Small Genetic Differences Turn Plants into Better Teams
Diverse communities of plants and animals typically perform better than monocultures. However, the mechanisms that are responsible for this have so far been a mystery to science. Biologists at the University of Zurich have now been able to identify the genetic cause of these effects. Their findings might help to improve crop yield.
This research was carried out in a collaborative effort by the SPSW members Dr. Samuel Wüst and Prof. Pascal Niklaus and their teams at the Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich.
Reference publication
Samuel E. Wuest & Pascal A. Niklaus.
A plant biodiversity effect resolved to a single chromosomal region.
Nature Ecology & Evolution. November 5, 2018. DOI: 10.1038/s41559-018-0708-y
Source
UZH News 05 Nov 2018