Sites of self-pollen tube inhibition in Papaveraceae (sensu lato)

Papaver rhoeas (Papaveraceae) has a well-characterized gametophytic self-incompatibility system in which self-pollen tube growth ceases either just before, or just after, emergence from the copal aperture. Papaver flowers are unusual, however, in having flat stigmatic rays sitting directly on top of the hard ovary and no style. Immediate self-pollen arrest might be required with this floral architecture. There is much variation in floral architecture among Papaveraceae and self-incompatibility is widespread. However, there are no reports of the site of self-pollen tube inhibition in Papaveraceae other than P. rhoeas. We examined the site of self-pollen tube inhibition in four species (Argemone munita, Lamprocapnos spectabilis, Eschscholzia californica, and Platystemon californicus) representing a broad phylogenetic and morphological sample of Papaveraceae. Squash preparation was used for species with soft stigmas whereas woody tissue was sectioned with a cryostat and images were stitched into a mosaic to visualize pollen tubes on whole stigmas. For three species, self-pollen tube inhibition appeared similar to that described for P. rhoeas. Self-pollen tubes were arrested before any substantial penetration of female tissue and usually did not grow longer than 100?μm. In the fourth species, A. munita, self-pollen tubes grew up to 500?μm in length. However, self-pollen tubes appeared to grow along the stigmatic spines, and growth ceased once tubes contacted the stigma surface. Despite variation in floral architecture, rapid arrest of self-pollen tubes occurred before or just after penetration of female tissue in all species, consistent with the hypothesis that members of the family share the same incompatibility mechanism.     

Evolutionary significance of the invasion of introduced populations into the native range of Meconopsis cambrica

The long history of the deliberate or accidental and human‐mediated dispersal of flowering plants has led to the introduction of foreign genotypes of many species into areas of Europe hitherto occupied by potentially distinct native populations. Studies of the genetic and evolutionary consequences of such changes are handicapped by the difficulty of identifying the surviving native populations of many species in the absence of clear morphological differences. We investigated the relationship between putative native and introduced populations of the herbaceous perennial Meconopsis cambrica (Papaveraceae), as the isolated native populations of this species can be identified by historical and ecological evidence. In Britain, the species is scarce and declining as a native, but has become increasingly frequent in recent decades as a garden escape. Native populations from Spain and France were compared with native and introduced British populations using internal transcribed spacer and cpDNA sequences and amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs). Ten of the twelve British populations could be unambiguously assigned to native or introduced groups using cpDNA and AFLPs. The introduced plants appear to originate from the central and eastern Pyrenees rather than from native British sites. Two populations (including one previously considered native) cannot be classified unambiguously. There is unequivocal evidence for unidirectional gene flow from native plants into two of the introduced populations and possible evidence for hybridization in three other sites (two native). The absence of biological barriers to hybridization suggests that the native and introduced gene pools of M. cambrica in Britain might eventually merge.     

Isolation and Partial Characterization of a New Lectin from Seeds of the Greater Celandine (Chelidonium majus)

Seeds of the greater celandine (Chelidonium majus L.) contain a lectin which could be isolated using a combination of affinity chromatography on chitin and ion exchange chromatography on sulphopropyl-Sephadex. The purified lectin was partially characterized with respect to its biochemical and physicochemical properties. It is a small dimeric protein composed of two different subunits of M_r 9,500 and 11,500, respectively. Its amino acid composition is typified by high contents of glycine and cysteine. No covalently bound carbohydrate could be detected. Hapten inhibition experiments indicated that the lectin exhibits specificity towards oligomers of N-acetylglucosamine, the potency of inhibition increasing with chain length up to four residues. The greater celandine lectin is the first lectin to be isolated from a species belonging to the plant family Papaveraceae (poppy family). Although it represents a new type of plant lectin, resemblances to phytohemaglutinins from diverse taxonomic origin are obvious.     

Zygomorphy evolved from disymmetry in Fumarioideae (Papaveraceae,Ranunculales): new evidence from an expanded molecular phylogenetic framework

Background and Aims Fumarioideae (20 genera, 593 species) is a clade of Papaveraceae (Ranunculales) characterized by flowers that are either disymmetric (i.e. two perpendicular planes of bilateral symmetry) or zygomorphic (i.e. one plane of bilateral symmetry). In contrast, the other subfamily of Papaveraceae, Papaveroideae (23 genera, 230 species), has actinomorphic flowers (i.e. more than two planes of symmetry). Understanding of the evolution of floral symmetry in this clade has so far been limited by the lack of a reliable phylogenetic framework. Pteridophyllum (one species) shares similarities with Fumarioideae but has actinomorphic flowers, and the relationships among Pteridophyllum, Papaveroideae and Fumarioideae have remained unclear. This study reassesses the evolution of floral symmetry in Papaveraceae based on new molecular phylogenetic analyses of the family.Methods Maximum likelihood, Bayesian and maximum parsimony phylogenetic analyses of Papaveraceae were conducted using six plastid markers and one nuclear marker, sampling Pteridophyllum, 18 (90 %) genera and 73 species of Fumarioideae, 11 (48 %) genera and 11 species of Papaveroideae, and a wide selection of outgroup taxa. Floral characters recorded from the literature were then optimized onto phylogenetic trees to reconstruct ancestral states using parsimony, maximum likelihood and reversible-jump Bayesian approaches.Key Results Pteridophyllum is not nested in Fumarioideae. Fumarioideae are monophyletic and Hypecoum (18 species) is the sister group of the remaining genera. Relationships within the core Fumarioideae are well resolved and supported. Dactylicapnos and all zygomorphic genera form a well-supported clade nested among disymmetric taxa.Conclusions Disymmetry of the corolla is a synapomorphy of Fumarioideae and is strongly correlated with changes in the androecium and differentiation of middle and inner tepal shape (basal spurs on middle tepals). Zygomorphy subsequently evolved from disymmetry either once (with a reversal in Dactylicapnos) or twice (Capnoides, other zygomorphic Fumarioideae) and appears to be correlated with the loss of one nectar spur.     

Phylogeography of a Tertiary relict plant, Meconopsis cambrica (Papaveraceae), implies the existence of northern refugia for a temperate herb

The perennial herb Meconopsis cambrica, a western European endemic, is the only European species of the otherwise Himalayan genus Meconopsis and has been interpreted as a Tertiary relict species. Using rbcL and ITS sequence variation, we date the split between M. cambrica and its sister clade Papaver s.str. to the Middle to Upper Miocene (12.8 Myr, 6.4–19.2 Myr HPD). Within M. cambrica, cpDNA sequence variation reveals the existence of two groups of populations with a comparable level of genetic variation: a northern group from Great Britain, the Massif Central, the western Pyrenees and the Iberian System, and a southern group from the central and eastern Pyrenees. Populations from the Cantabrian Mountains were placed in both groups. Based on ITS sequence variation, the divergence between these two groups can be dated to 1.5 Myr (0.4–2.8 Myr HPD), and the age of the British populations is estimated as 0.37 Myr (0.0–0.9 Myr HPD). Amplified fragment length polymorphism results confirm the distinctive nature of the populations from Britain, the Massif Central and the central and eastern Pyrenees. These patterns of latitudinal variation of M. cambrica differ from patterns of longitudinal differentiation found in many other temperate species and imply glacial survival of the northern populations in northerly refugia. The primary differentiation into northern and southern cpDNA groups dates to near the onset of the Quaternary and suggests that an ancient phylogeographic pattern has survived through several glacial periods. Our data provide evidence that the species has persisted for a long period with a highly fragmented and probably very localized distribution.     

Alkaloids of argemone subintegrifolia and A. munita

Argemóne subintegrifolia G. B. Ownb. (Papaveraceae) was found to contain 0.14% total alkaloids consisting of 70 % allocryptopine, 20 % protopine,     

Free amino acids from pollens

Pollens from Pinus canariensis, P. nigra, P. pinaster, P. pinea, Castanea sativa, Magnolia grandiflora, Olea sativa cv frantoio, cv itrana, cv pisciottana were examined for their free amino acid composition. A large amount of proline was found in all species; pollens of Olea also contain a large amount of serine.     

Highly variable chloroplast genome from two endangered Papaveraceae lithophytes Corydalis tomentella and Corydalis saxicola

The increasingly wide application of chloroplast (cp) genome super‐barcode in taxonomy and the recent breakthrough in cp genetic engineering make the development of new cp gene resources urgent and significant. Corydalis is recognized as the most genotypes complicated and taxonomically challenging plant taxa in Papaveraceae. However, there currently are few reports about cp genomes of the genus Corydalis. In this study, we sequenced four complete cp genomes of two endangered lithophytes Corydalis saxicola and Corydalis tomentella in Corydalis, conducted a comparison of these cp genomes among each other as well as with others of Papaveraceae. The cp genomes have a large genome size of 189,029–190,247 bp, possessing a quadripartite structure and with two highly expanded inverted repeat (IR) regions (length: 41,955–42,350 bp). Comparison between the cp genomes of C. tomentella, C. saxicola, and Papaveraceae species, five NADH dehydrogenase‐like genes (ndhF, ndhD, ndhL, ndhG, and ndhE) with psaC, rpl32, ccsA, and trnL‐UAG normally located in the SSC region have migrated to IRs, resulting in IR expansion and gene duplication. An up to 9 kb inversion involving five genes (rpl23, ycf2, ycf15, trnI‐CAU, and trnL‐CAA) was found within IR regions. The accD gene was found to be absent and the ycf1 gene has shifted from the IR/SSC border to the SSC region as a single copy. Phylogenetic analysis based on the sequences of common CDS showed that the genus Corydalis is quite distantly related to the other genera of Papaveraceae, it provided a new clue for recent advocacy to establish a separate Fumariaceae family. Our results revealed one special cp genome structure in Papaveraceae, provided a useful resources for classification of the genus Corydalis, and will be valuable for understanding Papaveraceae evolutionary relationships.     

Description and biology of two new species of Neotropical Liriomyza Mik (Diptera,Agromyzidae), mining leaves of Bocconia (Papaveraceae)

Liriomyza mystica Boucher & Nishida, sp. n., and Liriomyza prompta Boucher & Nishida, sp. n. are described from Costa Rica. Both species were reared from leaves of Bocconia frutescens L. (Papaveraceae). The latter species was also reared from B. arborea S. Watson. Larvae of L. mystica mine primary veins of large, relatively old, mature leaves, and L. prompta mine blades of small to large, mature leaves. These represent the first record of agromyzids feeding on Bocconia. Biological information is also given and illustrated.     

Applying AFLPs in Aizoaceae: The Delosperma herbeum complex as a case study

Amplified fragment length polymorphic (AFLP) markers were used to discriminate between populations of Delosperma herbeum as well as other species of Delosperma occurring in Gauteng and adjacent provinces in South Africa. A total of 99 individuals representing 30 populations were examined for 158 polymorphic AFLP markers using the EcoRI and MseI restriction enzymes. Cluster analysis of AFLP marker scores, visualized through Neighbor-Joining and Neighbor-Net trees as well as Principal Coordinate Analysis, provides an effective means of discriminating between different species in the complex. The lack of bootstrap support for Delosperma davyi in the Neighbor-Joining tree and its position in the Principal Coordinate Analysis probably signifies it to be a superfluous name for D. herbeum. The clustering of the other species also suggests that flower colour is not a reliable feature for grouping species in Delosperma. A number of clusters of D. herbeum were correlated to a degree with distribution.     

A PERMINERALIZED FLOWER FROM THE MIDDLE EOCENE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

A permineralized flower bud, two stamen clusters and one isolated stamen of similar morphology have been found in the black cherts of the Middle Eocene Allenby Formation of Princeton, British Columbia. Specimens were studied using a modified cellulose acetate peel technique and hydrofluoric acid. The single flower specimen, 4.5 mm long and 4.0 mm in diameter, represents half of a relatively mature bud of a bisexual flower with a superior ovary. The two-loculate pistil is 2.5 mm long with a solid style and a lobed stigmatic surface. No ovules have been observed in attachment. Twenty-two to 24 stamens are borne in three whorls or a tight helix. Pollen sacs of the anther are elongate with a thin connective while filaments are laminar. Anther walls contain rectangular cells with dark contents that also can be identified in isolated stamens or stamen clusters. Abundant stephanocolpate (pentacolpate), psilate pollen grains 20 μm in diameter have been isolated and examined using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Grains are tectate, columellate with a broad foot layer that thins near the apertures, and an endexine of small platelets. The remains of four petals are surrounded by one large sepal, suggesting two in the whole flower. Morphological features of this flower are comparable to taxa of the Flacourtiaceae and Papaveraceae, but show closest similarities to the Eschscholziaeae of the Papaveraceae. Difficulties with reconciling the placement of this flower in the Eschscholziaeae and the known environment of deposition of the Princeton chert are discussed. The fossil material represents a new angiospermous taxon: Princetonia allenbyensis Stockey gen. et sp. nov., family Incertae sedis.     

Distribution and chemotaxonomic significance of acetylenic fatty acids in mosses of the dicranales

Thirty-eight moss species from four families of the order Dicranales were analysed for the fatty acid composition of their acyl lipids. In the Ditrichaceae and the Dicranaceae numerous species were found to contain acetylenic fatty acids in their triglycerides, 9,12,15-Octadecatrien-6-ynoic acid was the major component, often accounting for more than 80 mol%, whereas 9,12-octadecadien-6-ynoic acid was found in small amounts of less than 5 mol%. In some genera, all the species examined contained acetylenic fatty acids, e.g.Dicranella andDicranum, whereas in the genusCampylopus all five species tested were free of acetylenic compounds. Two genera, Ditrichum andDicranoweisia, were found to have a non-homogeous distribution of acetylenic fatty acids. The chemotaxonomic significance of the fatty acid composition in relation to morphological characters is discussed.     

Alkaloids of callus tissues and redifferentiated plantlets in the papaveraceae

The callus tissues from 11 representative species of the Papaveraceae and the redifferentiated plantlets from four species were successfully derived and maintained. The alkaloids in the callus tissues and redifferentiated plantlets were examined in comparison with those of the original plants. All the callus tissues are similar in their alkaloid chemistry and contain benzophenanthridine, protopine and aporphine type alkaloids. By contrast, the plantlets have a more specific alkaloid pattern, being similar in content to the original plants.     

Iridoid glucosides as taxonomic markers in the genera Lantana,Lippia, Aloysia and Phyla

Nine species of Lantana, Lippia, Aloysia and Phyla have been examined for iridoids. Six of the species contain iridoid glucosides including pulchelloside I, mussaenoside, lamiide, durantoside I, geniposide and theviridoside as well as the sodium salts of geniposidic acid and theveside. A quinol glucoside, cornoside, has been isolated from Phyla nodiflora. The distribution of iridoids and cornoside shows a good correlation with the classification proposed by El-Gazzar and Watson.     

Alkaloid metabolism in thrips-Papaveraceae interaction: Recognition and mutual response

Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), the Western Flower Thrips (WFT), is a polyphagous and highly adaptable insect of the order Thysanoptera. It has a broad host range but is rarely found on Papaveraceae, which might be due to deterrent effects of alkaloids present in most species of this family. In order to test the adaptive potential of WFT, we investigated its interaction with two Papaveraceae offered as sole feeding source. We found that WFT are able to live and feed on leaves of Eschscholzia californica and Chelidonium majus. Both plants respond to thrips feeding by the enhanced production of benzophenanthridine alkaloids. Furthermore, cell cultures of E. californica react to water insoluble compounds prepared from adult thrips with enhanced alkaloid production. During feeding, WFT take up benzophenanthridine alkaloids from either plant and from an artificial feeding medium and convert them to their less toxic dihydroderivatives. This was shown in detail with sanguinarine, the most cytotoxic benzophenanthridine. A similar conversion is used in plants to prevent self-intoxication by their own toxins. We conclude that WFT causes a phytoalexin-like response in Papaveraceae, but is able to adapt to such host plants by detoxification of toxic alkaloids.     

Biodiversity of Convolvulaceous species that contain ergot alkaloids,indole diterpene alkaloids,and swainsonine

Convolvulaceous species have been reported to contain several bioactive principles thought to be toxic to livestock including the calystegines, swainsonine, ergot alkaloids, and indole diterpene alkaloids. Swainsonine, ergot alkaloids, and indole diterpene alkaloids are produced by seed transmitted fungal symbionts associated with their respective plant host, while the calystegines are produced by the plant. To date, Ipomoea asarifolia and Ipomoea muelleri represent the only Ipomoea species and members of the Convolvulaceae known to contain indole diterpene alkaloids, however several other Convolvulaceous species are reported to contain ergot alkaloids. To further explore the biodiversity of species that may contain indole diterpenes, we analyzed several Convolvulaceous species (n = 30) for indole diterpene alkaloids, representing four genera, Argyreia, Ipomoea, Stictocardia, and Turbina, that had been previously reported to contain ergot alkaloids. These species were also verified to contain ergot alkaloids and subsequently analyzed for swainsonine. Ergot alkaloids were detected in 18 species representing all four genera screened, indole diterpenes were detected in two Argyreia species and eight Ipomoea species of the 18 that contained ergot alkaloids, and swainsonine was detected in two Ipomoea species. The data suggest a strong association exists between the relationship of the Periglandula species associated with each host and the occurrence of the ergot alkaloids and/or the indole diterpenes reported here. Likewise there appears to be an association between the occurrence of the respective bioactive principle and the genetic relatedness of the respective host plant species.     

Amino acids,sugars and sterols of some Mediterranean brown algae

Free amino acids, amino sulfonic acids, sugars and sterols have been examined and quantitatively determined in 10 brown seaweeds. Acidic amino acids and their amides are the main components of the amino acid fraction. Cysteinolic acid, taurine and its N-methyl derivatives have been identified in most of the species examined. In all the algae, mannitol is present, sometimes in very large amounts. The sterol fractions of all the species contain fucosterol, cholesterol and 24-methylenecholesterol; minute amounts of 22-dehydrocholesterol and 24-methylcholesta-5, 22-dien-3β-ol have also been frequently detected.     

Chelators in cupressaceae as iron transport agents for Salmonella typhimurium

Strains of Salmonella typhimurium which are unable to synthesize their own iron transport agents and require an erogenous chelator were used to examine extracts of the wood of species of Cupressaceae for the presence of iron chelators. Wood from 19 species of five genera were examined and all were found to contain substances that would function as iron transport agents for S. typhimurium. The biological activity of most of these species could be explained by the known presence and activity of the thujaplicins. Juniperus virginiana and J. occidentalis were found to contain a non-tropolone substance that functioned as chelators in S. typhimurium. The tropolone nootkatin from Chamaecyparis nootkatensis was ineffective as an iron transport agent.     

Triterpenes of Prunus serotina and P. lusitanica

The leaves of Prunus serotina and P. lusitanica contain a new triterpene, 2α,3α-dihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid, isolated in form of its methyl ester. Other triterpenes present in these species are ursolic acid and ursol aldehyde. P. lusitanica also yields friedeline.