Silencing of dominant genes in heterozygous genotypes of interspecific hybrids Fagopyrum esculentum Moench. × C2026 F. homotropicum Ohnishi

Abstract

Fagopyrum homotropicum Ohnishi is a very polymorphic self-pollinating species with homostylous flowers, which morphologically different lineages are differ also in ability to hybridize with F. esculentum Moench. (closely related outcrosser with heterostyly). A lineage C2026 F. homotropicum diverged from F. esculentum with forming noticeable pre-zygotic and post-zygotic barriers: the most successful interspecific crossing F. esculentum × C2026 resulted wrinkled hybrid seeds germinated in Petri dishes. These interspecific hybrids and backcrosses F. esculentum × F₁, being heterozygous at the loci DET/det, SHT/sht and a homostyly gene of F. homotropicum, in our experiments often formed phenotype like a recessive homozygote for at least one of these genes, i.e., dominant alleles were silenced. Apparently, these effects can be caused by disorders of epigenetic regulation associated with the divergence of hybridized species. Such disorders, especially those that occur at the stage of seed development, represent one of the main experimentally confirmed mechanisms of pre-zygotic isolation between species. Apparently, F. esculentum and the lineage C2026 of F. homotropicum represent an example of intermediate stage of post-zygotic isolation development process which based on epigenetic deregulation of gene expression in the hybrids. Sometimes it may be revealed not only at the stage of seed development, but also at later stages of ontogenesis.