Abstract
Almond resources are widely distributed in Central Asia; its distribution has not been studied in detail. Based on the first-hand data of field investigation, climate variables and chloroplast genome data, climatic characteristics of six almond species in China were analyzed, and the global distribution and evolutionary relationship were predicted. The six almond species are concentrated between 27.99°N and 60.47°N. Different almond species have different climatic characteristics. The climate of the almond species distribution has its characteristics, and the distribution of almond species was consistent with the fatty acid cluster analysis. All the test AUC (area under curve) values of MaxEnt model were larger than 0.92. The seven continents except for Antarctica contain suitable areas for the six almond species, and such areas account for approximately 8.08% of the total area of these six continents. Based on the analysis of chloroplast DNA and the distribution characteristics, the evolutionary relationship of the six almond species was proposed, which indicated that China was not the origin of almond. In this study, the construction of a phylogenetic tree based on the chloroplast genome and the characteristics of geographical distribution were constructed. The six almond species in China may have evolved from “Unknown almond species” through two routes. The MaxEnt model for each almond species provided satisfactory results. The prediction results can provide the important reference for Prunus dulcis cultivation, wild almond species development and protection.
Highlights
IntroductionResearch into the temperate fruit crops requires the integration of both basic and applied aspects of plant physiology, ecology and genetics (Eyduran et al, 2015; Olak et al, 2019; Životicet al., 2019)
Fruit species are adding value of earth’s diversity and fundamental to all life
The aims of this study were to (1) obtain the current global spatiotemporal distribution information of six almond species; (2) determine the important environmental variables that are highly correlated with the potential distribution range of the six almond species; (3) predict the potential global distribution; and (4) construct a phylogenetic analysis based on the chloroplast genome of the six almond species
Summary
Research into the temperate fruit crops requires the integration of both basic and applied aspects of plant physiology, ecology and genetics (Eyduran et al, 2015; Olak et al, 2019; Životicet al., 2019). Almond [Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. Webb] is one of the most important tree nut crop in terms of commercial production. Distribution of Almond Resources (Prunus mongolica Maxim.). All wild almond species are highly adapted to cold and dry climates, which may be a commercially important gene pool. Wild almond genetic resources have attracted much attention for their nut chemical compositions and possible uses (Sorkheh et al, 2016; Wang et al, 2018b, 2019). It is of great significance to investigate the almond geographical and climatic characteristics, and to evaluate their potential distribution areas and their evolutionary relationships for effective utilization and preservation
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