"Supergene" Controls Symmetry of Butterfly Lilies
Researchers have identified a 'supergene' in South African butterfly lilies that controls the left-right asymmetry of their flowers. This mechanism ensures precise cross-pollination by coupling the orientation of reproductive organs to external gravity cues.
Why it matters
Understanding the genetic basis of floral symmetry provides new insights into evolutionary biology and plant reproductive strategies.
The left‑right asymmetry of South African butterfly lilies (genus Wachendorfia) has been regarded as a classic evolutionary puzzle for more than a century. Due to the mirror-image arrangement of the floral parts, the plants achieve efficient cross pollination. The molecular basis of this arrangement has now been uncovered by an international team led by the University of Potsdam. Their study in collaboration with the University of Cape Town and Wageningen University has been published in “Science”.The researchers show that in Wachendorfia species a “supergene” determines whether plants consistently develop styles and stamens that are bent to the left or to the right.
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