Water relations, temperatures, and mineral nutrients in Pedicularis dasyantha (Scrophulariaceae) from Svalbard, Norway

The arctic vascular hemiparasite Pedicularis dasyantha has a lower diffusion resistance for water vapour than any associated species. Excised leaves die within one hour of drought stress under laboratory conditions, in spite of a high succulence. Transpiration rates of P. dasyantha in the field are almost two times higher than in Dryas octopetala , which is the most important host within investigated sites.
Diffusion resistances are higher in inflorescences than in leaves, probably because the dense pubescence reduces transpiration rates and raises temperatures in inflorescences to 14°C above air temperature on clear days.
Pedicularis dasyantha contains significantly more N, P, and especially K than its host. The high rate of transpiration probably enables the hemiparasite to capture a larger fraction of nutrients supplied by the xylem of its host.     

大王马先蒿云南五个居群遗传变异研究

采用随机扩增多态DNA(RAPD)分子标记方法,对大王马先蒿(PedicularisrexL.)分布在云南中甸、丽江、大理、武定和昆明的5个居群(其中中甸居群有3个亚居群)的遗传多样性和遗传结构进行了研究。结果表明,大王马先蒿居群具有较高的遗传多样性,多态位点百分率P、Shannon表型多样性指数I和Nei的基因多样性指数h分别为82.0%、0.361和0.240,遗传多样性水平与居群的地理分布范围相关;大王马先蒿居群间的遗传变异较高,遗传变异主要发生在居群之间,而不是居群内部;居群间遗传分化系数Gst为0.747,遗传分化明显,居群间基因交流较少。居群间的遗传距离与居群间的相对地理距离具有一定的相关性。对云南西北部中甸居群的3个亚居群的遗传多样性分析表明,居群的遗传多样性水平与海拔高度有一定的相关性。居群间遗传变异较高可能是由于大王马先蒿为短命多年生植物,繁育系统为混交型,且自交占较大比例等原因造成的。     

Genetic structure and AFLP variation of remnant populations in the rare plant Pedicularis palustris (Scrophulariaceae) and its relation to population size and reproductive components

We investigated plant reproduction in relation to genetic structure, population size, and habitat quality in 13 populations of the rare biennial plant Pedicularis palustris with 3-28500 flowering individuals. We used AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) profiles to analyze genetic similarities among 129 individuals (3-15 per population). In a cluster analysis of genetic similarities most individuals (67%) were arranged in population-specific clusters. Analysis of molecular variance indicated significant genetic differentiation among populations and among and within subpopulations (P < 0.001). Gene flow (N(e) m) was low (0.298). On average, plants produced 55 capsules, 17 seeds per fruit, and 42 seedlings in the following growing season. The number of seeds per capsule was independent of population size and of genetic variability. In contrast, the number of capsules per plant (P < 0.05) and the number of seedlings per plant (P < 0.05) were positively correlated with population size. The relation between population size and the number of seeds per plant was not significant (P = 0.075). The number of capsules and of seeds and seedlings per plant (P < 0.01) were positively correlated with genetic variability. Genetic variability was independent of actual population size, suggesting that historical population processes have to be taken into account, too. Stepwise multiple regressions revealed additional significant relationships of habitat parameters (soil pH, C:N ratio), vegetation composition, and standing crop on reproductive components. We conclude that populations of P. palustris are genetically isolated and that reproductive success most likely is influenced by population size, genetic variability, and habitat quality. Management strategies such as moderate grazing, mowing, and artificial gene flow should endeavor to increase population size as well as genetic variation.     

Two Genotypes of Pedicularis chamissonis (Scrophulariaceae) Distributed at Mt. Gassan, Japan: Additional Genetic and Morphological Studies

Pedicularis chamissonis Steven, which is broadly distributed from northern Honshu of Japan to southwest Alaska, is known to comprise a few different cpDNA haplotypes grouped into two major (“Northern” and “Southern”) clades. This paper presents on the basis of chloroplast and nuclear DNA analyses that no gene flow exists between the two clades at Mt Gassan where two haplotypes D and J of the Northern and Southern clades occur. The two haplotypes are further distinguished from each other in corolla and leaf shape and the number of flower whorls on an inflorescence axis, a fact indicating that individuals of the two clades should be treated as separate species. At Mt. Gassan and in other regions in general the haplotypes of the Southern clade currently grow at higher altitudes than those of the Northern clade. Based on the difference in habitat as well as the lack of gene flow between the two clades, evolutionary processes resulting in the current distribution of the two genotypes are also briefly discussed. Received 3 October 2000/ Accepted in revised form 4 March 2001     

Genetic variation and population structure of cod, Gadus morhua L., in some fjords in northern Norway

Biochemical genetic polymorphism in cod from several fjords in Troms, northern Norway was analysed. Gene frequencies at several polymorphic loci ( Hb, Pgi, Ldh, Pgm, Gpd and Idh ) are given. Significant variation was found both within and between fjords, and even between samples from the same locality sampled in different years, indicating a mosaic structure of the cod population in the area studied. The results of the haemoglobin variation are compared to similar results obtained more than 20 years ago in the same and adjacent areas. The biochemical genetic variation is discussed in relation to stability of gene frequencies, isolation mechanisms and migration patterns.     

A new subspecies of Pedicularis zeylanica (Scrophulariaceae) from the Western Ghats of south India

Pedicularis zeylanica subsp. anamallyensis T. Husain & A. Garg, a new subspecies of Nilgiri lousewort from the Western Ghats of south India, is described and illustrated.     

Pollination Ecology of Pedicularis punctata Decne. (Scrophulariaceae) in the Kashmir Himalaya

Abstract The pollination ecology of Pedicularis punctata was studied in the Pir Panjal Range of the Kashmir Himalaya in the summer of 1989. Its nectarless, rostrate, long-tubed flower was found to be pollinated exclusively by Bombus foragers vibrating pollen while the stigma contacted pollen in the pollinator's cervical crevice. Workers of Bombus tunicatus and B. flavothoracicus comprised 95% of its pollinators. Pollen-foraging fidelity of its pollinators was greatest where diversity of Bombus -pollinated plant species in three plant communities was least. Foragers on other plants carried virtually no Pedicularis pollen. P. punctata is a mid-season blooming species similar in its pollination syndrome to comparable species in other geographic regions. The enigmatic function of its long, nectarless corolla tube, even more exaggerated in other Asiatic species, requires further investigation.     

Pollen morphology and infra-generic evolutionary relationships in some Chinese species of Pedicularis (Scrophulariaceae)

 The pollen grains of 32 Chinese species of Pedicularis representing 13 groups within the genus were investigated using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The genus is eurypalynous, the apertures may be tricolpate, trisyncolpate, or bisyncolpate and five types of surface ornamentation (microscabrate, microrugulate, retipilate, microreticulate and microfoveolate) were observed. Comparison of the different aperture types using light microscopy allows three pollen types to be distinguished. Examination of exine ornamentation with scanning electron microscopy enabled each pollen type to be divided into two or three sub-types (giving a total of seven sub-types). Pollen morphology within the genus is discussed in relation to infrageneric relationships, evolutionary and pollination biology. There is little correlation with the existing infrageneric taxonomy (some taxonomic groups have more than one pollen type, while the same pollen type may be found in several different species-groups), but greater correlation with the corolla morphology. Received January 10, 2002; accepted March 5, 2002 Published online: March 10, 2003     

A Preliminary Study of the Pollination Ecology of Pedicularis (Scrophulariaceae) in Japan

Abstract An introductory study of the pollination ecology of six Japanese species of Pedicularis conducted in 1982 and 1983 indicated a close parallel between characteristics of floral mechanisms in Japan and those previously investigated in North America. Floral color, floral form, total dissolved solids in floral nectar, and polinator behavior on flowers of Japanese species are similar to those of North American species. Blooming phenology of Japanese species also corresponds to the North American sequence of long-tongued, nectar-foraging queen bumblebees (Bombus Latr.) pollinating nectariferous , earlier-blooming species nototribically and short-tongued, pollen-foraging workers pollinating nectarless, rostrate flowers of later-blooming ones sternotribically. Electrofocus analysis of peroxidase systems in two Japanese species indicated considerable intrapopulational heterozygosity. Nectar component analysis of two transboreal species indicated intraspecific differences in kinds of sugars between widely disjunct Japanese and North American populations. A tentative conclusion is that the Japanese and North American Pedicularis floras have evolved in a parallel manner from Himalayan migrants, while their transboreal elements are in process of vicariant diversification.     

Pollination Ecology of Pedicularis megalantha D. Don (Scrophulariaceae) in the Himachal Himalaya

Abstract In the summer of 1990, the pollination ecology of Pedicularis megalantha was studied in the montane-subalpine spruce-fir forest zone (2750-3050 m) on the north slope of Mt. Huttoo at Narkanda, Himachal Pradesh, in the Indian Himalaya. Its yellow, long-tubed, nectarless flower with a curled rostrum overarched by a broad, inverted lower corolla lip was pollinated exclusively by Bombus albopleuralis and B. tunicatus workers hanging inverted from the corolla and vibrating pollen from introrse anthers concealed within the galea and releasing pollen through a small ventral opening in the galea base. The stigma, protruding from the tip of the rostrum, contacted pollen deposited on the ventral side of the insect's thorax. Corbicular pollen loads from P. megalantha pollinators indicated equal numbers of monolectic and oligolectic foragers. P. megalantha appeared to suffer from competition for pollinators by Cynoglossum wallichii at one site but to be favored in a mixed plant community with nectariferous species offering a forage resource complementary to Pedicularis pollen. As in P. punctata , the long, nectarless corolla tube of P. megalantha appears to function in extending the rostrate vibration pollination mechanism beyond the plant's foliage, which would interfere with its function. It is not an adaptation for nectar-foraging lepidopteran pollinators. P. megalantha was also found to be a root hemiparasite.     

Floral ontogeny of Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae), with an emphasis on the corolla upper lip

Pedicularis shows high diversity in its corolla form, however, its floral ontogeny has been rarely investigated. In particular, the development of the highly variable upper lip (galea), three broad morphological types of which (beakless and toothless, beakless and toothed, beaked) can be discriminated, remains unknown. We used scanning electron microscopy to investigate the early stages of floral ontogeny in two beaked species, Pedicularis gruina and P. siphonantha. To compare the developmental processes of the three galea types, three species for each type were investigated. Initiations of floral organs in Pedicularis are consistent. Sepal initiations are successive from the lateral-adaxial primordia, followed by the lateral-abaxial ones (these sometimes missing), then the mid-adaxial one (again sometimes missing). The stamens are initiated prior to the petals, or development of petal primordia may be retarded at the early stages in comparison with that of stamen primordia. Four stamen primordia are initiated simultaneously. The five petal primordia are initiated almost simultaneously. Development processes of the upper lip among the three galea types differ in the expansion rates and directions of the cells of the two lobes and these differences govern whether or not a beak and/or teeth are formed on the upper lip. The floral ontogeny of Pedicularis is close to that of Agalinis, which supports the molecular assignment. Floral monosymmetry of Pedicularis is established at the beginning of sepal initiation and is maintained until flowering. The development of the upper lip provides some clues to the evolution of beaked and/or toothed galeas in Pedicularis.     

Electrophoretic variation among the five polish populations of the bank vole

Electrophoretic variation in proteins encoded by 21 loci was analysed in five populations of the bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus) from southern and eastern Poland. Intrapopulation variation is high

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; the average Nei's distance among populations equals 0.193. Comparatively high F_IS (0.306) values suggest high levels of differentiation. Variation in allele frequencies (F_ST is high (ranging from 0.137 to 0.572) and reflects considerable geographic genetic heterogeneity. Genetic and geographic distances are not consistently associated.     

Inter-populational variation,but no-annual variation within populations,in terms of reproductive size and genetic structure in a monocarpic perennial herb,Cardiocrinum cordatum var. glehnii

Cardiocrinum cordatum var. glehnii (Liliaceae) is a monocarpic perennial herb living in temperate broad-leaved deciduous forests. In the present study we examined the sizes (basal diameter of the stem and flower numbers) of flowering individuals and genetic diversity using microsatellite loci of 23 populations of C. cordatum var. glehnii in Hokkaido, Japan, over 2 years (2009 and 2010). As a result, we found both the basal stem diameter and the number of flowers varied widely among the populations. However, although the sizes of flowering individuals differed among the populations, these were very stable in each population and in each year. In addition, for genetic diversity, the same trends (i.e. wide variation among the populations but non-annual variation) were detected.     

Life-history variation among populations of Euphrasia rostkoviana Hayne (Scrophulariaceae) in relation to grassland management

Seeds from 39 natural populations of the annual hemiparasitic species Euphrasia rostkoviana were collected from nine different grassland habitats in the north-eastern part of the Swiss Alps. These populations were investigated in three comparative cultivation experiments. Statistical data for seed-weight, different life-history traits and habit characters were compared. Differences in the onset of flowering between the extreme populations are as much as 10 weeks while differences in the other examined life-history traits are not more than a few days. The onset of flowering is strongly correlated with the number of internodes but also with other habit characters. Assuming a genetic basis for differences in life-history traits and habit characters, the populations appear to be well-adapted to the management regimes of their grassland habitats in the onset of flowering as well as in their habit characteristics. There is evidence for some trade-offs. For example, few branches and few internodes are a trade-off for the early onset of flowering. The adaptations found in populations of E. rostkoviana from late-mown meadows and from mountain pastures are in the opposite direction to those of the populations of Rhinanthus alectorolophus from the same habitats. This seems to be due to the much smaller seed-size and the much longer individual flowering period of plants of Euphrasia species. Remarkable differentiation via heterochronic processes seems to be possible within few decades in relation to extremely strong selection pressures generated by grazing or cutting.     

Genetic variation in populations of the terrestrial planarian Artioposthia triangulata (Dendy), and evidence for passive dispersal in Northern Ireland

Genetic variation in 12 populations of the terrestrial planarian Artioposthia triangulata from Northern Ireland and one in the Republic of Ireland were assessed using starch-gel electrophoresis. Seven enzymes - adenylate kinase, aspartate aminotransferase, enolase, malate dehydrogenase, phosphoglucose isomerase, phosphomannose isomerase and superoxide dismutase - provided consistent, resolved stains. Coefficients of genetic identity were similar for all comparisons suggesting that the populations did not belong to distinct taxa. There was no relationship between genetic distance and geographic distance for populations, thus confirming the role of passive dispersal in the spread of A. triangulata. Average percentage polymorphic loci and mean heterozygosities were higher in the east of the Province (41.4% and 0.240), than the west (37.5% and 0.185) suggesting that the planarian had spread westwards after an initial colonisation in the east.     

真鲷野生群体和人工繁殖群体的同酶遗传差异

采用水平淀粉凝胶电泳技术对采集于黄海海州湾海域的真鲷野生群体和经过 2代人工繁育的养殖群体进行了同工酶遗传变异研究。分析检测了 2个群体各 50个样本肌肉和肝脏组织的 1 3种同工酶共 2 0个基因位点 ,其中MDH_a、GPI、PGM等 1 0个位点为多态位点 ,ME和EST_b为变异程度比较高的位点。野生群体和人工繁殖群体的多态位点比例分别为 45%和 2 5% (P0 .95) ;群体平均观察杂合度分别为 0 .1 41± 0 .0 4 4和 0 .0 95± 0 .0 4 3。结果表明 ,真鲷的野生群体和养殖群体拥有较高程度的遗传变异水平 ,但是养殖群体的遗传变异水平比野生群体有一定程度的降低。养殖群体遗传变异水平的降低在一定程度上是由于亲鱼数量少所致。比较了同工酶分析和RAPD分析的结果。将此两种技术相结合在鱼类群体遗传多样性分析中具有比较实际的意义。     

中华绒螯蟹遗传变异的RAPD分析

用31个可重复性好的随机引物对中华绒螯蟹(Eriocheir sinensis)的辽河、瓯江和长江种群进行了RAPD分析。121个扩增片段中有27个多态片段。遗传距离指数（D）表明中华绒螯蟹种内遗传变异较低(D=0.004～0.063)。3个种群中,辽河种群(D=0.018)和瓯江种群(D=0.025)遗传变异较高,而长江种群遗传变异较低(D=0.013);辽河种群和瓯江种群间遗传距离(D=0.023)小于它们与长江种群间的遗传距离(D值分别为0.028和0.032)。提示人类经济活动可能已使这2个种群发生了基因交流。