Angiosperm Phylogeny Group Classification Research Articles

Ecological and structural differentiation of the Sudanian woodlands in the Biosphere Reserve of Pendjari, Benin

Aims: This study aims to: i) differentiate the plant associations in the Biosphere Reserve of Pendjari (BRP), ii) determine the ecological characteristics of their habitats and iii) present distribution maps on different soil types. Study area: The BRP, located in the Sudanian Zone of Benin. Methods: 202 phytosociological relevés were sampled according to the Braun-Blanquet method within the BRP. Ordination was performed using Detrended Correspondence Analysis to evaluate vegetation patterns. Soil parameters were used to characterize the vegetation types. Results: The numerical analysis of 202 plots and 249 plant species showed two major floristic groups that correlated with a moisture gradient: drylands versus wetlands. The dryland group was a mixture of woodland and shrub savanna, the dominant ecosystems of the study area. The wetland group encompassed species primarily from riparian forest, tree savanna and grass savanna on floodplains. Syntaxonomical analysis of the dryland group showed rocky and gravelly soil associations (Burkeo africanae-Detarietum microcarpi) and soils associated with or without fine gravels (Andropogono gayani-Terminalietum avicennioidis, Andropogono gayani-Senegalietum dudgeonii and Terminalietum leiocarpae). Syntaxonomical analysis of the wetland group showed riparian forest associations on sandy-clay soil (Coletum laurifoliae, Borassetum aethiopi and Hyparrhenio glabriusculae-Mitragynetum inermis) and floodplain associations on silt-clay soil (Terminalio macropterae-Mitragynetum inermis, Brachiario jubatae-Terminalietum macropterae, Sorghastro bipennati-Vachellietum hockii). Conclusions: Eleven new associations were identified in this study. If the distribution of plant associations was determined by different soil properties, the soil humidity would be one of the main ecological factors determining the establishment of plant species and thus plant association development. Taxonomic reference: Akoègninou et al. (2006), Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants (APG IV, 2016). Abbreviations: BRP = Biosphere Reserve of Pendjari; CBD = Convention on Biological Diversity; CCA = Constrained Correspondence Analysis; DCA = Detrended Correspondence Analysis; GPS UTM = Global Positioning System Universal Transverse Mercator.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Camellia nitidissima (Theaceae)

The mitochondrial genome of Camellia nitidissima was sequenced by Illumina and Pacbio sequencing. The results of sequences showed that a total length was 949,915 bp, and the GC content was 45.7% in assembled mitochondrial genome of C. nitidissima. 71 unigenes had been found, including 36 coding proteins and 35 non-coding proteins. Subsequently, the phylogenetic tree was built on 24 plants with the maximum-likelihood method, which had high bootstrap value and fited to the angiosperm phylogeny group classification (APG IV). The study’s findings unravel the taxonomic status of C. nitidissima and benefit the evolution study.

Genome Sequencing of the Endangered Kingdonia uniflora (Circaeasteraceae, Ranunculales) Reveals Potential Mechanisms of Evolutionary Specialization.

SummaryKingdonia uniflora, an alpine herb, has an extremely narrow distribution and represents a model for studying evolutionary mechanisms of species that have adapted to undisturbed environments for evolutionarily long periods of time. We assembled a 1,004.7-Mb draft genome (encoding 43,301 genes) of K. uniflora and found significant overrepresentation in gene families associated with DNA repair, underrepresentation in gene families associated with stress response, and loss of most plastid ndh genes. During the evolutionary process, the overrepresentation of gene families involved in DNA repair could help asexual K. uniflora reduce the accumulation of deleterious mutations, while reducing genetic diversity, which is important in responding to environment fluctuations. The underrepresentation of gene families related to stress response and functional loss of ndh genes could be due to lack or loss of ability to respond to environmental changes caused by long-term adaptation to a relatively stable ecological environment.

A comprehensive, genus-level time-calibrated phylogeny of the tree flora of Mediterranean Europe and an assessment of its vulnerability

ABSTRACT We produced the first time-calibrated phylogeny of all 64 native tree genera occurring on the European side of the Mediterranean Basin. This phylogeny is based on 3 plastid DNA sequences (rbcL matK and trnH-psbA), 4 recognized fossil dates and 10 secondary calibrations. Based on the inferred topology, we then tested whether the investigated tree flora exhibits phylogenetic clustering in both life-history traits known to influence reproduction and species’ vulnerability to extinction. Our topology and the estimated dates mostly conform to published partial phylogenies and are highly congruent with the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification except for some minor incongruences including the still debated phylogenetic position of Magnoliids. The four strictly endemic genera of the Mediterranean Basin (Chamaerops, Phillyrea, Spartium and Tetraclinis) all showed emergence dates (11–72 Ma) long before the onset of the Mediterranean climate. We did not find any imprints of phylogenetic sorting processes on the life-history traits we studied, except for the mode of seed dispersal, which showed a clustered distribution across our topology. The presence of species at risk of potential extinction within a given genus was randomly distributed along the phylogenetic tree. Species with deficient data were significantly nested within a few of the most recently evolved angiosperm genera. Our analysis closes knowledge gaps and provides a valuable basis for studying the biogeographical and ecological processes that have generated the Mediterranean tree flora. It can also inform conservation planning strategies that aim at broadening traditional taxonomy-focused perspectives with components of evolutionary history and phylogenetic singularity.

Effects of Nitrogen Dioxide on Biochemical Responses in 41 Garden Plants.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) at a high concentration is among the most common and harmful air pollutants. The present study aimed to explore the physiological responses of plants exposed to NO2. A total of 41 plants were classified into 13 functional groups according to the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification system. The plants were exposed to 6 μL/L NO2 in an open-top glass chamber. The physiological parameters (chlorophyll (Chl) content, peroxidase (POD) activity, and soluble protein and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations) and leaf mineral ion contents (nitrogen (N+), phosphorus (P+), potassium (K+), calcium (Ca2+), magnesium (Mg2+), manganese (Mn2+), and zinc (Zn2+)) of 41 garden plants were measured. After NO2 exposure, the plants were subsequently transferred to a natural environment for a 30-d recovery to determine whether they could recover naturally and resume normal growth. The results showed that NO2 polluted the plants and that NO2 exposure affected leaf Chl contents in most functional groups. Increases in both POD activity and soluble protein and MDA concentrations as well as changes in mineral ion concentrations could act as signals for inducing defense responses. Furthermore, antioxidant status played an important role in plant protection against NO2-induced oxidative damage. NO2 poses a pollution risk to plant systems, and antioxidant status plays an important role in plant protection against NO2-induced oxidative damage. In conditions of strong air pollution, more evergreen plants may be considered in landscape design, particularly in seasonal regions. The results of this study may provide useful data for the selection of landscaping plants in NO2 polluted areas.

Angiosperm Phylogeny Group Classification in Fourth Iteration: Its Future Impact in India

The communication discusses major changes in the new version of APG classification and its adoption in India. APG IV has further stabilized with addition of 2 informal groups, 5 new orders, 10 new families, re-circumscription of 20 earlier families and reduction in number of unplaced taxa. A comparison of APG versions with 4 recent individual classifications proves it more stable. A circle-in-circle diagram and a simplified cladogram of the classification are devised to make it easy to understand. Adoption of APG IV is visible in the world but Indian taxonomic institutions are sceptical for its changing nature. In a country where Linnaean Taxonomy is dominant, species richness is high, flora is incompletely explored and published, adoption of APG classification in flora or herbaria will jeopardize the progress. It seems that morphological taxonomy will remain dominant and APG IV will be mainly a topic of classroom teaching in India.

Preliminary study on phytogeography of Dipterocarpaceae Blume family in Vietnam

Biogeographically mapping flora of Vietnam requires the studies on the distribution of some important species groups for identifying the typical species composition of each phytochorion. The Dipterocarpaceae family contains taxa originated in tropical Asia and its subfamily of Dipterocarpoideae is proved to have Southeast Asia origin. In Vietnam, this family includes 43 species in 7 genera. In this study, Dipterocarpaceae species from 645 sites in Vietnam are assessed and compared to those in over the world. In Vietnam, this family distributes in tropical and/or slightly passing to subtropical climate but none of its species is naturally found in the Red River and the Mekong River deltas. In the world, the Dipterocarpaceae species found in Vietnam concentrated distributes in Indochina floristic region, corresponding to the originative area of South Myanmar. Statistically, there are 12 endemic species for the Indochinese floristic region and five of them are endemic for four provinces of this region related to Vietnam, respectively as follows: South China - 1, North Indochina - 1, South Indochina - 2 and Annam - 1. Additionally, some species distribute in East Asia floristic region of Holarctic Kingdom because of expanding the distribution area from the Indochinese floristic region. All genera of this family in Vietnam were originated in the Indochinese floristic region. Moreover, the floristic data and phytogeographical phylogeny diagram, based on analyses of phytogeography and DNA, would be better to use for finding out the distributional source or the forming time of species or genus, then the phylogenetic diagram.ReferencesAngiosperm Phylogeny Group, 2009. An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 161(2), 105-121. Ashton P.S., 1982. Dipterocarpaceae. In: Van Steenis C.G.G.J., 1979-1983, Flora Malesiana. Dipterocarpaceae. Martinus Nijhoff Publisher, The Hague, London, 9(2), 250p. Averyanov L.V., Phan K.L., Nguyen T.H., Harder D.K., 2003. Phytogeographic review of Vietnam and adjacent areas of Eastern Indochina, Komarovia, Saint Petersburg, 3, 1-83. Kress W.J., DeFilipps R.A., Farr E. and Yin D.Y.K., 2003. A checklist of the trees, shrubs, herbs and climbers of Myanmar. National Museum of Nature History, Washington DC, 45, 1-590. Le Tran Chan (Editor), 1999. Some characteristics of the flora of Vietnam. Science and Technique publishing house, Hanoi, 305p (Vietnamese). Li X.W., Li J., Ashton P.S., 2007. Dipterocarpaceae. In: Wu Z.Y., Raven P.H. (Hrsg.). Flora of China. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, 13, 48-54. Nguyen Hoang Nghia, 2005. Dipterocarps of Vietnam. Agriculture Publishing House, Hanoi, 100p. Nguyen Kim Dao, 2003. “Dipterocarpceae Blume, 1825” in Checklist Plant species of Vietnam. Agricultural Publishing House, Hanoi, 2, 328-340 (Vietnamese). Nguyen Nga Phi, 2009. Molecular phylogeny of Southeast-Asian Dipterocarps belonging to tribe Dipterocarpeae (family Dipterocarpaceae) based on non-coding sequence data of chloroplast and nuclear DNA. Department of Forest Genetics and Georest Tree Breeding, Büsgen Institute, Faculty of Forest Science and Forest Ecology, Georg-August University of Göttingen. Göttingen, 142p. Nguyen Nghia Thin, 2004. Methods in Botanical Research. HNU publishing house, Hanoi, 172p (Vietnamese). Pham Hoang Ho, 2001. Illustration Flora of Vietnam, Youth Publishing House. Ho Chi Minh City, 2, 1022p (Vietnamese). Smitinand T., 1969. The distribution of Dipterocarpaceae in Thailand. National History Bull. Siam Soci., 23, 67-75. Smitinand T., J.E. Vidal, P.H. Ho, 1990. Flore du Cambodge, du Laos et du Vietnam, 25, Diptérocarpacées. Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 123p (French). Takhtajan A. (Translated by Theodore J. Crovello), 1986. Floristic Regions of the World. University of California Press, 544p. Thai Van Trung, 1978. Tropical Forest Ecology systems of Vietnam. Science and Technique publishing house, Hanoi, 314p (Vietnamese). The Plant List (Version 1.1.), 2013. Dipterocarpaceae. http://www.theplantlist.org.

An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG IV

A revised and updated classification for the families of the flowering plants is provided. Newly adopted orders include Austrobaileyales, Canellales, Gunnerales, Crossosomatales and Celastrales. Pertinent literature published since the first APG classification is included, such that many additional families are now placed in the phylogenetic scheme. Among these are Hydnoraceae (Piperales), Nartheciaceae (Dioscoreales), Corsiaceae (Liliales), Triuridaceae (Pandanales), Hanguanaceae (Commelinales), Bromeliacae, Mayacaceae and Rapateaceae (all Poales), Barbeuiaceae and Gisekiaceae (both Caryophyllales), Geissolomataceae, Strasburgeriaceae and Vitaceae (unplaced to order, but included in the rosids), Zygophyllaceae (unplaced to order, but included in eurosids I), Bonnetiaceae, Ctenolophonaceae, Elatinaceae, Ixonanthaceae, Lophopyxidaceae, Podostemaceae (Malpighiales), Paracryphiaceae (unplaced in euasterid II), Sladeniaceae, Pentaphylacaceae (Ericales) and Cardiopteridaceae (Aquifoliales). Several major families are recircumscribed. Salicaceae are expanded to include a large part of Flacourtiaceae, including the type genus of that family; another portion of former Flacourtiaceae is assigned to an expanded circumscription of Achariaceae. Euphorbiaceae are restricted to the uniovulate subfamilies; Phyllanthoideae are recognized as Phyllanthaceae and Oldfieldioideae as Picrodendraceae. Scrophulariaceae are recircumscribed to include Buddlejaceae and Myoporaceae and exclude several former members; these are assigned to Calceolariaceae, Orobanchaceae and Plantaginaceae. We expand the use of bracketing families that could be included optionally in broader circumscriptions with other related families; these include Agapanthaceae and Amaryllidaceae in Alliaceae s.l. , Agavaceae, Hyacinthaceae and Ruscaceae (among many other Asparagales) in Asparagaceae s.l. , Dichapetalaceae in Chrysobalanaceae, Turneraceae in Passifloraceae, Erythroxylaceae in Rhizophoraceae, and Diervillaceae, Dipsacaceae, Linnaeaceae, Morinaceae and Valerianaceae in Caprifoliaceae s.l. © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2003, 141 , 399‐436.

Application of chemometric analysis to infrared spectroscopy for the identification of wood origin

In this study, the chemical characteristics of wood are used for plant taxonomic classification based on the current Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification (APG III System) for the division, class and subclass of woody plants. Infrared spectra contain information about the molecular structure and intermolecular interactions among the components in wood, but the understanding of this information requires multivariate techniques for the analysis of highly dense data sets. This article is written with the purposes of specifying the chemical differences among taxonomic groups and predicting the taxa of unknown samples with a mathematical model. Principal component analysis, t test, stepwise discriminant analysis and linear discriminant analysis were some of the multivariate techniques chosen. A procedure to determine the division, class, subclass and order of unknown samples was built with promising implications for future applications of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in wood taxonomy classification.

Hunting and hallucinogens: The use psychoactive and other plants to improve the hunting ability of dogs

Ethnopharmacological relevanceCultures throughout the world give plants to their dogs in order to improve hunting success. These practices are best developed in lowland Ecuador and Peru. There is no experimental evidence for the efficacy of these practices nor critical reviews that consider possible pharmacological effects on dogs based on the chemistry of the ethnoverterinary plants. AimThis review has three specific aims: (1) determine what plants the Ecuadorian Shuar and Quichua give to dogs to improve their hunting abilities, (2) determine what plants other cultures give to dogs for the same purpose, and (3) assess the possible pharmacological basis for the use of these plants, particularly the psychoactive ones. MethodsWe gathered Shuar (Province of Morona-Santiago) and Quichua (Napo and Orellano Provinces) data from our previous publications and field notes. All specimens were vouchered and deposited in QCNE with duplicates sent to NY and MO. Data presented from other cultures derived from published studies on ethnoveterinary medicine. Species names were updated, when necessary, and family assignments follow APG III (Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, 2009. An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 161, 105–121). Chemical data were found using PubMed and SciFinder. ResultsThe Shuar and Quichua of Ecuador use at least 22 species for ethnoveterinary purposes, including all but one of their principal hallucinogens. Literature surveys identified 43 species used in other cultures to improve hunting ability. No published studies have examined the pharmacological active of these plant species in dogs. We, thus, combined phytochemical data with the ethnobotanical reports of each plant and then classified each species into a likely pharmacological category: depuratives/deodorant, olfactory sensitizer, ophthalmic, or psychoactive. ConclusionsThe use of psychoactive substances to improve a dog׳s hunting ability seems counterintuitive, yet its prevalence suggests that it is both adaptive and that it has an underlying pharmacological explanation. We hypothesize that hallucinogenic plants alter perception in hunting dogs by diminishing extraneous signals and by enhancing sensory perception (most likely olfaction) that is directly involved in the detection and capture of game. If this is true, plant substances also might enhance the ability of dogs to detect explosives, drugs, human remains, or other targets for which they are valued.

Distribution and content of ellagitannins in Finnish plant species

The results of a screening study, in which a total of 82 Finnish plant species were studied for their ellagitannin composition and content, are presented. The total ellagitannin content was determined by HPLC-DAD, the detected ellagitannins were further characterized by HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS and divided into four structurally different sub-groups. Thirty plant species were found to contain ellagitannins and the ellagitannin content in the crude extracts varied from few mgg−1 to over a hundred mgg−1. Plant families that were rich in ellagitannins (>90mgg−1 of the crude extract) were Onagraceae, Lyhtraceae, Geraniaceae, Elaeagnaceae, Fagaceae and some species from Rosaceae. Plant species that contained moderate amounts of ellagitannins (31–89mgg−1 of the crude extract) were representatives of the family Rosaceae. Plant species that contained low amounts of ellagitannins (1–30mgg−1 of the crude extract) were representatives of the families Betulaceae and Myricaceae. The specific ellagitannin composition of the species allowed their chemotaxonomic classification and the comparison between the older Cronquist’s classification and the nowadays preferred Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification.

Conspectus of angiosperm phylogeny group classification and its application to flowering plants of India

This article presents an overview of Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification, its genesis and culmination to APG III. An analysis of the 413 families recognized in APG III revealed that 259 families are represented in India. It is hoped that this article may initiate the option of arranging the specimens in Indian herbaria following APG classification and would facilitate teachers and students in knowing the current and advanced phylogenetic system of classification.

Petenaeaceae, a new angiosperm family in Huerteales with a distant relationship to Gerrardina (Gerrardinaceae)

Petenaea cordata (from northern Central America) was first described in Elaeocarpaceae and later placed in Tiliaceae, but most authors have been uncertain about its familial affinities. It was considered a taxon incertae sedis in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification (APG III). A recent collection was made in Guatemala, and analysis of both rbcL and atpB in the large Soltis et al. angiosperm matrix, the most completely sampled study published to date, indicated a moderately supported relationship to Tapiscia (Tapisciaceae, the only member of the newly recognized order Huerteales in this matrix; 81% bootstrap support). We then conducted a more restricted analysis using the Bayer et al. rbcL/atpB matrix for Malvales supplemented with the other genera of Huerteales from published studies. Our results indicate a distant, weakly supported sister-group relationship to the African genus Gerrardina (Gerrardinaceae; Huerteales). After comparison of the characters cited in the literature and an examination of herbarium material of both genera, we could find no obvious synapomorphies for Gerrardina and Petenaea or any other relationship of the latter, and we therefore propose the new monogeneric family, Petenaeaceae. The polymorphic order Huerteales now comprises four small families: Dipentodontaceae, Gerrardinaceae, Petenaeaceae and Tapisciaceae. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 164, 16–25.

The Linear Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (LAPG) III: a linear sequence of the families in APG III

The publication of the third Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) classification (APG III. 2009. An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society161: 128–131) has resulted in the need for a revised systematic listing of the accepted families. This linear APG III (LAPG III) sequence of families is presented here. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 161, 128–131.

An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III

A revised and updated classification for the families of flowering plants is provided. Many recent studies have yielded increasingly detailed evidence for the positions of formerly unplaced families, resulting in a number of newly adopted orders, including Amborellales, Berberidopsidales, Bruniales, Buxales, Chloranthales, Escalloniales, Huerteales, Nymphaeales, Paracryphiales, Petrosaviales, Picramniales, Trochodendrales, Vitales and Zygophyllales. A number of previously unplaced genera and families are included here in orders, greatly reducing the number of unplaced taxa; these include Hydatellaceae (Nymphaeales), Haptanthaceae (Buxales), Peridiscaceae (Saxifragales), Huaceae (Oxalidales), Centroplacaceae and Rafflesiaceae (both Malpighiales), Aphloiaceae, Geissolomataceae and Strasburgeriaceae (all Crossosomatales), Picramniaceae (Picramniales), Dipentodontaceae and Gerrardinaceae (both Huerteales), Cytinaceae (Malvales), Balanophoraceae (Santalales), Mitrastemonaceae (Ericales) and Boraginaceae (now at least known to be a member of lamiid clade). Newly segregated families for genera previously understood to be in other APG-recognized families include Petermanniaceae (Liliales), Calophyllaceae (Malpighiales), Capparaceae and Cleomaceae (both Brassicales), Schoepfiaceae (Santalales), Anacampserotaceae, Limeaceae, Lophiocarpaceae, Montiaceae and Talinaceae (all Caryophyllales) and Linderniaceae and Thomandersiaceae (both Lamiales). Use of bracketed families is abandoned because of its unpopularity, and in most cases the broader circumscriptions are retained; these include Amaryllidaceae, Asparagaceace and Xanthorrheaceae (all Asparagales), Passifloraceae (Malpighiales), Primulaceae (Ericales) and several other smaller families. Separate papers in this same volume deal with a new linear order for APG, subfamilial names that can be used for more accurate communication in Amaryllidaceae s.l., Asparagaceace s.l. and Xanthorrheaceae s.l. (all Asparagales) and a formal supraordinal classification for the flowering plants.

Coevolution with higher taxonomic host groups within the Puccinia/Uromyces rust lineage obscured by host jumps

Partial ß-tubulin 1 sequence data were obtained for 80 taxa of Pucciniaceae, with hosts from 33 angiosperm families, covering all major ordinal groups in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification. As in previous studies, most species of Puccinia and Uromyces fell into two main clades (I and II), with P. glechomatis and P. psidii excluded from Pucciniaceae. Results suggest two processes; a coevolution of and hosts in each clade, as well as associated frequent jumps to ecologically close, but taxonomically distant, hosts. Clade I contained all rusts on Cyperaceae and Juncaceae, and most rusts on host orders from rosids to euasterids II. Clade II contained all rusts on Poaceae, and most on host orders from monocots to core eudicots. In both main clades, several well-supported subclades were identified. The grouping in clade I, subclade E of rusts of Cyperaceae and Asteraceae and, in particular, of an Australian isolate of P. dioicae with rusts on Australian families of Asterales, suggested a local radiation, and supported the coevolutionary relationship between rusts on these two families seen with a different range of asteraceous rusts in the Northern Hemisphere. In clade I, two clades contained only rusts of Asteraceae and Fabaceae, respectively, and in clade II, subclade F contained only rusts of pooid hosts. Rusts on non-pooid hosts were separated from them in subclade G. Other subclades contained a range of rusts on distantly related angiosperm families. Urediniospore morphology was often, but not always, correlated with the molecular phylogeny. Most rusts with urediniospores having few (1–5) equatorial germ pores were in clade I, whereas most with spores having several (5–14) scattered pores were in clade II. The distribution of telial host families on the ß-tubulin rust phylogeny was not random. Aecial hosts of heteroecious rusts played an important role in the evolutionary process. Possible examples of host jumps were seen in rusts on Geraniaceae, Polygonaceae, and Apiaceae. Despite such jumps obscuring past host associations, possible ancestral hosts were identified by the pattern of host distribution at higher taxonomic levels along the ß-tubulin phylogeny. Results suggest that clade I diverged with Cyperaceae, Juncaceae, and the more advanced core eudicot orders (rosids and asterids), whereas clade II diversified with earlier angiosperm groups, such as monocots, Poaceae, and Ranunculales. Qualified support was given to the hypothesis that rusts can reveal taxonomic relationships between their hosts, at genus, family, and ordinal levels.

An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG II

An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG II

Taxonomic Significance of Polyhydroxyalkaloids in the Myrtaceae

Summary. Chemotaxonomic studies of the Myrtaceae have previously centred on chemotypes within species, using phenolics and volatile leaf oils. However, few genera have been studied in any detail. A wide-ranging survey of polyhydroxyalkaloids (PHAs) in the Myrtaceae led to the identification of fourteen PHAs from three structural subclasses. These compounds have a non-random distribution within the Myrtaceae. The genera of the three subtribes of the Myrtoideae differ in their PHA profiles. PHAs are almost ubiquitous and very diverse in the Eugeniinae and are also diverse in both species of the genus Luma. The Myrtaceae is a large family of c. 130 genera, with an estimated 4700 species of trees and shrubs, whose habitats range from tropical to subtropical regions (Schmid 1980). There are two main centres of diversity within the family: South America and Australasia. Traditionally, most authors have divided the Myrtaceae into the capsular-fruited Leptospermoideae and the fleshy-fruited Myrtoideae. Johnson & Briggs' morphology-based phylogenetic analysis (1984) showed that the Leptospermoideae are probably paraphyletic and challenged the monophyly of the Myrtoideae by showing the Acmena alliance (including Syzygium) to be more closely related to the leptospermoid Eucalyptus alliance than to the Myrtoideae sensu stricto. Recent molecular studies have tended to support these results (Gadek et al. 1996; Wilson et al. 1999). Within the Myrtoideae, the single tribe, the Myrteae, has been divided into three widely recognised subtribes based on embryo morphology: Eugeniinae and Myrtinae which occur in both the Old and New World tropics and the Myrciinae which are confined to the New World (Landrum 1981). If included in the Myrtoideae, the genera of the Acmena alliance should be classified as Eugeniinae. In this study we use the terms Myrtoideae and myrtoid in the traditional sense to embrace virtually all the fleshy fruited Myrtaceae, and the term Myrtoideae sensu stricto as used by Johnson & Briggs (1984), i.e. to exclude the Acmena alliance. The genera Psiloxylon and Heteropyxis, considered by some authors (Gadek et al. 1996, and others cited therein) to be best placed within a more broadly defined Myrtaceae, are here treated as distinct families, Psiloxylaceae and Heteropyxidaceae, respectively, following the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification (APG 1998).

Phylogeny of the Eudicots: A Nearly Complete Familial Analysis Based on rbcL Gene Sequences

A phylogenetic analysis of 589 plastid rbcL gene sequences representing nearly all eudicot families (a total of 308 families; seven photosynthetic and four parasitic families are missing) was performed, and bootstrap re-sampling was used to assess support for clades. Based on these data, the ordinal classification of eudicots is revised following the previous classification of angiosperms by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG). Putative additional orders are discussed (e.g. Dilleniales, Escalloniales, Vitales), and several additional families are assigned to orders for future updates of the APG classification. The use of rbcL alone in such a large matrix was found to be practical in discovering and providing bootstrap support for most orders. Combination of these data with other matrices for the rest of the angiosperms should provide the framework for a complete phylogeny to be used in macro-evolutionary studies.