An ecological approach to measuring the evolutionary consequences of gene flow from crops to wild or weedy relatives

Premise of the study: Agricultural practices routinely create opportunities for crops to hybridize with wild relatives, leading to crop gene introgression into wild genomes. Conservationists typically worry this introgression could lead to genetic homogenization of wild populations, over and above the central concern of transgene escape. Alternatively, viewing introgression as analogous to species invasion, we suggest that increased genetic diversity may likewise be an undesirable outcome. Methods: Here, we compare the sensitivity of conventional population genetic metrics with species diversity indices as indicators of the impact of gene flow on genetic diversity. We illustrate this novel approach using multilocus genotype data (12 allozyme loci) from 10 wild (Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima) and eight putative crop–wild hybrid beet populations (B. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris × B. vulgaris subsp. maritima) scattered throughout Europe. Results: Conventional population genetic metrics mostly ...