Rare yet accumulating evidence in both plants and animals shows that whole genome duplication (WGD, leading to polyploidy) can break down reproductive barriers, facilitating gene flow between otherwise isolated species. Recent population genomic studies in wild, outcrossing Arabidopsis arenosa and Arabidopsis lyrata indicate that this WGD‐potentiated gene flow can be adaptive and highly specific in response to particular environmental and intracellular challenges. The mechanistic basis of WGD‐mediated easing of species barrier strength seems to primarily lie in the relative dosage of each parental genome in the endosperm. While generalisations about polyploids can be fraught, this evidence indicates that the breakdown of these barriers, combined with diploid to polyploid gene flow and gene flow between polyploids, allows some polyploids to act as adaptable ‘allelic sponges’, enjoying increased potential to respond to challenging environments.

中文翻译：

---

适应性基因渗入：多倍体如何重塑基因流动格局

尚未在植物和动物中积累的证据表明，全基因组复制（WGD，导致多倍性）可以打破繁殖障碍，促进原本分离的物种之间的基因流动。最近在野生，异种拟南芥和拟南芥中进行的种群基因组学研究表明这种WGD增强的基因流可以适应特定环境和细胞内挑战，并且具有高度的特异性。WGD介导的物种屏障强度减弱的机制基础似乎主要在于胚乳中每个亲本基因组的相对剂量。尽管可能会对多倍体进行概括，但该证据表明，这些障碍的破坏，再加上二倍体到多倍体的基因流以及多倍体之间的基因流，使得某些多倍体可以充当适应性“等位基因海绵”，从而具有更大的潜力应对挑战环境。