Formation of an allotetraploid genome from two diploid parents. Individual chromosomes are in red and green. Allopolyploids are common. Among cultivated plants, wheat, soybean, cotton, tobacco, canola, sugarcane, arabica coffee, and kiwi are allopolyploids.
Many wild plants are also allopolyploids.
Allopolyploidy results from hybridization of two different species. An allotetraploid hybrid differs from a simple hybrid by having two copies of each parental genome instead of one. This is illustrated in the drawing above, which shows the chromosomal make-up of two parents and their hybrid. Each chromosome is represented by a red or green object. The Arabidopsis genome is made of five chromosomes while the Cardaminopsis genome is made of eight chromosomes.