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Potato Evolved from Tomato Plants 8-9 Million Years Ago, New Research Suggests

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Aug 5, 2025 - 14:30
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Potato Evolved from Tomato Plants 8-9 Million Years Ago, New Research Suggests
Interspecific hybridization may trigger species radiation by creating allele combinations and traits. Cultivated potato and its 107 wild relatives from the Petota lineage all share the distinctive trait of underground tubers, but the underlying mechanisms for tuberization and its relationship to extensive species diversification remain unclear. Through analyses of 128 genomes, including 88 haplotype-resolved genomes, Zhang et al. revealed that Petota is of ancient hybrid origin, with all members exhibiting stable mixed genomic ancestry, derived from the Etuberosum and Tomato lineages ca. 8-9 million years ago. Image credit: Zhang et al., doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.06.034.

Interbreeding between tomato plants and potato-like species from South America about 8-9 million years ago gave rise to the modern-day potato (Solanum tuberosum).

The post Potato Evolved from Tomato Plants 8-9 Million Years Ago, New Research Suggests appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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