Abstract
Sea Buckthorn population from Újpest Nature Reserve, the only one assumed to be native in Hungary sustains at the periphery of Budapest city on the sandy substrate deposited by the Danube river. The study aims to characterize the gene stock preserved on this small edaphic habitat by comparing with the genetic material of planted specimens of known origin used in horticultural and gardening practice. Fragment length variations of seven nuclear microsatellite markers were evaluated and a phylogenetic tree was constructed based on sequence variation of an intron from nuclear gene encoding the chalcone synthase enzyme. Gender rate was evaluated by female specific SCAR marker. Microsatellite analysis pointed out the extremely low variation of the natural sea buckthorn population from Újpest Nature Reserve compared to the cultivated specimens, while the phylogenetic tree revealed that the natural population belongs to the genetic lineage distributed mostly in Western and Middle-Europe, and in Romania, region, which has strong links to the Balkan and the Black Sea. The analysis clearly separated the genetic material of the native Újpest population from the planted individuals from the vicinity that proved to be of allochthonous origin. The HrX2 SCAR marker revealed the dominance of the males (1:1.42). The study provides support for the autochthonous origin of the Hungarian remnant population being in reproductive isolation that suggest for its long persistence and relict status. Ex situ conservation and nature protection measures are highly recommended to maintain one of the last native sea buckthorn populations of the Pannonian region.
 
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 In press - Online First. Article has been peer reviewed, accepted for publication and published online without pagination. It will receive pagination when the issue will be ready for publishing as a complete number (Volume 47, Issue 3, 2019). The article is searchable and citable by Digital Object Identifier (DOI). DOI link will become active after the article will be included in the complete issue.
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Highlights
Microsatellite analysis pointed out the extremely low variation of the natural sea buckthorn population from Újpest Nature Reserve compared to the cultivated specimens, while the phylogenetic tree revealed that the natural population belongs to the genetic lineage distributed mostly in Western and Middle-Europe, and in Romania, region, which has strong links to the Balkan and the Black Sea
The genus Hippophae - belonging to the Eleagnaceae family, commonly known as sea buckthorn comprises seven species: H. rhamnoides, H. goniocarpa, H. neurocarpa, H. litangensis, H. gyantsensis, H. salicifolia and H. tibetana (Sun et al, 2002)
Since the Hungarian sea buckthorn population represents a valuable and prominent natural gene reserve of the species in East-Central Europe, the goal of our study was to characterize and estimate the genetic assessment of genotypes survived in the small edaphic sandy habitat of Újpest, and to evaluate the remnant genetic material in comparison to planted specimens used in the horticultural practice and to reported European accessions using different molecular markers
Summary
The genus Hippophae - belonging to the Eleagnaceae family, commonly known as sea buckthorn comprises seven species: H. rhamnoides, H. goniocarpa, H. neurocarpa, H. litangensis, H. gyantsensis, H. salicifolia and H. tibetana (Sun et al, 2002). The area of the buckthorn species covers the Quinghai-Tibetan plateau and adjacent areas, except H. rhamnoides, which is widely distributed both in Asia and Europe (Bartish et al, 2000, 2002; Jia et al, 2012). The protected area called sea buckthorn Nature Reserve of Újpest (Gadó and Kerényi-Nagy, 2012), was established in 1999 with the primary scope of preserving the last remnants of the native Hungarian sea buckthorn gene stock. This pioneer shrub has a great importance in sustaining the local ecosystem of the open sandy grassland characterized by a series of perennial species specific for the Pannonian lowland area. Nature protection activities are of high importance to hinder ongoing secondary succession that
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