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Abstract The identity of the diploid progenitors of octoploid cultivated strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) has been subject to much debate. Past work identified four subgenomes and consistent evidence forF. californica(previously namedF. vescasubsp.bracteata) andF. iinumaeas donors for subgenomes A and B, respectively, with conflicting results for the origins of subgenomes C and D. Here, reticulate phylogeny and admixture analysis support hybridization betweenF. viridisandF. vescain the ancestry of subgenome A, and betweenF. nipponicaandF. iinumaein the ancestry of subgenome B. Using an LTR-age-distribution-based approach, we estimate that the octoploid and its intermediate hexaploid and tetraploid ancestors emerged approximately 0.8, 2, and 3 million years ago, respectively. These results provide an explanation for previous reports ofF. viridisandF. nipponicaas donors of the C and D subgenomes and unify conflicting hypotheses about the evolutionary origin of octoploidFragaria.
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This content will become publicly available on June 24, 2026
Homoploid hybridization adds clarity to the origins of octoploid strawberries
The evolutionary histories of many polyploid plant species are difficult to resolve due to a complex interplay of hybridization, incomplete lineage sorting, and missing diploid progenitors. In the case of octoploid strawberry with four subgenomes designated ABCD, the identities of the diploid progenitors for subgenomes C and D have been subject to much debate. By integrating new sequencing data from North American diploids with reticulate phylogeny and admixture analyses, we uncovered introgression from an extinct or unsampled species in the clade ofFragaria viridis,Fragaria nipponica, andFragaria nilgerrensisinto the donor of subgenome A of octoploidFragariaprior to its divergence fromF. vescasubsp. bracteata. We also detected an introgression event fromF. iinumaeinto an ancestor ofF. nipponicaandF. nilgerrensis.Using an LTR-age-distribution-based approach, we estimate that the octoploid and its intermediate hexaploid and tetraploid ancestors emerged approximately 0.8, 2, and 3 million years ago, respectively. These results provide an explanation for previous reports ofF. viridisandF. nipponicaas donors of the C and D subgenomes and suggest a greater role than previously thought for homoploid hybridization in the diploid progenitors of octoploid strawberry. The integrated set of approaches used here can help advance polyploid genome analysis in other species where hybridization and incomplete lineage sorting obscure evolutionary relationships.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1912203
- PAR ID:
- 10618400
- Publisher / Repository:
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Volume:
- 122
- Issue:
- 25
- ISSN:
- 0027-8424
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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