Selfing syndrome

Selfing syndrome refers to plants that are autogamous and display a complex of characteristics associated with self-pollination.

[1] The term was first coined by Adrien Sicard and Michael Lenhard in 2011, but was first described in detail by Charles Darwin in his book “The Effects of Cross and Self Fertilisation in the Vegetable Kingdom” (1876), making note that the flowers of self-fertilizing plants are typically smaller and have little distance between reproductive organs.

[citation needed] Plants exhibiting selfing syndrome are typically autogamous and display reduced pollen ovule (P/O) ratios, resulting in a smaller pollen count and a larger number of ovules.

The petals between the two species grow at the same rate, however, a decrease in the sterile apetela (SAP) protein activity due to variation in the SAP intron in C. rubella is responsible for reduced petal size.

[4] Selfing plants have also been found to have a larger geographic range, close to two times larger range than plants that outcross and can also be found around 110 kilometers higher in latitude.