Abstract
Information on the spatial distribution of cytotypes and karyotype variation in plants is critical for studies of the origin and evolution of polyploid complexes. Here, the spatial distribution of cytological races and intraspecific variation in the karyotype of Lycoris radiata, an endemic species to East Asia, is investigated. Conventional karyotype analysis methods were used to determine ploidy level and karyotypical characteristics in 2,420 individuals from 114 populations of L. radiata nearly covering the whole distribution areas in China. Of 114 populations studied, 52 (45.61%), 58 (50.88%), and 4 (3.51%) are diploid, triploid, and mixoploid populations, respectively, with 1,224, 1,195, and 1 individuals being diploid, triploid, and tetraploid, respectively. The triploid possesses a much wider distribution range than the diploid, with the former almost occupying the entire range of this complex species in East Asia and the latter distributing in the middle and east regions of China. Triploids tend to occur at high altitudes, and the relationship between the ploidy and altitude is significantly positive but low (r 2 = 0.103, p < 0.01). About 98.6% of examined bulbs have a common karyotype consisting of 22 or 33 acrocentric (A) chromosomes. Some aberrant chromosomes which should be generated from A‐type chromosome have been found including metacentrics (m), small metacentrics (m′), and B‐type chromosome. The results can provide a fundamental cytogeographic data for further studies on the evolutionary origins and adaptive divergences of polyploids, especially the triploid, within L. radiata using molecular and/or ecological methods in the future.
Highlights
Lycoris radiata (L'Hérit.) Herb. (Amaryllidaceae) is a perennial, bul‐ bous plant distributed from southwestern China eastward to Japan and South Korea, and is one of the most widely distributed species in genus Lycoris (Hsu, Kurita, Yu, & Lin, 1994)
Since 1920s when the chromosome number of this taxon was first counted (Nishiyama, 1928), much work has been done on the chromosome number and karyotype of this species, on the Japanese islands and East China (Bose, 1963; Kurita, 1987; Liu, Zheng, Xia, & Zhou, 2016; Qin, Zhou, & Wang, 2004; Shao, Yang, Zhang, & Nie, 1994; Zhou et al, 2004; Zhou, Yu, Luo, Hu, & Bi, 2007)
The main chromosome numbers observed in this species complex are as follows: 2n = 21, 22, 32, 33, and 44 corresponding to the abnormal diploid, diploid, abnormal triploid, triploid, and tet‐ raploid levels, respectively (Liu et al, 2016; Shi, Qiu, Li, Wu, & Fu, 2006)
Summary
Lycoris radiata (L'Hérit.) Herb. (Amaryllidaceae) is a perennial, bul‐ bous plant distributed from southwestern China eastward to Japan and South Korea, and is one of the most widely distributed species in genus Lycoris (Hsu, Kurita, Yu, & Lin, 1994). Cytogeographic patterns on the Japanese islands and South Korea have been depicted clearly, based on 58 and 11 populations of L. radiata, respectively, and only triploids were discovered in Japan and South Korea (Chung, 1999; Kurita, 1987). As part of a broader investigation into the chromosomal varia‐ tion and evolution of Lycoris species, our objective in this study was to examine the diversity and distribution of L. radiata cytotypes in China. In order to exactly reveal the geographical distribution patterns of each cytotype of L. radiata complex in East Asia, we choose 43 previously published populations with precise chromosome number data and geographical location or longitude and latitude information, of which 7 populations (Liu et al, 2016), 29 populations (Kurita, 1987), and 7 populations (Chung, 1999) were from China, Japan, and South Korea, respectively. 157 populations with exact ploidy data were mapped using ArcMap 10.0
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