From Plant Press, Vol. 27, No. 4, October 2024.
- Adapted from Chinese Academy of Sciences
In a study published in Nature Plants, scientists have identified Eocene, Oligocene, and Miocene boundaries as turning points for the transition of survival strategies in the grape family, Vitaceae.
Understanding the origin and dynamics of biodiversity is a fundamental question in the context of global climate change. Faced with environmental fluctuations, plants can either "move" to seek their suitable habitats elsewhere or "evolve" to adapt to the changed environment. Although the transition between "move" and "evolve" has profound implications for the survival and adaptation of organisms, it remains hotly debated whether alternative strategies may dominate under different environmental conditions.
The globally distributed Vitaceae has occupied a wide variety of contrasting niches, including rainforests, savannas, limestone outcrops and even deserts, making it an excellent model to study the transitions of plant survival strategies on a global scale.
Chen Zhiduan's research team from the Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS) and their international collaborators, including Jun Wen from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, investigated the transition between "move" and "evolve" strategies, and demonstrated their adaptive significance involving niche opportunity and trait innovation throughout the evolutionary history of Vitaceae.
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