Genome Evolution and Parallel Domestication in the Compositae, with a Focus on Safflower

Carthamus tinctorius L. (safflower) is an underdeveloped seed oil and birdseed crop grown throughout the world that can thrive in places where surface moisture is limited. It is an important crop in one of the major subfamilies of the Compositae, the largest family of flowering plants. Here, we investigate the genetic architecture of domestication traits in safflower, specifically addressing whether the majority of domestication traits are controlled by few or many genes. Additionally, we examine genome evolution in the Compositae, focusing on safflower and two other important Compositae crops (Helianthus annus L. [sunflower] and Lactuca sativa L. [lettuce]). By establishing syntenic relationships and comparing positions of homologous QTL among these species, it becomes possible to investigate whether the parallel domestication of common traits in these three species is due to parallel genotypic evolution.