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Supergene control of chiral development in mirror-image flowers

Xue, H.; Saltini, M.; Illing, N.; Shepherd, K.; Page-Macdonald, O.; Marketos, O.; Robertson, C.; Shankar, A.; Suess, S.; Kappel, C.; Alseekh, S.; Deinum, E. E.; Ingle, R. A.; Lenhard, M.

2025-09-01 plant biology
10.1101/2025.08.29.672924 bioRxiv
Show abstract

How genes determine the left-versus right-handed development of chiral structures is a fascinating question. The reciprocal placement of female and male organs on opposite sides of the midline in mirror-image flowers limits selfing and promotes efficient cross-pollination. Here we identify the molecular and developmental basis of floral handedness in butterfly lilies. Female and male organs deflect by a combination of genetically controlled chirality and gravitropism, orienting left and right with respect to an external rather than internal reference axis. Coordinated organ placement is controlled by a hemizygous supergene containing two causal loci, MIR156-R and YUCCA-R, responsible for opposite female and male organ orientation, respectively. This genomic architecture results in differential placement of the supergene alleles on the pollinators and maintenance of the reproductive polymorphism.

Published in Science (predicted rank #2) · training set

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