Karyological studies of Iranian <Emphasis Type="Italic">Allium</Emphasis> L. (Amaryllidaceae) species with focus on sect. <Emphasis Type="Italic">Acanthoprason</Emphasis>. 1. Mitotic chromosomes

Eighteen species and subspecies (34 accessions) of Allium sect. Acanthoprason and 11 species (17 accessions) belonging to other subgenera and sections of Allium were karyologically investigated and include first reports for 12 species. The examined plants of 47 accessions were diploid, three accessions of two species were tetraploid, and in the A. bisotunense accession, we found a mix of di- and triploid individuals. B chromosomes were found in 10 accessions. A basic chromosome number of x = 8 was confirmed for all investigated members of subg. Melanocrommyum and subg. Allium, and x = 9 for Allium tripedale of subg. Nectaroscordum. Idiograms were drawn for each accession, and metaphase images are presented illustrating observed chromosomal variations. Also, karyotype features and asymmetry parameters were calculated for all accessions. Chromosomal aberrations, e.g. aneuploid cells or loss of whole or parts of chromosome arms, were rarely observed. In general, the karyotypes showed low variation in inter- and intrachromosomal asymmetry especially inside of the taxonomic groups, though satellited chromosomes were good markers for subgenera and even specific for two studied sections of subg. Allium. Six different types of satellites were recognized, two of them were newly described: Type P was prevalent in subg. Melanocrommyum, and type O in sect. Codonoprasum. Statistical analyses were performed on five karyological parameters to test correct relationships and also to test previous grouping hypotheses. Although our data confirm distinct karyological characters for the subgenera investigated, the remarkable morphological diversity inside of subg. Melanocrommyum is not mirrored by striking karyological differences.     

CHLOROPLAST DNA EVIDENCE FOR THE INTERRELATIONSHIPS OF TOMATOES,POTATOES, AND PEPINOS (SOLANACEAE)

We used chloroplast DNA restriction site analysis to test hypotheses of relationships of Solarium subgenus Potatoe (including potatoes and pepinos), two other Solanum, Cyphomandra (the tree tomatoes), and Lycopersicon (the tomatoes). Capsicum and Datura were used as outgroups. The results support two main clades among the taxa we studied: 1) Solanum subgenus Potatoe and Lycopersicon; and 2) other Solanum and Cyphomandra. Within the first clade, the following groups were supported: a) sect. Basarthrum and sect. Anarrhichomenum; b) sect. Etuberosum; c) sect. Petota; d) sect. Juglandifolium, including subsect. Lycopersicoides; and e) the genus Lycopersicon. These results, in combination with an analysis of morphological data, advocate the controversial, but previously suggested, treatment of Lycopersicon as congeneric with Solanum in subgenus Potatoe. Thus, the cultivated tomato will be recognized as Solanum lycopersicum L. Solanum chmielewskii and Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme are proposed as new combinations; Solanum neorickii is proposed as a new name for Lycopersicon parviflorum. Our data also suggest that Cyphomandra should be included within Solanum.     

Normania,an endemic Macaronesian genus distinct fromSolanum (Solanaceae)

Morphological data and results from scanning electron microscopy of seeds and pollen show thatNormania Lowe [syn.Solanum L. subg.Potatoe (G. Don)D'Arcy sect.Normania (Lowe)Bitter] (Solanaceae: Solaneae) should be considered as a distinct genus fromSolanum L. It has two species, one restricted to the island of Madeira [Normania triphylla (Lowe)Lowe] and the other to Tenerife and Gran Canaria [Normania nava (Webb & Berthel.)Franc.-Ort. & R. N. Lester]. These species are extremely rare and had not been found for about 100 years, untilN. nava was rediscovered in two different localities in Tenerife in 1973 and 1982.Normania triphylla was reported in two different places from northern Madeira in 1991. Both species have the highest conservation priority in the Macaronesian region.     

Comparison of four molecular markers in measuring relationships among the wild potato relatives Solanum section Etuberosum (subgenus Potatoe)

We evaluated chloroplast DNA (cpDNA), isozymes, single to low-copy nuclear DNA (RFLPs), and random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs) in terms of concordance for genetic distance of 15 accessions each of Solanum etuberosum and S. palustre, and 4 accessions of S. fernandezianum. These self-compatible, diploid (2n=24), and morphologically very similar taxa constitute all species in Solanum sect. Etuberosum, a group of non-tuber-bearing species closely related to Solanum sect. Petota (the potato and its wild relatives). Genetic distance and multidimentional scaling results show general concordance of isozymes, RFLPs and RAPDs between all three taxa; cpDNA shows S. etuberosum and S. palustre to be more similar to each other than to S. fernandezianum. Interspecific sampling variance shows a gradation of resolution from allozyme (low) to RAPD to RFLP (high); while intraspecific comparisons graded from RFLPs (low) to RAPDs (high; lack of sufficient allozyme variability within species precluded comparisons for allozymes). Experimental error was low in RFLPs and RAPDs.Names are necessary to report factually and available data; however, the USDA neither guarantees nor warrants the standard of the product, and the use of the name by USDA implies no approval of the product to the exclusion of others that may also be suitable     

Infrageneric Phylogeny and Temporal Divergence of Sorghum (Andropogoneae,Poaceae) Based on Low-Copy Nuclear and Plastid Sequences

The infrageneric phylogeny and temporal divergence of Sorghum were explored in the present study. Sequence data of two low-copy nuclear (LCN) genes, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase 4 (Pepc4) and granule-bound starch synthase I (GBSSI), from 79 accessions of Sorghum plus Cleistachne sorghoides together with those from outgroups were used for maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI) analyses. Bayesian dating based on three plastid DNA markers (ndhA intron, rpl32-trnL, and rps16 intron) was used to estimate the ages of major diversification events in Sorghum. The monophyly of Sorghum plus Cleistachne sorghoides (with the latter nested within Sorghum) was strongly supported by the Pepc4 data using BI analysis, and the monophyly of Sorghum was strongly supported by GBSSI data using both ML and BI analyses. Sorghum was divided into three clades in the Pepc4, GBSSI, and plastid phylograms: the subg. Sorghum lineage; the subg. Parasorghum and Stiposorghum lineage; and the subg. Chaetosorghum and Heterosorghum lineage. Two LCN homoeologous loci of Cleistachne sorghoides were first discovered in the same accession. Sorghum arundinaceum, S. bicolor, S. x drummondii, S. propinquum, and S. virgatum were closely related to S. x almum in the Pepc4, GBSSI, and plastid phylograms, suggesting that they may be potential genome donors to S. almum. Multiple LCN and plastid allelic variants have been identified in S. halepense of subg. Sorghum. The crown ages of Sorghum plus Cleistachne sorghoides and subg. Sorghum are estimated to be 12.7 million years ago (Mya) and 8.6 Mya, respectively. Molecular results support the recognition of three distinct subgenera in Sorghum: subg. Chaetosorghum with two sections, each with a single species, subg. Parasorghum with 17 species, and subg. Sorghum with nine species and we also provide a new nomenclatural combination, Sorghum sorghoides.     

Acrylamide gel electrophoresis of seed proteins from someSolanum (sectionSolanum) species

Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was used to investigate the seed proteins of 36 accessions belonging toSolanum sect.Solanum (Solanaceae). These accessions represented 20 species, of four differing ploidy levels, and included infraspecific morphological variants. The resultant band patterns tended to reflect the morphological differences and genetical isolation displayed by many of the species. The most variable band patterns were encountered in the taxa with the greatest infraspecific variation, while many of the more morpho-genetically distinct taxa seemed to have species-specific band patterns.Good matches were found between the band patterns of artificial hybrids, those of their known parents, and mixtures of the parental protein extracts. This illustrates the potential use of such a technique for pinpointing possible genome donors of natural hybrids, and especially of polyploids. These comparative band patterns confirmed experimental work on the origin of the hexaploidS. nigrum from the diploidS. americanum and the tetraploidS. villosum, and also supported the suggestion thatS. nigrum contains two genomes from the diploidS. sarrachoides, but not four genomes of the diploidS. americanum.     

A Phylogeny of Euphorbieae Subtribe Euphorbiinae (Euphorbiaceae) Based on Molecular Data

Phylogenetic relationships within Euphorbiinae were inferred from our analysis of the 3′; end of the chloroplast gene ndhF. A sampling of that subtribe covered 88 species; 3 closely related species from the subtribes Anthosteminae and Neoguillauminiinae and the tiribe Hippomaneae were included as outgroups. A phylogenetic assessment was carried out using the parsimony approach. The relationships revealed via these ndhF data supported the monophyly of subg.Esula, subg.Chamaesyce, subg.Euphorbia, and subg.Lacanthis. However, the polyphyly of subg.Agaloma, subg.Lyciopsis, and subg.Eremophyton also was strongly suggested. The African succulent Euphorbiinae can be divided into primarily two independent groups: 1) spiny succulents, which form a strongly supported clade with three subclades (subg.Euphorbia, subg.Lacanthis, andMonadenium+Synadenium); and 2) non-spiny succulents, which consist of sect.Meleuphorbia, sect.Medusae, sect.Anthacantha, sect.Trichadenia, sect.Pseudeuphorbium, sect.Treisia, and sect.Pseudacalypha. In the ndhF tree, the subg.Esula clade is placed as a sister to the rest of the Euphorbiinae. Thus, the origin of theEuphorbia s.I. should be sought within the herbaceous species of subg.Esula. The core North American endemicEuphorbia groups --Agaloma, Chamaesyce, andPoinsettia — are monophyletic and independent of the South American subg.Agaloma. Instead, they are derived from the AfricanEuphorbia subg.Lyciopsis andEremophyton. The Eurasian subg.Esula clade forms two subclades, which are concordant to sect.Esula and sect.Tithymalus.     

Phylogenetic relationships in Iranian <Emphasis Type="Italic">Scutellaria</Emphasis> (Lamiaceae) based on nuclear ribosomal ITS and chloroplast <Emphasis Type="Italic">trn</Emphasis>L-F DNA data

The genus Scutellaria (Lamiaceae, Scutellarioidae) includes taxa with a wide range of pharmacological traits, which make this genus economically important. Previous taxonomical studies on Scutellaria were mainly based on morphological and chromosomal characters. The infrageneric classification of the genus has been the subject of a long controversy among authors, and delimitation of taxa remains problematic. In this study, the phylogeny of the genus was evaluated using nrDNA ITS and trnL-F sequences, with a focus on the 42 Iranian taxa belonging to subgenera Apeltanthus and Scutellaria. In both ITS and trnL-F trees, there were two main clades within the genus corresponding to the two subgenera Scutellaria and Apeltanthus. In the subg. Scutellaria, the sect. Anaspis was monophyletic, but the monophyly of sect. Scutellaria was not supported. In this subgenus, S. galericulata was located away from other species in both trees, supported the isolation of this species from the sect. Scutellaria and inclusion in the sect. Galericularia as was previously considered by some authors. In subg. Apeltanthus, sect. Apeltanthus and sect. Lupulinaria were not monophyletic; furthermore, the monophyly of subsect. Lupulinaria was not supported. Based on the results of this study, it can be suggested that the sectional classification of both subgenera Apeltanthus and Scutellaria should be revised.     

The variation and evolution of selected species of Solanum section Basarthrum (Solanaceae). II

Five taxa ofSolanum sect.Basarthrum were studied in an effort to clarify their taxonomic position and to determine the effective evolutionary mechanisms. Methods included an analysis of chromosome number and behavior, artificial hybridizations and a study of herbarium material. The data suggest thatS. canense andS. suaveolens are closely related and that 5.suaveolens may have been the progenitor ofS. canense. The only successful interspecific cross involving one of these two species was vigorous but highly sterile. Evidence from both morphology and crossing studies indicates a close relationship betweenS. basendopogon andS. caripense. Hybrids between these two species with relatively high fertility through the F₃ generation were secured. The status ofS. basendopogon f.obtusum remains a problem since there is but one collection of the typical form. The placement ofS. sanctae-marthae in sect.Basarthrum is considered problematic. Virtually none of 170 interspecific crosses with this species were successful. Seed size and the presence and size of a seed wing are proposed as useful morphological characters in sect.Basarthrum. There is apparently a correlation between short styles and self-compatibility. All species are diploid (n = 12) and no chromosomal or meiotic aberrations were noted in the species or hybrids. Most of the more than 1,000 interspecific crosses failed. Most of the hybrid fruits bore no seeds or seeds which did not germinate. The primary barriers separating species are considered to be strong prefertilization isolating mechanisms and ecogeographic factors.     

The discovery and phylogenetic implications of a novel 41 bp plastid DNA deletion in wild potatoes

Insertions and deletions (indels) are common in intergenic spacer regions of plastid DNA and can provide important phylogenetic characters for closely related species. For example, a 241-bp plastid DNA deletion in the trnV-UAC/ndhC intergenic spacer region has been shown to have major phylogenetic importance in determining the origin of the cultivated potato. As part of a phylogenetic study of the wild potato Solanum series Piurana group we screened 199 accessions of 38 wild potato species in nine of the 19 tuber-bearing (Solanum section Petota) series that have not been examined before for indels in the trnV-UAC/ndhC intergenic spacer region. A novel 41 bp deletion (but no 241 bp deletion) was discovered for 30 accessions of three species: S. chiquidenum (5 of 10 accessions), S. chomatophilum (19 of 28), and S. jalcae (6 of 6). Accessions with and without this deletion are found throughout much of the north-south range of all three species in northern and central Peru, but not east of the Marañón River. Multivariate morphological analyses of these 44 accessions showed no morphological associations to the deletion. The results suggest extensive interspecific gene flow among these three species, or a common evolutionary history among species that have never been suggested to be interrelated.     

Genetic analysis of four Île Amsterdam Sphagna: high morphological divergence within Sphagnum subgenus Subsecunda

This study uses microsatellites (SSRs) and nucleotide sequences to explore unresolved questions associated with four of the six Sphagnum species reported for Île Amsterdam: Sphagnum cavernulosum of unknown subgenus, S. complanatum and S. islei of subg. Subsecunda, and plants that initial morphological study placed in subg. Cuspidata. Genetic analyses show that all four species belong to subgenus Subsecunda and that none are allopolyploids. The plants initially placed in subg. Cuspidata are shown to belong to the ‘S. africanum’ clade of subg. Subsecunda and are closest to the African S. truncatum based on morphology. Sphagnum cavernulosum, S. complanatum, and S. islei are part of the Afro-Australasian clade of subg. Subsecunda, with S. complanatum and S. islei being closely associated with the African ‘S. capense’ complex and S. cavernulosum, which is morphologically divergent from all extant subgenera in the genus, being an outlier within this clade. Preliminary genetic analyses show S. islei to be closely related to S. complanatum and that they may represent two morphologically divergent genets of one species. The ancestral origins for the Île Amsterdam populations of S. complanatum, S. islei, and S. cf. truncatum are each ultimately based in Africa. Further study is required to determine the ecological and evolutionary significance, if any, provided by the pronounced morphological variation within species and the high morphological divergence among species in subg. Subsecunda. Finally, a prior report of S. recurvum (subg. Cuspidata) possibly occurring on Île Amsterdam is concluded to have been based on laboratory error.     

Phylogenetic relationships of Salvia (Lamiaceae) in China: Evidence from DNA sequence datasets

With 84 native species, China is a center of distribution of the genus Salvia (Lamiaceae). These species are mainly distributed in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces (southwestern China), notably the Hengduan Mountain region. Traditionally, the Chinese Salvia has been classified into four subgenera, Salvia, Sclarea, Jungia, and Allagospadonopsis. We tested this classification using molecular phylogenetic analysis of 43 species of Salvia from China, six from Japan, and four introduced species. The nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer region and three chloroplast regions (rbcL, matK, and trnH-psbA) were analyzed by maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian methods. Our results showed that the Chinese (except Salvia deserta) and Japanese Salvia species formed a well-supported clade; S. deserta from Xinjiang grouped with Salvia officinalis of Europe. In addition, all introduced Salvia species in China were relatively distantly related to the native Chinese Salvia. Our results differed from the subgeneric and section classifications in Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae. We suggested that sections Eusphace and Pleiphace should be united in a new subgenus and that sect. Notiosphace should be removed from subg. Sclarea and form a new subgenus. Our data could not distinguish a boundary between subg. Allagospadonopsis and sect. Drymosphace (subg. Sclarea); the latter should be reduced into the former. Further clarification of the phylogenetic relationships within Salvia and between Salvia and related genera will require broader taxonomic sampling and more molecular markers.     

Molecular evolution of 5S rDNA of Solanum species (sect. Petota): application for molecular phylogeny and breeding

Nucleotide sequences of 5S rRNA genes (5S rDNA) of 26 wild species of the genus Solanum (sect. Petota) originating from Middle or South America, four Solanum tuberosum breeding lines and one European species, Solanum dulcamara (sect. Dulcamara) were compared with each other and with the 5S rDNA of Lycopersicon esculentum. The length of the repeat ranges from 285 bp to 349 bp. The complete 5S repeat unit consists of the 120-bp long conserved coding region and of a intergenic spacer with a high variability in the central portion as result of deletions/duplications of short motifs demonstrating sequence similarity to box C in the 5S rRNA coding region. Numerous structural rearrangements found in the spacer region can be applied to design species-specific molecular markers for Solanum species involved in breeding programs. Characteristic insertions/deletions (indels) were used to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships among the species studied. S. dulcamara forms a separate clade; L. esculentum is more related to Solanum species of sect. Petota. Conservation of ancestral 5S spacer organization was demonstrated for the representatives of several series of sect. Petota, both Stellata and Rotata. Further rearrangements of the spacer organization occurred in at least four independent lineages: (1) L. esculentum, (2) ser. Polyadenia, (3) other Stellata species from Middle America (ser. Pinnatisecta and Bulbocastana), (4) superser. Rotata. In this last group, series Megistacroloba and Conocibaccata show a common origin, and separation from ser. Tuberosa. Solanum chacoense and Solanum maglia demonstrate a close relatedness to species of ser. Tuberosa and should be included into this group, whereas Solanum bukasovii should be excluded due to conservation of ancestral spacer organization. Three major subgroups may be distinguished for species from ser. Tuberosa, although a high sequence similarity was found here. Several wild species (diploids Solanum phureja and Solanum spegazzinii) probably participated in the natural origin of tetraploid S. tuberosum;others were later used for crossing in breeding programs (e.g. Solanum demissum). Clear separation of Middle-American Stellata species from South-American Stellata and from Middle-American Rotata polyploids is shown. Received: 11 January 2001 / Accepted: 18 April 2001     

Polymorphism of the KPI-A gene sequence in the potato subgenera Potatoe (Sect. Petota, Esolonifera, and Lycopersicum) and Solanum

Group A Kunitz-type protease inhibitors (KPI-A) are involved in protecting potato plants from microorganisms and pests. While the nucleotide sequence is known for many KPI-A genes of various potato cultivars (Solanum tuberosum subsp. tuberosum) and a few genes of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), there are no data on their allelic diversity in other species of the genus Solanum. KPI-A fragments were cloned, amplified, sequenced, and analyzed from plants of the subgenera Potatoe sect. Petota (five genes from S. tuberosum ssp. andigenum and two genes from S. stoloniferum) and Solanum (five genes from S. nugrum), and their consensus sequences were established. An identity of 97–100% was observed among these sequences and the KPI-A sequences of the sections Petota (cultivated potato Solanum tuberosum ssp. tuberosum) and Etuberosum (S. palustre) The interspecific variation of KPI-A did not exceed its intraspecific variation for all but one species (S. lycopersicum). The distribution of highly variable and conserved sequences in the mature protein-coding region was the same in all of the above species. The same primers failed to amplify the homologous genes from Solanum dulcamara, S. lycopersicum, and Mandragora officinarum. Phylogenetic analysis of the KPI-A sequences showed that S. lycopersicum clustered separately from all of the other species examined, that S. nigrum clustered together with species of the sections Etuberosum and Petota, and that these species produced no species-specific clusters. Although S. nigrum is resistant to all known races of the oomycete Phytophthora infestans, which causes one of the most economically important diseases of Solanaceae, the amino acid sequences encoded by S. nigrum KPI-A differed slightly, if at all, from their counterparts of cultivated potato, which is susceptible to P. infestans infection.     

Collapse of species boundaries in the wild potatoSolanum brevicaule complex (Solanaceae, S. sect.Petota): Molecular data

TheSolanum brevicaule complex is a group of morphologically very similar wild and cultivated potato taxa (Solanum sect.Petota). This study uses single to low-copy nuclear RFLPs and RAPDs to investigate their species boundaries and relationships. Cladistic analyses of both data sets are largely concordant with each other and with a recently published phenetic analyses of the same accessions using morphology. All three data sets separate members of the complex into populations from Peru and immediately adjacent northwestern Bolivia, including most cultivated species accessions, and populations from northwestern Bolivia to Argentina. The molecular results suggest that the complex is paraphyletic as currently circumscribed. Many species of theS. brevicaule complex should be relegated to synonymy.     

A revision of the moss genus Trachyphyllum Gepp (Thuidiaceae)

Trachyphyllum is transferred from the Entodontaceae to the Thuidiaceae on the basis of correlated gametophytic and sporophytic characters. The genus is considered to consist of two subgenera: subg.Trachyphyllum forT. inflexum (with numerous new synonyms),T. gastrodes, T. dusenii andT. borgenii; and subg.Carinatum, subg. nov., forT. carinatum,T. jeyporense andT. touwianum, n. sp. All the species are keyed, described and illustrated.     

Addressing the "hardest puzzle in American pomology:" Phylogeny of Prunus sect. Prunocerasus (Rosaceae) based on seven noncoding chloroplast DNA regions

Prunus subg. Prunus sect. Prunocerasus (Rosaceae) is a North American taxon with 17 commonly recognized taxa. To test the hypothesis of monophyly for the section we sequenced the trnG and rpL16 introns and the trnH-psbA and trnS-trnG intergenic spacers for at least two representatives of each of the five subgenera in Prunus. Additionally we sampled heavily among Prunus subg. Prunus sections Prunus and Armeniaca and Prunus subg. Amygdalus because these groups are putatively most closely related to Prunocerasus. Once monophyly of sect. Prunocerasus was shown we added the sequences of trnL and rpS16 introns and the trnL-trnF spacer in an attempt to increase resolution within the section. The species of sect. Prunocerasus showed an initial split with P. subcordata, the only species from western North America, sister to the rest of the group. The remaining species fell into three primary clades. Within each of the three primary clades there was little phylogenetic resolution. Lastly, we present evidence that P. texana, previously classified in subg. Amygdalus, may be a plum or at least contain a Prunocerasus chloroplast. This is the first phylogenetic hypothesis presented for sect. Prunocerasus, and the clades recovered contrast sharply with previously defined groups based on morphological characters.     

An updated classification for the hyper-diverse genus Corydalis (Papaveraceae: Fumarioideae) based on phylogenomic and morphological evidence

The genus Corydalis, with ca. 530 species, has long been considered taxonomically challenging because of its great variability. Previous molecular analyses, based on a few molecular markers and incomplete taxonomic sampling, were clearly inadequate to delimit sections and subgenera. We have performed phylogenetic analyses of Corydalis and related taxa, using 65 shared protein-coding plastid genes from 313 accessions (including 280 samples of ca. 226 species of Corydalis) and 152 universal low-copy nuclear genes from 296 accessions (including 271 samples of Corydalis) covering all 42 previously recognized sections and five independent “series”. Phylogenetic trees were inferred using Bayesian Inference and Maximum Likelihood. Eight selected morphological characters were estimated using ancestral state reconstructions. Results include: (i) of the three subgenera of Corydalis, two are fully supported by both the plastid and nuclear data; the third, subg. Cremnocapnos, is weakly supported by plastid DNA only, whereas in the nuclear data the two included sections form successive outgroups to the rest of the genus; (ii) among all 42 sections and five “series”, 25 sections and one “series” are resolved as monophyletic in both data sets; (iii) the common ancestor of Corydalis is likely to be a perennial plant with a taproot, yellow flowers with a short saccate spur, linear fruits with recurved fruiting pedicels, and seeds with elaiosomes; (iv) we provide a new classification of Corydalis with four subgenera (of which subg. Bipapillatae is here newly described), 39 sections, 16 of which are consistent with the previous classification, 16 sections have been recircumscribed, one section has been reinstated and six new sections are established. Characters associated with lifespan, underground structures, floral spur, fruit and elaiosomes are important for the recognition of subgenera and sections. These new phylogenetic analyses combined with ancestral character reconstructions uncovered previously unrecognized relationships, and greatly improved our understanding of the evolution of the genus.     

Seed morphology and its systematic implications for genus Oxytropis DC. (Fabaceae)

In the present study, seeds of 13 Oxytropis DC. species (including two latest synonyms) classified in subg. Oxytropis (sect. Dolichocarpon, sect. Chrysantha and sect. Eumorpha), subg. Euoxytropis (sect. Orobia) and subg. Phacoxytropis (sect. Protoxytropis, sect. Janthina and sect. Mesogaea) from Turkey were examined using light and scanning electron microscopy to evaluate the taxonomic relevance of macro- and micro-morphological seed characters. As a result of the study, species-specific characters have been determined. Seeds exhibit variation in size, shape, surface sculpturing pattern, hilum position and weight. Seeds ranged from 1.61 to 4.04 mm in length and from 1.02 to 2.56 mm in width. Five different seed shapes were recognised, as prolonged semielliptic, reniform, prolonged reniform, quadratic and cardiform, with a length to width ratio ranging from 1.02 ± 0.08 to 1.75 ± 0.27. Rugulate, rugulate–reticulate and lophate sculpturing patterns were observed in the studied species. According to the results, seed characters, such as the size (length, width and the length/width ratio), the shape, the surface sculpturing and the weight appear to have low taxonomic value in distinguishing subgenera, sections and species.