title: Myosin XI is associated with fitness and adaptation to aridity in wild pearl millet.
abstract: Phenotypic changes in plants can be observed along many environmental gradients and are determined by both environmental and genetic factors. The identification of alleles associated with phenotypic variations is a rapidly developing area of research. We studied the genetic basis of phenotypic variations in 11 populations of wild pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) on two North-South aridity gradients, one in Niger and one in Mali. Most of the 11 phenotypic traits assessed in a common garden experiment varied between the populations studied. Moreover, the size of the inflorescence, the number of flowers and aboveground dry mass co-varied positively with a decrease in rainfall. To decipher the genetic basis of these phenotypes, we used an association mapping strategy with a mixed model. We found two SNPs on the same myosin XI contig significantly associated with variations in the average number of flowers. Both the allele frequency of the two SNPs and the average number of flowers co-varied with the rainfall gradient on the two gradients. Interestingly, this gene was also a target of selection during domestication. The Myosin XI gene is thus a good candidate for fitness-related adaptation in wild populations.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, Niamey, Niger.|Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.|Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agronomique, Campus de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: I S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Ousseini
authors.affiliation: Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, Niamey, Niger.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bakasso
authors.affiliation: Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agronomique, Campus de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.|Laboratoire Mixte International Adaptation des Plantes et Microorganismes Associés aux Stress Environnementaux (LMI LAPSE), Centre de Recherche de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Kane
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Couderc
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agronomique, Campus de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.|Laboratoire Mixte International Adaptation des Plantes et Microorganismes Associés aux Stress Environnementaux (LMI LAPSE), Centre de Recherche de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zekraoui
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mariac
authors.affiliation: Université Paris-Sud, UMR 0320 / UMR 8120 Génétique Quantitative et Évolution - Le Moulon, Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Manicacci
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rhoné
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agronomique, Campus de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.|Laboratoire Mixte International Adaptation des Plantes et Microorganismes Associés aux Stress Environnementaux (LMI LAPSE), Centre de Recherche de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Barnaud
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agronomique, Campus de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.|Laboratoire Mixte International Adaptation des Plantes et Microorganismes Associés aux Stress Environnementaux (LMI LAPSE), Centre de Recherche de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Berthouly-Salazar
authors.affiliation: Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, Niamey, Niger.|Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Niamey, Niger.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Assoumane
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Niamey, Niger.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moussa
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Niamey, Niger.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Moussa
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.|Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.|Laboratoire Mixte International Adaptation des Plantes et Microorganismes Associés aux Stress Environnementaux (LMI LAPSE), Centre de Recherche de Bel Air, Dakar, Sénégal.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Vigouroux
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000235:genetics*; D000483:Alleles; D002980:Climate; D005787:Gene Frequency; D056726:Genetic Association Studies; D056084:Genetic Fitness; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005838:Genotype; D008302:Mali; D009218:Myosins / Q000235:genetics*; D009548:Niger; D031782:Pennisetum / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D010641:Phenotype; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011891:Rain; D014867:Water / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D014867:Water; D009218:Myosins