Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41298311›Full record

ArticleJournal of integrative plant biology2026

Structural variation drives rhizome innovation and adaptive divergence in sister Medicago species.

Hongyin Hu, Shuang Wu, Yudan Zheng, Ao Li, Zhaoming Wang, Kunjing Qu, Ying Yang, Na Wang, Xue Yang, Yingzhuo Wan and 5 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of integrative plant biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Structural Variation and Its Roles in Plant Genomes.Plants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Hongyin HuState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3318-7794
Shuang WuState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0001-8107-0144
Yudan ZhengState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0007-5173-7642
Ao LiShandong Academy of Grape, Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jinan, 25000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4989-8136
Zhaoming WangNational Center of Pratacultural Technology Innovation (under preparation), Hohhot, 010010, China.
Kunjing QuState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0009-2945-7155
Ying YangState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8208-3625
Na WangState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-9865-3265
Xue YangState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-9262-9846
Yingzhuo WanState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0756-1778
Chenxiang JiangState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3488-3034
Zhipeng LiuState Key Laboratory of Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7687-8256
Jianquan LiuState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4237-7418
Haiqing WangKey Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, 810001, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2859-5136
Guangpeng RenState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 73000, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4052-9115

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Wild perennial sister species Medicago archiducis-nicolai (rhizomatous/alpine) and M. ruthenica (non-rhizomatous/xeric) constitute vital genetic resources for forage improvement. To decode the genomic basis of their contrasting trait and habitat adaptation, we generated chromosome-scale genome assemblies, resequenced 128 individuals, profiled transcriptomes under cold/heat stress, and functionally validated causal alleles. We demonstrate that structural variations (SVs)-particularly gene duplications-are primary drivers of rhizome formation and alpine/xeric adaptation. Further, pervasive presence-absence SVs (PAVs) in noncoding regulatory regions underpin divergent allele-specific expression governing rhizome development and stress responses. Crucially, these regulatory PAVs induce contrasting expression patterns during trait development and stress adaptation. Our findings reveal a dual mechanism whereby coding and regulatory SVs convergently orchestrate phenotypic innovation and ecological specialization in sister species, offering valuable genomic resources for legume evolution studies and alfalfa breeding.

Indexed as

Adaptation, PhysiologicalGenetic VariationMedicagoRhizomeGene Expression Regulation, PlantTranscriptomeadaptive divergencecomparative genomicsgene duplicationrhizome developmentsister speciesstructure variations

Identifiers

PMID41298311
PMCPMC12863026

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.