Porella Species Research Articles

Porella perrottetiana var. angustifolia (Porellaceae, Marchantiophyta), new to China, and taxonomic revision of Porella perrottetiana in the East Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau

Cao, W., Xiong, Y.-X., Zhao, D.-G., Qu, J.-J. & Tan, H.-Y. 2019. Porella perrottetiana var. angustifolia (Porellaceae, Marchantiophyta), new to China, and taxonomic revision of Porella perrottetiana in the East Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. – Herzogia 32: 344 –356.Porella perrottetiana var. angustifolia (Porellaceae, Marchantiophyta), a neglected variety known from North Vietnam, is reported here as a new addition to the Chinese liverwort flora from east of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, SW China. It is characterized and distinguished from known Chinese species of Porella by attenuately ligulate or lanceolate and falcate leaf lobes with a long terminal and 0 – 4(–5) lateral ciliate teeth, median cells significantly larger than marginal cells, and by forming vitta from base to apex of leaf lobes. Detailed illustrations and description of this variety, an identification key to three varieties of Porella perrottetiana as well as a taxonomic revision of Porella perrottetiana in east of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau are provided.

Observations on fertile populations of two Porella (Porellaceae, Marchantiophyta) species from Kumaun Region in the Western Himalaya, India

The unrecorded androecia and feebly described gynoecia in Indian specimens of two Porella species, namely, P. densifolia subsp. appendiculata (Steph.) S. Hatt. and P. campylophylla var. ptychantha (Mitt.) F. Shaheen & S.C. Sriv., collected from Kumaun region in the state of Uttarakhand in Western Himalaya, are being described and compared besides observing variations in vegetative features of the plants.

Molecular circumscription and intraspecific variation in Porella canariensis (F.Weber) Underw. (Porellaceae, Marchantiophyta)

The cosmopolitan genus Porella L. is the largest genus of Porellaceae with about 50–60 species (Schuster, 1980). Identification of Porella species can be difficult, due to high morphological plasti...

Toxicity of Porella chilensis Sesqui- and Diterpenoids against Larvae of the Corn Pest Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidotera: Noctuidae)

Porella, the largest genus of the family Porellaceae (Hepaticae) is widespread in the tropical and subtropical regions of South America. Most Porella species are rich sources of sesqui- and diterpenoids, many of which show interesting biological activities. Secondary metabolites produced by plants can interact with insects and act as antifeedants and growth regulators affecting hormone and nervous systems as well as stomach and muscle tissues. A previous chemical investigation of a Patagonian collection of Porella chilensis yielded sesqui- and diterpenoids that were now evaluated for their effects against Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), a serious pest affecting corn crops mainly in the Americas. Four pinguisanes (1-4), three fusicoccanes (5-7), and one aromadendrane (8) from P. chilensis displayed larvicidal activity against S. frugiperda when incorporated to the larval diet at 100 and 200 μg/g of diet with a significant decrease in the larval growing rate. The observed effects were in part produced by severe alterations of the epithelial cells of the midgut as indicated by our histological studies.

Chemosystematics of Porella (Marchantiophyta, Porellaceae)

The taxonomy of the liverwort genus Porella based on plant morphology has been regarded as difficult. Recent DNA-based studies have brought new insights into the systematics of these liverworts and have uncovered some novel relationships that allowed the resolution of controversial treatments based on morphology. One of the outstanding features of these plants, in addition to their form, is their chemical composition, which is characterized by great diversity of secondary metabolites. In this paper the sesqui- and diterpenoids occurring in Porella species are described and their chemosystematic relevance is explored. On the basis of chemical data, the Porella species have been divided into six chemotypes: the drimane- (I), sacculatane- (II), pinguisane-sacculatane- (III), guaiane-germacrane- (IV), pinguisane- (V) and africane- (VI) types. Species belonging to type I are characterized by their hot taste, whereas the other chemotypes are comprised of non-pungent species. Consideration of recent DNA data shows striking correlations between molecular groups and their terpenoid chemistry. The chemical data suggest that the P. vernicosa complex (chemotype I) deserves recognition as a separate section of Porella and that terpenoids are important chemosystematic markers in the family Porellaceae.

Chapter Sixteen: Porella gracillima Mitt. (Jungermanniidae, Porellaceae) in Tennessee, with an Illustrated Key to the Porella Species of North America North of Mexico

Abstract An illustrated key to the currently accepted 10 species of Porella in North America north of Mexico is presented. The only known American locality of P. gracillima is described.

A phylogeny of Porella (Porellaceae, Jungermanniopsida) based on nuclear and chloroplast DNA sequences

The cosmopolitan family Porellaceae includes about 60 species in two or three genera: the large genus Porella and the monospecific Ascidiota and Macvicaria (alternatively Porella subg. Macvicaria). Maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference of phylogeny of a dataset including three markers (rbcL, trnL–trnF region of cp DNA, nrITS region) of 96 accessions resulted in similar topologies supporting the generic status of Ascidiota. Macvicaria is nested in a subclade of Porella. Relationships among species of Porella are in general well resolved and many terminal nodes achieve good statistical support whereas basal relationships are at best moderately supported. Multiple accessions of single species are usually placed in monophyletic lineages. Accessions of P. platyphylla split into a European and a North American clade with one accession from North America embedded within the European samples. The Macaronesian endemic P. inaequalis is closely related to the Asian species P. grandiloba. Porella obtusata and P. canariensis cannot be separated on the basis of the sequence data presented in this study. The molecular topologies indicate a range extension of the Asian P. gracillima subsp. urogea to Eastern North America and of the Neotropical P. swartziana to South Africa. Current supraspecific classifications of Porella are not reflected in the molecular topologies with a correlation between genetic variation and the geographical distribution of the related accessions rather than a correlation between genetic variation and morphology.

A Checklist of the Liverworts of Xinjiang, China

A complete list of the liverworts known from Xinjiang, China, comprising 28 genera and 56 species, is presented. Eleven genera and 30 species are new to Xinjiang, and five species, Cephaloziella hampeana (Nees) Schiffn., Asterella saccata (Wahl.) A. Evans, Riccia cavernosa Hoffin., Lophozia chichibuensis Inoue, and Lophozia jurensis K. Mill. are new to China. In addition, two species Porella platyphylla (L.) Pfeiff and Tritomaria exsectiformis (Breidl.) Loeske var. exsectiformis are new to Kazakhstan. The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) is the largest of the 30 provinces and regions of China, with an area of over 1.6 million square km (Fig. 1)-one-sixth of the land area of China. It is one of the most topographically diverse areas in the world, including the world's second highest mountain (Qogir Peak [= K2] on the border with Kashmir, elev. 8,611 m) and its second lowest depression (the Turfan Depression in the Tarim Basin, 154 m below sea level). Topographically, Xinjiang is dominated by three major east-west trending mountain ranges, the Altai (along the northern border of the state), the Tian Shan (across the middle of the state), and the Kunlun Shan (along the southern border of the state), separated by two large basins, the Junggar Basin (between the Altai and Tian Shan) and the Tarim Basin (between the Tian Shan and the Kunlun Shan). Both basins lie at low elevations (below 1,500 m), and are characterized by a harsh climate with hot summers, cold winters, and very low precipitation. The vegetation of the basins is very sparse, and large areas are completely without plant cover. The mountains of central and northern Xinjiang are not as high as those of the southern border, the Tian Shan reaching 7,435 m (Tomur Peak) and the Altai 4,374 m (Friendship Peak; there are somewhat higher peaks outside the borders of China). These ranges receive considerably more precipitation than the basins, and extensive areas of forest and shrubland occur, mostly on the north side of the Tian Shan at and above 1,500 m elevation, and in the central and northern Altai above 1,200 m. Despite the large land area and central location of Xinjiang, the liverwort flora of the region was almost unknown until very recently. The recent checklist of the liverworts of (Piippo 1990) listed four genera and five species from Xinjiang. However, only two of these reports, the two Porella species reported by Hattori (1976) and Hattori and Zhang (1985), actually mentioned the state. Piippo reported Radula complanata (L.) Dumort. from Xinjiang based on the inclusion of Thian-schan in the range statement for the species by Stephani (1909-1912), but Stephani's report was apparently based on a collection made by Brotherus in Kirgizia (Geissler, pers. comm.). The other two species attributed to the region in her list, Trichocolea tomentella (Ehrh.) Dumort. and Pellia endiviaefolia (Dicks.) Dumort., were species reported from northwest China by Gao and Chang (1981). These reports may have been based on collections from provinces in central China. Prior to 1989, only two species of Porella (listed below) had been reported from the state. Recently, Zhao et al. (1989) and Zhao (1992, 1993a,b) have added 16 genera and 24 species to the known liverwort flora of Xinjiang. The authors carried out a one-month collecting expedition in Xinjiang in July and August, 1993. Tan et al. (1995) have reported on the mosses collected on this expedition. The liverwort collections from the expedition bring the known hepatic flora of the region to 56 species. The flora is predominantly circumboreal, having strong affinities with regions to the north and only weak affinities with more southern areas. Only seven species known from Xinjiang are not circumboreal (Solenostoma microphyllum C. H. Gao, Plagiochila satoi S. Hatt., Radula kojana Steph., Porella chinensis (Steph.) S. 0007-2745/98/439-443$0.65/0 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.163 on Sat, 19 Nov 2016 04:23:47 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 440 THE BRYOLOGIST [VOL. 101

A combination of molecular and morphological characters for delimitation of taxa in EuropeanParella

The merits of morphological characters, isozyme patterns and random amplified polymorphic DNA (R.A.P.D.) markers for bryophyte species delimitation were investigated using European species of Porella. Isozymes and R.A.P.D. markers allow rapid detection of genetic differences in morphologically highly-variable groups of organisms. Twenty-two clones of the European Porella species (eight species are currently recognised: P. arborisvitae, P. baueri, P. canariensis, P. cordaeana, P. obtusata, P. pinnata, P. platyphylla, P. platyphylloidea) were investigated together with three populations of Canadian P. platyphylloidea. Isozyme patterns of esterase, glutamate-oxaloacetate transaminase, peroxidase and malate enzyme were studied by electrophoresis. R.A.P.D. fingerprints were made using the polymerase chain reaction and six primers. Data were also obtained for 39 morphological characters scored for ten or more individuals of each population. Eight distinct isoenzyme patterns were obtained corresponding to the seven species and aberrant population 267. These results were supported by the R.A.P.D. analysis which showed population 267 to be close to P. platyphylla but also to possess affinities with P. platyphylloidea. The analysis allowed a reassessment of relationships between the European Porella species and the definition of improved morphological character sets for discriminating the taxa.

Studies on the structure of the sesquiterpene caespitenone isolated from Porella species of liverwort

Models of caespitenone, previously isolated from the liverwort Porella caespitans var. setigera, have been synthesized and their spectral data compared with those of this natural product. The discrepancy between these data prompted us to investigate the Colombian liverwort Porella swartziana, from which this compound was isolated and its structure has been revised by extensive 2D NMR techniques and chemical transformations to establish an africanane-type skeleton. The absolute configuration has also been determined.

<strong>Systematic screening of bryophytes for antitumor agents</strong>

References are made to cytotoxic and/or antitumor compounds that have been isolated - ansamitocin P-3 from Claopodium crispifolium (Hook.) Ren. & Card. and Anomodon attenuatus Hueb., or an associated actinomycete, and ohioensins and pallidisetums from Polytrichum spp. Several hundred collections, which have been obtained from temperate regions of North America during 1990 and 1991, are currently being screened in new bioassays; active sesquiterpene lactones have been recently isolated from species of Porella. The methodologies of collecting and screening bryophyte samples are discussed with consideration to costs based on expected number of samples that might be collected in a day, the diversity in the collections as related to phytogeography and vegetation types, and the bryophyte cover that is vanishing in many forest regions of the United States. The difficulties in obtaining large collections for isolation of active agents are also discussed by examplerecollection of Claopodium crispifolium.

Terpenoids and bibenzyls from some New Zealand liverworts

Four liverworts, Marchantia berteroana, M. foliacea, Plagiochila stephensoniana and Porella elegantula collected in New Zealand were chemically investigated. M. berteroana contains cuparene and (−)-2-hydroxycuparene as the major components. γ-Cadinene is the major component of M. foliacea. 4-Hydroxy-3′-methoxybibenzyl is a chemical marker for P. stephensoniana which belongs to the non-pungent type of Plagiochila species. P. elegantula synthesizes perrottetianal and belongs to the non-pungent type of Porella species.

Aromatic esters and terpenoids of the liverworts in the genera Trichocolea, Neotrichocolea and Trichocoleopsis

Three liverworts, Trichocolea tomentella, Neotrichocolea bissethii and Trichocoleopsis sacculata belonging to Jungermanniales were chemically investigated. Isoprenyl benzoates are the important chemical markers of Trichocolea tomentella. Neotrichocolea bissethii elaborates sesquiterpenes as the major components. The sacculatane-type diterpenes and pinguisane-type sesquiterpenes are the significant chemosystematic markers of Trichocoleopsis sacculata. These three species are chemically quite different. Trichocoleopsis sacculata is chemically rather close to Porella species. The present chemical results support the recent morphological classification of the above three species proposed by Schuster. Some species of Jungermanniales are chemically identical to those of Metzgeriales and these results also support the phylogenetic classification in which the two orders have been united within the subclass Jungermanniae.

Caespitenone, a new cyclopropanoid pseudoguaiane and ent-sesquiterpenes from Porella species

Six Porella species and one Macvicaria species have been investigated and a new cyclopropane pseudoguaiane was isolated and its structure elucidated by chemical and spectral evidence. Macvicaria ulophylla and the Porella species, except P. caespitans ssp. setigera, contain the diterpene dialdehyde, perrottetianal A. (+)-Aristolone, (−)-α-eudesmol, and related sesquiterpene hydrocarbons and alcohols, enantiomeric to those found in higher plant, have been isolated from the Porella species.

Sesquiterpenes of six Porella species (hepaticae)

The distribution in six Porella species of drimane-, aromadendrane- and pinguisane-type sesquiterpenes and norsesquiterpenes is described. The sharp pungent substance of P. gracillissima, P. fauriei and P. macroloba is (+)-tadeonal.

The North American Species of Porella

The North American Species of Porella