Scanning for past and ongoing adaptation
B01: Ecological diversification in urban habitats: A comparative approach across four ruderal Brassicaceae species
Juliette de Meaux and Anja Linstädter
Project B01 will reveal how habitat heterogeneity drives genetic diversification and refines predictions of plant adaptation in fragmented systems. We established an open air lab in Cologne, planting a defined A. thaliana recombinant population across urban sites. We will integrate genomics, phenotyping and ecology to resolve abiotic and biotic filtering, run competition release and common garden experiments, quantify functional traits in situ and ex situ, and use community genomics to map genetic diversity and filtering across A. thaliana and co-occurring species in Germany and on the Åland Islands.
B02: Adaptation of perennial Arabis alpina along a latitudinal gradient in Scandinavia
We study A. alpina adaptation to high-latitude. We identified PEP1 and TFL1’s role in flowering time and bud arrest variation across Scandinavia, and we detected two genetic clades differing in phenotypic traits. We established a common garden in Scandinavia and sequenced 729 plants. We will reconstruct the evolutionary history of genes and variants, assess the adaptive value, and identify environmental drivers. Manipulation experiments will assess the effect on plant performance and genotype-by-environment interactions. Project B02 will reveal the evolution of adaptive trait variation and environmental drivers in the Arctic.
B04: Adaptation via geneflow in endangered Arabis floodplain species
We investigate a natural hybrid zone between the endangered species Arabis nemorensis and Arabis sagittata to uncover how gene flow between species can contribute to ecological diversification. Building on common-garden and field studies, we focus on two key genomic regions involving TFL1 and miR408, the latter linked to a meiotic-drive locus. The project will fine-map these regions, test their roles in flowering time and drought survival, identify the driver gene, and integrate transcriptomic resources to develop polygenic markers of drought tolerance.
B05: Evolutionary signatures in gene copy-number variation in Brassicaceae
Project B05 investigates multigene family evolution by integrating theory and genomic data. We use coalescent theory as a backbone to study gene duplication and copy number variation in conjunction with recombination and selection and to derive estimators for key evolutionary parameters. We will apply these, together with predictions obtained from large language models, to genomic datasets from Brassicaceae. We will identify functionally important variants between paralogous genes. Those with potential relevance for ecological adaptation will be prioritized for experimental validation.
B06: The role of polygenic adaptation and pleiotropy in the establishment of trait-syndromes
Markus Stetter and Joachim Krug
Project B06 studies how multidimensional selection and pleiotropy shape trait syndromes during rapid environmental change. Using simulations and mathematical analyses, we study how traits contribute to adaptation or extinction in A. thaliana. We develop explicit phenotype-fitness maps, incorporating traits with known pleiotropic interactions (e.g. flowering and germination time), and combine them with inferred gene regulatory networks to parametrize network evolution models. By integrating molecular, phenotypic, and evolutionary modeling, we build a predictive framework for trait adaptation.
B07: Adaptation in ecologically diverse Hordeum species: a comparative intra- and inter-species approach
Timo Hellwig, Maria von Korff Schmising and Anna Lampei-Bucharova
This project aims to assess broad-scale climatic adaptation in Hordeum murinum, its potential lag behind climate change, and to identify the adaptive traits and genomic regions. To do so, we will combine multi-site provenance trials with selection experiments. Fine mapping will pinpoint causal genetic variants, which will then be functionally validated using gene editing. Comparing the adaptive genetic architectures of H. murinum with those of barley will reveal whether adaptive traits and underlying genetic networks are conserved across closely related species and shape adaptation.
B09: Fight or Flight: Evolutionary trade-offs between drought escape and herbivory resistance in Brassica rapa
Project B09 tests whether rapid drought adaptation reduces herbivore resistance in B. rapa. Recurrent drought selection accelerated flowering and growth but altered defenses. Using a resurrection design, we quantify evolutionary and plastic shifts in resistance and the costs of inducible defenses under herbivory x drought. Integrating traits, metabolites, and gene expression across two independently adapted populations, B09 identifies candidate genes and pathways mediating growth-defense trade-offs, tests gene function conservation in Brassicaceae, and clarifies constraints on adaptation.
B10: Integrated multi-scale modeling of plant fitness in changing environments and different ecological contexts
Arabidopsis thaliana offers a unique opportunity to uncover the mechanistic principles underlying adaptation to a changing world. This project develops a multi-scale life-cycle model to predict growth, reproduction and life history strategies across climatic and nutrient gradients. Our modelling framework integrates genotypic variation in seed dormancy, flowering time and biomass composition, and combines existing phenology models with a whole-plant metabolic model. This approach moves beyond correlative descriptions toward a mechanistic understanding of genotype by environment interactions. The framework will be validated against public data and TRR 341 datasets, and then used to simulate multi-generation population experiments, revealing which genotypic traits drive adaptation.