Metal hyperaccumulation in plants is an ecological trait whose biological significance remains debated, in particular because the selective pressures that govern its evolutionary dynamics are complex. One of the possible causes of quantitative variation in hyperaccumulation may be local adaptation to metalliferous soils. Here, we explored the population genetic structure of Arabidopsis halleri at fourteen metalliferous and non...

Pollution by heavy metals is one of the strongest environmental constraints in human‐altered environments that only a handful of species can cope with. Identifying the genes conferring to those species the ability to grow in polluted areas is a first step towards a global understanding of the evolutionary processes involved and will eventually improve phytoremediation practices. We used a genome‐scan approach to detect loci un...

Metallophyte species that occur naturally on metal‐enriched soils represent major biological resources for the improvement of phytoremediation, a benign and cost‐effective technology that uses plants to clean up anthropogenic metal‐polluted soils. Within the last decade, molecular genetic studies carried out on several model organisms (including Arabidopsis halleri ) have considerably enhanced our understanding of metal tolera...

The population structure of the pseudo‐metallophyte herb, Arabidopsis halleri , was studied using Polymerase Chain Reaction‐Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR–RFLP) on chloroplast DNA (cpDNA). The history of metallicolous (M) populations showing increased zinc tolerance was investigated. Eight primer‐enzyme combinations out of 72 tested were applied to a total of 625 individuals from 28 widespread populations, 14 of...

Arabidopsis halleri , a close wild relative of A. thaliana , is a clonal, insect‐pollinated herb tolerant to heavy metals (Zn, Pd, Cd) and a hyperaccumulator of Zn and Cd. It is of particular interest in the study of evolutionary processes and phytoremediation. However, little is known about its population gene flow patterns and the structure of its genetic diversity. We used five microsatellite loci to investigate the genetic...