1. Demography and mating system shape the genome-wide impact of purifying selection in
- Author
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Benjamin, Laenen, Andrew, Tedder, Michael D, Nowak, Per, Toräng, Jörg, Wunder, Stefan, Wötzel, Kim A, Steige, Yiannis, Kourmpetis, Thomas, Odong, Andreas D, Drouzas, Marco C A M, Bink, Jon, Ågren, George, Coupland, and Tanja, Slotte
- Subjects
Europe ,Arabis ,Geography ,Whole Genome Sequencing ,fungi ,Mutation ,Self-Fertilization ,Selection, Genetic ,Biological Sciences ,Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - Abstract
Intermediate outcrossing rates are theoretically predicted to maintain effective selection against harmful alleles, but few studies have empirically tested this prediction with the use of genomic data. We used whole-genome resequencing data from alpine rock-cress to study how genetic variation and purifying selection vary with mating system. We find that populations with intermediate outcrossing rates have similar levels of genetic diversity as outcrossing populations, and that purifying selection against harmful alleles is efficient in mixed-mating populations. In contrast, self-fertilizing populations from Scandinavia have strongly reduced genetic diversity and accumulate harmful mutations, likely as a result of demographic effects of postglacial colonization. Our results suggest that mixed-mating populations can avoid some of the negative evolutionary consequences of high self-fertilization rates.
- Published
- 2018