Abstract
Cytogenetic evidence suggests that Tripsacum andersonii may be a natural hybrid between Zea and Tripsacum. In this paper we show sequences that hybridize to the transposable elements Mul and Spm are found in T. andersonii and all Zea species examined. However, no hybridizable sequences are observed in the five other Tripsacum species surveyed. These results suggest that Mu and Spm elements became components of the Zea genome after the divergence of Zea and Tripsacum, and they strongly support the cytological evidence that T. andersonii is a Zea‐Tripsacum hybrid. Examination of nuclear ribosomal genes of T. andersonii also supports the hybridization hypothesis and identifies the Zea parent as Zea luxurians. The Tripsacum parent could not be conclusively identified, but the ribosomal gene data suggest that the species of Tripsacum section Fasiculata most closely resemble T. andersonii. Restriction site patterns of two chloroplast DNA sequences indicate that the maternal parent was a species of Tripsacum. These results are complemented by morphological evidence regarding the origin of T. andersonii.
Published Version
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