Geographic variation in Juniperus drupacea: DNA sequencing and volatile leaf oils: Further evidence of putative Pleistocene genetic isolation between Europe and Asia

Recently, Sobierajska et al. (2016), using nSSR and morphology, showed that Juniperus drupacea exhibited differentiation between Greece and Turkey/ Lebanon, suggestive of Pleistocene genetic isolation. Here, we report that leaf terpenoids and DNA sequence data support their hypothesis by confirming differentiation between Greece and Turkey/ Lebanon/ Israel. The leaf oils of the Turkey/ Lebanon plants contained one unique terpene (trans-verbenol, 0.1-1.4%) that was absent in the Greece plants. The Greece oil contained three terpenes not found in the Lebanon/ Turkey plants: (ar)-curcumene (2.2%), β-alaskene (0.3%) and α-alaskene (0.4%). Four other terpenes were in higher concentration in the Greece oils: camphene (0.4%), δ-3-carene (10.9%), p-mentha-1,5-dien-8-ol, isomer (0.3%) and 4-terpineol (0.3%). Three terpenes were higher in Turkey and Lebanon oils: α-pinene (10.5 - 32.9%), hexadecanoic acid (0.4 - 1.4%) and trans-totarol (0.3 - 1.2%). Only one SNP was found (in nrDNA) that separated Greece from Turkey-Lebanon-Israel. No informative SNPs were found in petN-psbM, trnS-trnG, trnD-trnT or trnL-trnF cp regions

Analysis of Juniperus phoenicea from throughout its range in the Mediterranean using DNA sequence data from nrDNA and petN-psbM: the case for the recognition of J. turbinata Guss

DNA sequences were analyzed from 19 populations of J. phoenicea from throughout its range. The sequence data (nrDNA, petN-psbM) revealed that J. phoenicea is clearly divided into two taxa. These taxa have been recognized as var. (subsp.) phoenicea and var. (subsp.) turbinata by Adams (2011) and Farjon (2005). However, the magnitude of the differences in the DNA regions, along with the differences in pollen shedding times, morphology and prodelphinidin content support the recognition of J. turbinata Guss. No differentiation was found between the typical Mediterranean and Canary Island populations, offering no support for the recognition of J. phoenicea subsp. canariensis (Guyot) RivasMartinez. Juniperus turbinata appears to be widespread from Madeira - Canary Islands to the Sinai with few DNA differences among most populations. However, some populations (Grazalema, Madeira, Sinai, central Italy) had moderate amounts of divergence (3-4 mutations) and warrant additional study

Cyperus corymbosus Steud.

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/herbarium_specimens_byname/5977/thumbnail.jp

Cyperus corymbosus Steud.

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/herbarium_specimens_byname/5977/thumbnail.jp

The association of arable weeds with modern wild cereal habitats: implications for reconstructing the origins of plant cultivation in the Levant

Reconstructing the origins of plant cultivation in southwest Asia is crucial for understanding associated processes such as the emergence of sedentary communities and domesticated crops. Among the criteria archaeobotanists developed for identifying the earliest plant cultivation, the presence of potential arable weeds found in association with wild cereal and legume remains has been used as a basis for supporting models of prolonged wild plant cultivation before domesticated crops appear. However, the proposed weed floras mainly consist of genus-level identifications that do not differentiate between arable weeds and related species that characterise non-arable habitats. Here we test, for the first time, whether the potential arable weed taxa widely used to identify wild plant cultivation also occur in non-cultivated wild cereal populations. Based on modern survey data from the southern Levant we show that the proposed weed taxa characterise both grasslands and fields. Our findings, therefore, do not support the use of these taxa for reconstructing early cultivation. Instead, for future studies we suggest an approach based on the analysis of plant functional traits related to major agroecological variables such as fertility and disturbance, which has the potential to overcome some of the methodological problems