The Aquilegia genome provides insight into adaptive radiation and reveals an extraordinarily polymorphic chromosome with a unique history

Author(s): Filiault, DL; Ballerini, ES; Mandakova, T; Akoz, G; Derieg, NJ; Schmutz, J; Jenkins, J; Grimwood, J; Shu, S; Hayes, RD; Hellsten, U; Barry, K; Yan, J; Mihaltcheva, S; Karafiatova, M; Nizhynska, V; Kramer, EM; Lysak, MA; Hodges, SA; Nordborg, M | Abstract: © 2018, Filiault et al. The columbine genus Aquilegia is a classic example of an adaptive radiation, involving a wide variety of pollinators and habitats. Here we present the genome assembly of A. coerulea 'Goldsmith', complemented by high-coverage sequencing data from 10 wild species covering the world-wide distribution. Our analyses reveal extensive allele sharing among species and demonstrate that introgression and selection played a role in the Aquilegia radiation. We also present the remarkable discovery that the evolutionary history of an entire chromosome differs from that of the rest of the genome - a phenomenon that we do not fully understand, but which highlights the need to consider chromosomes in an evolutionary context.