Journal
PLANT SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTION
Volume 267, Issue 1-4, Pages 177-190Publisher
SPRINGER WIEN
DOI: 10.1007/s00606-007-0528-z
Keywords
atpB-rbcL; biogeography; East Asia; flower color; ITS; molecular phylogeny; trnL-F; Veratrum
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Veratrum (Melanthiaceae) comprises ca. 27 species with highly variable morphology. This study aims to construct the molecular phylogeny of this genus to infer its floral evolution and historical biogeography, which have not been examined in detail before. Maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian analyses were performed on the separate and combined ITS, trnL-F, and atpB-rbcL sequences to reconstruct the phylogenetic tree of the genus. All Veratrum taxa formed a monophyletic group, within which two distinct clades were distinguished: species with white-to-green perianth formed one highly supported clade, and the species with black-purple perianth constituted another highly supported clade. Phylogenetic inference on flower color evolution suggested that white-to-green perianth was a plesiomorphic state and black-purple perianth was apomorphic for Veratrum. When species distribution areas were traced as a multi-state character, parsimonious optimization inferred that Veratrum possibly originated in East Asia. Our study confirmed previous phylogenetic and taxonomic suggestions on this genus and provided a typical example of plant radiation across the Northern Hemisphere.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available