Karyotypic Shifts: Shaping Plant Diversity and Driving Evolutionary Processes

Submission Deadline: 31 December 2025 View: 17 Submit to Special Issue

Guest Editors

Dr. Ana Luisa Arantes Chaves

Email: alaranteschaves@gmail.com

Affiliation: Institute of Natural Sciences, Federal University of Alfenas. Alfenas, 37130-223, Brazil.

Homepage:

Research Interests: Chromosomal Rearrangements, Comparative Phylogenetic Methods, Cytotypes, Cytotaxonomy, Dysploidy, Molecular Cytogenetics, Holocentric chromosomes, Polyploidy, Reproductive Isolation, Speciation.

Dr. Marco Tulio Mendes Ferreira

Email: marco.wk@gmail.com 

Affiliation: Department of Biology, Federal University of Lavras. Lavras, 37200-900, Brazil.

Homepage:

Research Interests: Chromosomal Mapping, Chromosome Rearrangements, Genetic Diversity, Intergeneric Hybridization, Meiotic Behavior, Polyploidy and Plant Breeding.

Summary

Karyotypic evolution plays a key role in plant diversification and evolutionary processes. Changes in chromosome number and structure can significantly impact plant adaptation and reproductive strategies, often leading to new species formation. Mechanisms such as polyploidy, chromosomal rearrangements, and hybridizations drive this evolution, influencing genetic diversity and adaptation. These changes also affect phenotypic traits, including stress resistance and reproductive strategies, and are linked to reproductive isolation, aiding speciation and lineage differentiation.

To understand how karyotypic changes shape plant diversity, it is essential to explore the molecular, genetic, and cytogenetic mechanisms involved. Advances in technologies like chromosomal mapping, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and comparative phylogenetic methods have provided valuable insights. This special issue invites contributions that address the latest advances in the study of karyotypic changes in plants, including but not limited to:

● Comparative phylogenetic methods for understanding chromosomal evolution;

● Cytogenetics applied to plant breeding;

● Impact of karyotypic evolution on reproductive strategies and reproductive isolation;

● Karyotypic evolution and its implications for plant biodiversity and speciation;

● Modern chromosomal mapping techniques and their applications in plants;

● The contribution of karyotypic evolution to plant adaptation to abiotic and biotic stresses;

● The influence of polyploidy on plant diversification.

Keywords