Abstract
BackgroundThe present work aimed to investigate the genetic structure of 11 edible herbs grown in the wild of eastern Crete that are becoming vulnerable due to habitat destruction and unregulated harvesting. Thirty three populations (268 individuals) of Reichardia picroides, Scolymus hispanicus, Scandix pecten-veneris, Leontodon tuberosus, Cichorium spinosum, Sonchus asper ssp. glaucescens, Urospermum picroides, Prasium majus, Hypochoeris radicata, Centaurea raphanina ssp. raphanina and Anagallis arvensis were collected and identified from nine regions with distinct microclimate (Lassithi prefecture), and their genetic composition was studied by means of RAPD markers.ResultsA total of ten primers per population were used to detect genetic diversity and bootstrap analysis was conducted for clustering the samples. High levels of heterogeneity were revealed while the Analysis of Molecular Variance documented that variance was allocated mainly within populations and at a lesser extent among populations. Fst values among regions were moderate to high, suggesting partial population fragmentation. Bayesian structure analysis revealed fine genetic composition and substantial admixture between species present in different regions, although clustering was mainly geographically related.ConclusionsHigh altitude regions, with little residential and agricultural development (Kefala, Agrilos, Ziros and Tziritis), were the areas where high biodiversity was detected. On the other hand, coastal regions had lower biodiversity, probably due to degradation of their habitat.
Highlights
The present work aimed to investigate the genetic structure of 11 edible herbs grown in the wild of eastern Crete that are becoming vulnerable due to habitat destruction and unregulated harvesting
We aimed to address: a) the extent of genetic diversity of the sampled populations, b) the within and between population genetic diversity, and c) the genetic structure of species/populations related to their distribution
Mean heterozygosity (Table 3) was higher in S. hispanicus (0.271 ± 0.017), C. raphanina Sm. ssp. raphanina (0.253 ± 0.013) and H. radicata (0.246 ± 0.016), while the lowest values were recorded for A. arvensis (0.182 ± 0.012), S. asper subsp. glaucescens (0.181 ± 0.009) and P. majus (0.140 ± 0.008)
Summary
The present work aimed to investigate the genetic structure of 11 edible herbs grown in the wild of eastern Crete that are becoming vulnerable due to habitat destruction and unregulated harvesting. Glaucescens, Urospermum picroides, Prasium majus, Hypochoeris radicata, Centaurea raphanina ssp. Raphanina and Anagallis arvensis were collected and identified from nine regions with distinct microclimate (Lassithi prefecture), and their genetic composition was studied by means of RAPD markers. Greece is a country where more than six thousand plant species are listed, from which almost 500 of them are indigenous. Low plant species homogeneity exists among different regions of Crete. This has been attributed to the natural geographical barriers, such as high mountains, and the different microclimates between the island’s regions [1]. Due to its geographical location, Lassithi in particular presents a unique flora, being in the eastern part of Crete and at the most southern part of Europe
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