The Versailles Arabidopsis Stock Center (VASC) introduces new resources
The Plant Observatory plateform PO-VASC
Different collections of French natural accessions representing the multi-scale diversity of the species (national, regional and local) are now available.
Recent results underline that Arabidopsis, originally primarily a functional biology model, is also a valuable model for conducting population biology studies, thanks to hundreds of genotypes collected from numerous populations at different scales. With this in mind, the VASC is hosting and distributing a set of French natural accessions collected at national, regional and local levels. The availability of genomic sequences and the ecological characterization of their native habitats add considerable value to these resources.
At the national scale, 800 individuals were collected from 49 natural stands located in four climatically contrasted regions of France (Brittany: oceanic; Burgundy: continental; Languedoc: Mediterranean; north of France: semi-oceanic) 1. The plants were characterized genetically using 135 SNP markers, phenologically for six traits spanning the annual plant life cycle, and ecologically for 42 variables. These local populations are genetically polymorphic and can be highly polymorphic at the phenotypic level, with some covering almost the global range of phenological variation.
At the regional scale, 458 individuals were collected randomly from 168 natural populations located in the south-west of France and inhabiting ecologically contrasted habitats, in particular three contrasted climates (oceanic climate, Mediterranean climate, and mountain climate) 2. The 168 geo-localized populations were characterized for a unique set of ecological factors, including climate, edaphic properties, bacterial communities (soil, root, and leaf), plant communities and human activities including urbanization 3,2,4,5. Long-read whole genome sequences are available for 24 of these accessions 6.
At the local scale, 305 individuals of the TOU-A population 7 were collected along a 330-meter transect under an electric fence separating two permanent meadows in the village of Toulon-sur-Arroux (Burgundy). The TOU-A population has been demonstrated to be highly polymorphic at both the genomic and phenotypic levels 7,8. The phenotypic and genomic data are available in an open access repository here.
Références
1 Brachi B, Villoutreix R, Faure N, Hautekèete N, Piquot Y, Pauwels M, Roby D, Joël Cuguen, Bergelson J, Roux F. Investigation of the geographical scale of adaptive phenological variation and its underlying genetics in Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Ecology 2013, doi : https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.12396
2 Frachon L, Bartoli C, Carrre S, Bouchez O, Chaubet A, Gautier M, Dominique Roby D, Roux F. A Genomic Map of Climate Adaptation in Arabidopsis thaliana at a Micro-Geographic Scale. Frontiers in Plant Sciences 2018, doi : https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2018.00967
3 Bartoli C, Frachon L, Barret M, Rigal M, Huard-Chauveau C, Mayjonade B, Zanchetta C, Bouchez O, Roby D, Carrère S, Fabrice Roux R. In situ relationships between microbiota and potential pathobiota in Arabidopsis thaliana. Tjhe multidiciplinary Journal of Microbial Ecology 2018, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0152-7
4 Frachon L, Mayjonade B, Bartoli C, Hautekèete NC, Roux F. Adaptation to Plant Communities across the Genome of Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Biology and Evolution 2019, doi : https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msz078
5 Fabrice Roux F, Léa Frachon L, Claudia Bartoli F. The Genetic Architecture of Adaptation to Leaf and Root Bacterial Microbiota in Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Biology and Evolution 2023, doi : https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msad093
6 Wlodzimierz P, Rabanal FA, Burns R, Naish M, Elias Primetis, Scott A, Mandáková T, Gorringe N, Tock AJ, Holland D, Fritschi K, Habring A, Lanz C, Patel C, Schlegel T, Collenberg M, Mielke M, Nordborg M, Roux F, Shirsekar G, Alonso-Blanco C, Lysak MA, Novikova PY, Bousios A, Detlef Weige, Henderson IR. Cycles of satellite and transposon evolution in Arabidopsis centromeres. Nature 2023, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06062-z
7 Frachon L, Libourel C, Villoutreix R, Carrère S, Glorieux C, Huard-Chauveau C, Navascués M, Gay L, Vitalis R, Baron E, Amsellem L, Bouchez O, Vidal M, Le Corre V, Roby D, Bergelson J, Roux F. Intermediate degrees of synergistic pleiotropy drive adaptive evolution in ecological time. Nature Ecology & Evolution 2017, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0297-1
8 Ricou A, Simon M, Duflos R, Marianne Azzopardi M, Fabrice Roux F, Françoise Budar F, Christine Camilleri C. Identification of novel genes responsible for a pollen killer present in local natural populations of Arabidopsis thaliana. PLOS Genetics 2025, doi :https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1011451
Research developed at the Institute Jean-Pierre Bourgin for Plant Sciences in collaboration.
Recent results underline that Arabidopsis, originally primarily a functional biology model, is also a valuable model for conducting population biology studies, thanks to hundreds of genotypes collected from numerous populations at different scales. With this in mind, the VASC is hosting and distributing a set of French natural accessions collected at national, regional and local levels. The availability of genomic sequences and the ecological characterization of their native habitats add considerable value to these resources.
At the national scale, 800 individuals were collected from 49 natural stands located in four climatically contrasted regions of France (Brittany: oceanic; Burgundy: continental; Languedoc: Mediterranean; north of France: semi-oceanic) 1. The plants were characterized genetically using 135 SNP markers, phenologically for six traits spanning the annual plant life cycle, and ecologically for 42 variables. These local populations are genetically polymorphic and can be highly polymorphic at the phenotypic level, with some covering almost the global range of phenological variation.
At the regional scale, 458 individuals were collected randomly from 168 natural populations located in the south-west of France and inhabiting ecologically contrasted habitats, in particular three contrasted climates (oceanic climate, Mediterranean climate, and mountain climate) 2. The 168 geo-localized populations were characterized for a unique set of ecological factors, including climate, edaphic properties, bacterial communities (soil, root, and leaf), plant communities and human activities including urbanization 3,2,4,5. Long-read whole genome sequences are available for 24 of these accessions 6.
At the local scale, 305 individuals of the TOU-A population 7 were collected along a 330-meter transect under an electric fence separating two permanent meadows in the village of Toulon-sur-Arroux (Burgundy). The TOU-A population has been demonstrated to be highly polymorphic at both the genomic and phenotypic levels 7,8. The phenotypic and genomic data are available in an open access repository here.
Références
1 Brachi B, Villoutreix R, Faure N, Hautekèete N, Piquot Y, Pauwels M, Roby D, Joël Cuguen, Bergelson J, Roux F. Investigation of the geographical scale of adaptive phenological variation and its underlying genetics in Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Ecology 2013, doi : https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.12396
2 Frachon L, Bartoli C, Carrre S, Bouchez O, Chaubet A, Gautier M, Dominique Roby D, Roux F. A Genomic Map of Climate Adaptation in Arabidopsis thaliana at a Micro-Geographic Scale. Frontiers in Plant Sciences 2018, doi : https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2018.00967
3 Bartoli C, Frachon L, Barret M, Rigal M, Huard-Chauveau C, Mayjonade B, Zanchetta C, Bouchez O, Roby D, Carrère S, Fabrice Roux R. In situ relationships between microbiota and potential pathobiota in Arabidopsis thaliana. Tjhe multidiciplinary Journal of Microbial Ecology 2018, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0152-7
4 Frachon L, Mayjonade B, Bartoli C, Hautekèete NC, Roux F. Adaptation to Plant Communities across the Genome of Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Biology and Evolution 2019, doi : https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msz078
5 Fabrice Roux F, Léa Frachon L, Claudia Bartoli F. The Genetic Architecture of Adaptation to Leaf and Root Bacterial Microbiota in Arabidopsis thaliana. Molecular Biology and Evolution 2023, doi : https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msad093
6 Wlodzimierz P, Rabanal FA, Burns R, Naish M, Elias Primetis, Scott A, Mandáková T, Gorringe N, Tock AJ, Holland D, Fritschi K, Habring A, Lanz C, Patel C, Schlegel T, Collenberg M, Mielke M, Nordborg M, Roux F, Shirsekar G, Alonso-Blanco C, Lysak MA, Novikova PY, Bousios A, Detlef Weige, Henderson IR. Cycles of satellite and transposon evolution in Arabidopsis centromeres. Nature 2023, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06062-z
7 Frachon L, Libourel C, Villoutreix R, Carrère S, Glorieux C, Huard-Chauveau C, Navascués M, Gay L, Vitalis R, Baron E, Amsellem L, Bouchez O, Vidal M, Le Corre V, Roby D, Bergelson J, Roux F. Intermediate degrees of synergistic pleiotropy drive adaptive evolution in ecological time. Nature Ecology & Evolution 2017, doi : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0297-1
8 Ricou A, Simon M, Duflos R, Marianne Azzopardi M, Fabrice Roux F, Françoise Budar F, Christine Camilleri C. Identification of novel genes responsible for a pollen killer present in local natural populations of Arabidopsis thaliana. PLOS Genetics 2025, doi :https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1011451
Research developed at the Institute Jean-Pierre Bourgin for Plant Sciences in collaboration.
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Légend : Natural population of Arabidopsis
"The Plant Observatory - Versailles Arabidopsis Stock Center" plateform PO-VASC