title: Plant domestication versus crop evolution: a conceptual framework for cereals and grain legumes.
abstract: 'Domestication syndrome' (DS) denotes differences between domesticated plants and their wild progenitors. Crop plants are dynamic entities; hence, not all parameters distinguishing wild progenitors from cultigens resulted from domestication. In this opinion article, we refine the DS concept using agronomic, genetic, and archaeobotanical considerations by distinguishing crucial domestication traits from traits that probably evolved post-domestication in Near Eastern grain crops. We propose that only traits showing a clear domesticated-wild dimorphism represent the pristine domestication episode, whereas traits showing a phenotypic continuum between wild and domesticated gene pools mostly reflect post-domestication diversification. We propose that our approach may apply to other crop types and examine its implications for discussing the timeframe of plant domestication and for modern plant science and breeding.
authors.affiliation: Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Levi Eshkol School of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel. Electronic address: shahal.abbo@mail.huji.ac.il.
authors.forename: Shahal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Abbo
authors.affiliation: Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Levi Eshkol School of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Ruth
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pinhasi van-Oss
authors.affiliation: Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology, Tel-Aviv University, Ramat Aviv 6997801, Israel.
authors.forename: Avi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gopher
authors.affiliation: Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Levi Eshkol School of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Yehoshua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Saranga
authors.affiliation: Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Levi Eshkol School of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Itai
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ofner
authors.affiliation: Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Levi Eshkol School of Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Zvi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Peleg
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics*; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000235:genetics*; D007887:Fabaceae / Q000235:genetics*
keywords: crop evolution traits; crucial domestication traits; domestication episode; domestication syndrome traits; episodic versus protracted domestication