Abstract
The chromosomes of 15 species of Iridaceae of the genera Alophia, Cipura, Eleutherine, Neomarica and Trimezia (subfamily Iridoideae) were examined after conventional Giemsa staining. The karyotypes of Alophia drummondii (2n = 14+1B, 28, 42 and 56), Cipura paludosa (2n = 14), C. xanthomelas (2n = 28) and Eleutherine bulbosa (2n = 12) were asymmetric; Neomarica candida, N. caerulea, N. humilis, N. glauca, N. gracilis, N. northiana and Neomarica sp. (2n = 18); N. cf. paradoxa (2n = 28), Trimezia fosteriana (2n = 52), T. martinicensis (2n = 54) and T. connata (2n = 82) were all generally symmetric. New diploid numbers of 2n = 56 for Alophia drummondii, 2n = 18 for N. candida, N. humilis, N. glauca, and N. gracilis, 2n = 28 for N. cf. paradoxa, and 2n = 82 for T. connata are reported. The karyotypic evolution of the studied species is discussed.
Highlights
The monocot family Iridaceae comprises approximately 2050 species distributed among 67 genera, with a major center of radiation in the southern African Sahara (Goldblatt et al, 2008)
Iridaceae is divided into seven subfamilies (Goldblatt et al, 2008); the subfamily Iridoideae, the subject of the present work, is composed of four tribes and includes many exotic species that are cultivated as ornamental plants or to harvest saffron, especially those from the genera Gladiolus, Neomarica, Crocus and Trimezia (Lorenzi and Souza, 2001)
In the present study we investigated the mechanisms of chromosome evolution in different groups of Iridaceae from northeastern Brazil by examining the chromosome morphologies of 15 species from five genera of the tribes Trimezieae and Tigrideae (Iridoideae)
Summary
The monocot family Iridaceae comprises approximately 2050 species distributed among 67 genera, with a major center of radiation in the southern African Sahara (Goldblatt et al, 2008). Iridaceae is divided into seven subfamilies (Goldblatt et al, 2008); the subfamily Iridoideae, the subject of the present work, is composed of four tribes and includes many exotic species that are cultivated as ornamental plants or to harvest saffron, especially those from the genera Gladiolus, Neomarica, Crocus and Trimezia (Lorenzi and Souza, 2001). This family is relatively well studied in terms of its cytology, especially the Old World taxa, with diploid numbers reported for 1330 species (almost 65% of the total in the family). This shortage of data represents an important gap in our knowledge of chromosome variation among the Brazilian representatives of this family and in our understanding of the mechanisms of karyotype evolution in this plant group
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