G C A T T A C G G C A T genes Article On the Origin of Tetraploid Vernal Grasses (Anthoxanthum) in Europe Zuzana Chumová 1,2,* , Terezie Mandáková 3,4 and Pavel Trávníˇcek 1 1 Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Botany, CZ-242 53 Pr ˚uhonice,Czech Republic;
[email protected] 2 Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Benátská 2, CZ-128 00 Prague, Czech Republic 3 CEITEC, Masaryk University, CZ-625 00 Brno, Czech Republic;
[email protected] 4 Department of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, CZ-625 00 Brno, Czech Republic * Correspondence:
[email protected] Abstract: Polyploidy has played a crucial role in the evolution of many plant taxa, namely in higher latitudinal zones. Surprisingly, after several decades of an intensive research on polyploids, there are still common polyploid species whose evolutionary history is virtually unknown. Here, we addressed the origin of sweet vernal grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum) using flow cytometry, DNA sequencing, and in situ hybridization-based cytogenetic techniques. An allotetraploid and polytopic origin of the species has been verified. The chromosome study reveals an extensive variation between the European populations. In contrast, an autopolyploid origin of the rarer tetraploid vernal grass species, A. alpinum, has been corroborated. Diploid A. alpinum played an essential role in the polyploidization of both European tetraploids studied. Keywords: FISH; flow cytometry; GBSSI; genome size; GISH; Poaceae; polyploidy Citation: Chumová, Z.; Mandáková, T.; Trávníˇcek,P. On the Origin of Tetraploid Vernal Grasses 1. Introduction (Anthoxanthum) in Europe. Genes Anthoxanthum L., the vernal grass, is a genus of the family Poaceae, comprising annual 2021, 12, 966.