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SUMMARY:Duckweeds as models for understanding evolution in ecological comm
 unities and floral diversity
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260930T084500Z
DTEND;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260930T091500Z
DTSTAMP;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260915T180329Z
UID:indico-contribution-2969@cern.ch
DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Shuqing Xu (University of Mainz)\nDuckweeds combine 
 ecological importance with remarkable evolutionary and morphological diver
 sity. In this talk\, I will first present our recent work using Spirodela 
 polyrhiza to investigate evolution in complex ecological communities. I wi
 ll then introduce our ongoing efforts to establish Lemna aequinoctialis as
  a model for studying the evolution and development of highly reduced flow
 ers.\nEvolutionary ecology has often simplified the ecological conditions 
 under which evolution occurs. In nature\, however\, organisms live and evo
 lve within communities composed of complex networks of species interaction
 s. Using S. polyrhiza\, we have shown that direct herbivory by snails and 
 indirect effects mediated through algal competition jointly shape duckweed
  population dynamics and evolution (Böttner et al. 2025\, Schäfer et al.
  2025). Because these interactions vary over time\, they can generate stro
 ngly fluctuating selection and make short-term evolutionary outcomes diffi
 cult to predict. These findings demonstrate that duckweed is a power syste
 m for revealing evolutionary principles in nature.\nAt a broader evolution
 ary scale\, duckweeds display striking variation in body plans and reprodu
 ctive structures. Our recent comparative analysis suggests that duckweed r
 eproductive structures evolved through progressive reduction and compressi
 on of the ancestral aroid spadix-spathe system (Siadjeu et al. 2026). To i
 nvestigate the mechanisms underlying this diversity\, we are developing Le
 mna aequinoctialis as a functional evo-devo model. A single-nucleus transc
 riptomic atlas and stable genetic transformation now provide tools for ide
 ntifying cell-type-specific regulatory programmes and experimentally testi
 ng their roles in floral development.\n\nhttps://indico.unina.it/event/117
 /contributions/2969/
LOCATION:Department of Agricultural Sciences of the University of Napoli F
 ederico II\, Portici\, Italy Sala Cinese
URL:https://indico.unina.it/event/117/contributions/2969/
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