributed throughout temperate regions. However, at least two independent genome duplications occurred in the genus expansion into North America. A novel red floral color arose in the North American polyploids, potentially arising from exposure to hummingbird pollination. Insights into how these red floral color and associated morphology arose as well as a revised phylogeny of North American Silene polyploids are made from target capture of herbarium specimens, gene silencing, and character mapping of floral pigments to answer the following questions: What is the most likely driver of floral color evolution in Silene - pollinator shifts, sympatric competition, abiotic factors, or polyploidy?

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