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Science 25 April 2008:
Vol. 320. no. 5875, pp. 484 - 486
DOI: 10.1126/science.1153586
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Perspective

Selection on Major Components of Angiosperm Genomes

Brandon S. Gaut* and Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra

Angiosperms are a relatively recent evolutionary innovation, but their genome sizes have diversified remarkably since their origin, at a rate beyond that of most other taxa. Genome size is often correlated with plant growth and ecology, and extremely large genomes may be limited both ecologically and evolutionarily. Yet the relationship between genome size and natural selection remains poorly understood. The manifold cellular and physiological effects of large genomes may be a function of selection on the major components that contribute to genome size, such as transposable elements and gene duplication. To understand the nature of selection on these genomic components, both population-genetic and comparative approaches are needed.

Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 321 Steinhaus Hall, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697–2525, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: bgaut{at}uci.edu

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