PARENT SESSION
Symposium #1: Linking Molecular Insight and Ecological Research.
Organized by: RB Jackson and CR Linder
Monday, August 5. 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM. Crystal Ballroom, TCC.
The genetic basis of life history traits in natural Arabidopsis populations.
SCHMITT, JOHANNA*,1, WEINIG, CYNTHIA1, 1 BROWN UNIVERSITY, PROVIDENCE, RI
ABSTRACT- Molecular biologists are rapidly characterizing the genetic basis of development in model species such as Arabidopsis thaliana. However, it is not clear how the developmental pathways identified in controlled environments contribute to genetic variation in life history traits in natural ecological settings. Evolutionary ecologists are interested in predicting how life history traits evolve in response to natural selection, but little is known about the specific loci underlying such evolutionary response. By using the genetic tools available from model systems in ecological experiments, we can begin to link ecological processes with genetic mechanisms. For example, mapping quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with life history traits and fitness demonstrates that the genetic basis of these traits differs dramatically among natural environments, and that different loci are exposed to selection in different ecological settings. Such experiments also indicate that heterogeneous selection in variable environments or genetic backgrounds may be important for maintaining genetic variation in life history traits in natural plant populations.
KEY WORDS: qtl, Arabidopsis , molecular ecology