Diploidization in a wild rice allopolyploid is both episodic and gradual

X Xin Wang N Ning Li Q Qian Wang T Tian-Yu Lei (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) J Ju Zhou (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) F Fu-Min Zhang (State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering) X Xue-Zhu Liao (Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences) C Cheng-Gen Qiang (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) W Wen-Hao Yu (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) J Jing-Dan Han (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) Y Ya-Rong Ye (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) C Chun-Yan Jing (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) M Mei-Xia Wang (Key Laboratory of Innovation and Manufacturing for Pharmaceuticals of Guizhou Province, Key Laboratory of Basic Pharmacology of Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy) Q Qiang Gao J Jin-Feng Chen (State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) Y Yuan-Nian Jiao (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) Z Zhi-Qiang Wu (Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences) Y Ya-Long Guo (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences) R Rod A. Wing J Jeff J. Doyle (Plant Biology and Plant Breeding & Genetics Sections, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University) S Song Ge X Xin-Hui Zou (State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences)

Abstract

Polyploid organisms evolve from their initial doubled genomic condition through a number of processes collectively termed diploidization, whose tempo and mode remain poorly understood mainly due to the difficulty of discriminating de novo evolution subsequent to polyploidy from variation inherited from progenitors. Here, we generated chromosome-scale genome assemblies for the wild rice allopolyploid Oryza minuta and its two diploid progenitors, Oryza punctata and Oryza officinalis , and employed a population genomic approach to investigate the diploidization process in O. minuta at the sequence and transcriptomic level. We show that this wild rice allopolyploid originated around 0.7 Mya, and during subsequent diploidization, its two subgenomes have retained highly conserved synteny with the genomes of its extant diploid progenitors. This populational approach allowed us to distinguish parental legacy of inherited variation from postpolyploidy evolution, and our analyses revealed that whereas gene fractionation occurred in an early burst, accumulation of transposable elements (TEs) and homoeologous exchanges has been gradual. Patterns of homoeolog expression bias are highly variable across tissues, with no consistent subgenome expression bias. Our assessments of the impact of DNA methylation, TE distribution, and parental legacy on expression patterns provide some support for the TE load theory (the theory that the TE densities in flanking regions surrounding genes strongly influence expression levels), while also illustrating the complexity of transcription regulation.

Article Details

Volume / Issue Vol. 122, Issue 26
Published July 01, 2025
ISSN 0027-8424
Publisher National Academy of Sciences

Authors (22)

X

Xin Wang

N

Ning Li

Q

Qian Wang

T

Tian-Yu Lei

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

J

Ju Zhou

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

F

Fu-Min Zhang

State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

X

Xue-Zhu Liao

Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

C

Cheng-Gen Qiang

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

W

Wen-Hao Yu

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

J

Jing-Dan Han

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Y

Ya-Rong Ye

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

C

Chun-Yan Jing

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

M

Mei-Xia Wang

Key Laboratory of Innovation and Manufacturing for Pharmaceuticals of Guizhou Province, Key Laboratory of Basic Pharmacology of Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy

Q

Qiang Gao

J

Jin-Feng Chen

State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Y

Yuan-Nian Jiao

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Z

Zhi-Qiang Wu

Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Y

Ya-Long Guo

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences

R

Rod A. Wing

J

Jeff J. Doyle

Plant Biology and Plant Breeding & Genetics Sections, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University

S

Song Ge

X

Xin-Hui Zou

State Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Specialty Crops, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences