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Inheritance of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) in Lobelia siphilitica

Durewicz, Alicia Lynn
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1335812277

Abstract Details

2012, BS, Kent State University, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Biological Sciences.
In plants and animals, offspring typically inherit half of their nuclear genes from each parent, and all of their mitochondrial and chloroplast genes from only one parent (usually from their mothers). However, recent studies have shown evidence of paternal inheritance and bi-parental inheritance of extra-nuclear genes in several species. I investigated patterns of chloroplast inheritance in a native flowering plant, Lobelia siphilitica (Lobeliaceae). Dams from six populations were crossed with sires from twelve populations to track inheritance patterns in the offspring. Fifty-five crosses were examined by sequencing the rps16-psbK region of the chloroplast genome of each individual parent and offspring. I found that offspring matched their mothers 98% of the time (80% of the crosses), suggesting that strict maternal inheritance is predominant in this species. However, I found evidence of heteroplasmy (multiple chloroplast types within individuals) in several parents and offspring, and in one cross, paternal inheritance was observed in one third of the offspring. Instances of heteroplasmy and paternal inheritance in offspring were restricted to four crosses, all of them having mothers from a single L. siphilitica population from southern Indiana, and two involving the same mother plant. Understanding the mechanisms and frequency of deviation from strict maternal inheritance is important for interpreting patterns of evolution in natural populations.
Andrea Case, PhD (Advisor)
Soumitra Basu, PhD (Committee Member)
Helen Piontkivska, PhD (Committee Member)
Gail Fraizer, PhD (Committee Member)
62 p.
Biology; Botany; Genetics; Molecular Biology; Plant Biology; Plant Sciences
chloroplast inheritance; heteroplasmy; Lobelia siphilitica; angiosperms

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Durewicz, A. L. (2012). Inheritance of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) in Lobelia siphilitica [Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1335812277

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Durewicz, Alicia. Inheritance of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) in Lobelia siphilitica. 2012. Kent State University, Undergraduate thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1335812277.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Durewicz, Alicia. "Inheritance of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) in Lobelia siphilitica." Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University, 2012. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1335812277

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ksuhonors1335812277
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© 2012, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Kent State University Honors College and OhioLINK.