The expected genotypic frequencies of novel mutations from autogamous crosses and geitonogamous crosses.
Autogamy depression can be defined as the "lowered viability of
apical meristems that contribute to the development of the reproductive structures of a plant have the potential to undergo continual mitosis resulting in the accumulation of somatic mutations (acquired mutations).[1] It has been demonstrated through research that long lived plants can have higher per generation mutation rate (based on occurrences of more mitotic cell divisions compared to short lived plants).[2] Any deleterious mutations that appear during mitotic growth are filtered out through cell lineage selection, in which deleterious mutations that are subject to developmental selection during mitotic growth are replaced by vigorous cell lineages, however, somatic mutations that are not expressed will not be subject to selection during growth of the plant and will accumulate in the apical meristem.[4]
Phenotypic effects of somatic mutations
There is evidence of the
angiosperms.[5] Somatic mutations accumulating during vegetative growth have also been found to affect the fitness of seedlings in the next generation.[3]
Expectations of autogamy depression test
Individual crowns are treated as "independent
homozygous at the same locus (~25% homozygous)[4] and the appearance of deleterious somatic mutations in the geitonogamous crosses will be heterozygous.[1] The autogamy depression can be calculated through the simple equation AD = 1 − (wa/wg), where AD is the autogamy depression, wa is the fitness of the autogamous progeny and wg is the fitness of the geitonogamous progeny. When the fitnesses are equal the AD is 0. The difference can be calculated by the equation D = wg − wa.[2]
