Aloe vera is undoubtedly the best known succulent because it is the basis of a multi-billion dollar global cosmetics and toiletries industries. This article reviews its origin based on the latest evolutionary tree

Walker, Colin

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Open Research OnlineThe Open University’s repository of research publicationsand other research outputsThe origin and predominance of Aloe veraJournal ItemHow to cite:Walker, Colin (2015). The origin and predominance of Aloe vera. CactusWorld, 33(4) pp. 276–277.For guidance on citations see FAQs.c© 2015 BCSS, authors and illustrators of individual articlesVersion: Version of RecordCopyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyrightowners. For more information on Open Research Online’s data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policiespage.oro.open.ac.uk276Evolution and diversity of CopiapoaShort communication on the recently published paper:Isabel Larridon, Helmut E Walter, Pablo C Guerrero, MilénDuarte, Mauricio A Cisternas, Carol Peña Hernández,Kenneth Bauters, Pieter Asselman, Paul Goetghebeur,and Marie-Stéphanie Samain (2015) An integrativeapproach to understanding the evolution and diversityof Copiapoa (Cactaceae), a threatened endemicChilean genus from the Atacama Desert. AmericanJournal of Botany 102(9): 1506–1520.  DOI: 10.3732/ajb.1500168Copiapoa species are common in botanic gardens andprivate cactus collections around the world.  The genus isendemic to the coastal area of the Chilean Atacama Desertwithin the northern part of one of the world’s biodiversityhotspots.  According to the IUCN Red List of ThreatenedSpecies (www.iucnredlist.org) many Copiapoa species arethreatened with extinction.  Besides having (very) restricteddistribution ranges, threats to their continued survivalinclude increasing aridity due to climate change, habitatdestruction (mining, agriculture, road construction, etc),illegal collecting, herbivory and genetic erosion.  Despitebeing icons of the Atacama Desert and well loved bycactus enthusiasts, the evolution and diversity of Copiapoahad not yet been studied using a molecular approach.In the paper, DNA sequence data of 39 Copiapoa taxawere analysed, and the distribution range of species wasmodelled based on geo-referenced localities and climaticdata.  Furthermore, the evolution of character states of fourcharacters (root morphology, stem branching, stem shapeand stem diameter), as well as ancestral distribution areaswere reconstructed.The results revealed several clades of species, andallowed us to recognise 32 morphologically definedspecies.  The recovered relationships are often supportedby morphological and biogeographical patterns, althoughsome relationships are only weakly supported because thegenetic diversity between several species and subspeciesis too low to delimit clearly their boundaries at this time.The results indicated that the origin of the genus Copiapoais likely to lie between southern Peru and the extreme northof Chile, and that the Copiapó Valley, which widens to >60km in the coastal zone, limited colonisation between twobiogeographical areas.  Apart from forming a geographicbarrier, in this zone the precipitation regime changes fromarid (to the south) to hyper-arid (to the north) and thebioclimate from desertic-oceanic to hyperdesertic.To conclude, we defined Copiapoa to include 32 speciesand five additional subspecies. Thirty species are classifiedinto four sections and two subsections, while two speciesremain unplaced.  To obtain a clearer picture of therelationships between some of the closely related taxa,further study is needed using other DNA-basedtechniques.  Currently, we have already started amicrosatellite study to investigate the genetic diversity,gene flow and population structure of Copiapoa cinereaand Copiapoa gigantea.  A better understanding of theevolution and diversity of Copiapoa will allow the allocationof conservation resources to the most threatened lineagesand focusing conservation action on real biodiversity.The Editor wishes to thank Dr Isabel Larridon for supplyingthe review of the paper and the accompanying photograph.The origin and predominance of Aloe veraAloe vera is undoubtedly THE best known succulentbecause it is the basis of a multi-billion dollar globalcosmetics and toiletries industry.  Its use as a medicinalplant spans many centuries and is recorded, for instance,in the Greek manuscript herbal of Dioscorides dating fromAD 512 (Carter et al, 2011).  Aloe vera is now widelycultivated as a crop plant, notably in the Caribbean, theCanary Islands (Fig. 2) and East Africa.  It has alsoescaped and become naturalised in many countries.There are, however, no known natural populations of thisspecies and its wild origin remains a mystery. The genus Aloe is incredibly diverse with over 500 speciesand 50+ subspecies and varieties (Carter et al, 2011), andyet remarkably few of these are exploited commercially.  Inaddition to A. vera which has market dominance, only Aloeferox (in South Africa) and Aloe arborescens (in Asia) areeconomically important.  Why is the diversity of Aloe sopoorly exploited?Grace et al. (2015) set out to provide explanations for thetwo issues outlined above.  These are based on amolecular study, the first to include more than 10% of Aloespecies.  This new evolutionary tree confirmed results fromprevious studies which showed that the tree aloes, now inShort snippets fromreaders and commenton topical items  Fig. 1  Copiapoa desertorum (Photo: Helmut E Walter)CactusTalkAuthor: Al Laius except where otherwise stated Layout by Alice Vanden BonCactusWorld 2015 Vol. 33 (4)277CactusWorld 2015 Vol. 33 (4)the separate genus Aloidendron, are basal or ancestral toall other aloes.  The consequence of this is that aloesevolved to become less woody and, more significantly, themost recently evolved species are generally moresucculent, a feature that is important in their commercialexploitation.  In contrast, species with less succulentleaves, such as the grass aloes, for example, do not havesignificant medicinal uses.  The study also shows that Aloeoriginated in southern Africa about 16 million years agoand underwent two major species radiations giving rise tothe great diversity known today.  Large succulent-leavedspecies, typical of medicinally important aloes, arosearound 10 million years ago.In this latest evolutionary tree, A. vera is located in a well-supported branch (clade) together with eight other Arabianspecies, a result which led the current authors to concludethat this species has its origins on the Arabian Peninsulawithin the last five million years.  This species is placed atthe northernmost natural limit of aloes in extreme habitats interms of aridity and diurnal temperature fluctuations.Features such as leaf succulence, small leaf teeth, shortstem and ease of propagation from cuttings are shared byother similar aloes which are not commercially exploited.The authors observe that trade routes for A. vera were wellestablished by the 4th century BC and if this species had anarrow distribution range similar to other currently knownArabian aloes, then over-exploitation by harvesting mayaccount for the absence of currently known naturalpopulations.  The contemporary overwhelming economicpredominance of A. vera relative to the other 500+ speciesis postulated by Grace et al (2015) to be due to its originsnear trade routes, which introduced this species intocommerce, and hence into cultivation, thousands of yearsago.  Consequently this species may now be extinct in thewild, or it may yet be located in some extremely inhospitablewadi or mountainside in a remote corner of Arabia.ReferencesCarter, S, Lavranos, J J, Newton, L E & Walker, C C (2011) Aloes.The definitive guide. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew / BritishCactus and Succulent Society. Grace, O M, Buerki, S, Symonds, M R E, Forest, F, van Wyk, A E,Smith, G F, Klopper, R R, Bjorå, C S, Neale, S, Demissew, S,Simmonds, M S J & Rønsted, N (2015) Evolutionary historyand leaf succulence as explanations for medicinal use in aloesand the global popularity of Aloe vera.  BMC EvolutionaryBiology 15:29: 1–12.Colin C WalkerEmail: Colin.Walker@open.ac.ukInternational Euphorbia SocietyConventionThe International Euphorbia Society (IES) held its first everconvention in May 2015 at the Botanic GardenMeise/Brussels.  The convention was held in the beautifuland sumptuous castle in the garden’s grounds (Fig. 3) andas well as inclusive guided tours of the garden andglasshouses, attendees were able to visit the EuphorbiaReference Collection which is not normally open to thepublic.  The array of international speakers included SusanCarter (IES President), Norbert Rebmann, Ricarda Riina,Bob Potter, Petr Pavelka and Rikus van Veldhuisen (Fig. 4).Fig. 3  The 12th-century Bouchout CastleFig. 4  Susan Carter and Rikus van Veldhuisen discusseuphorbias in the reference collectionFig. 2  Aloe vera in cultivation on Tenerife (Photo: Colin Walker)278 CactusWorld 2015 Vol. 33 (4)The weekend was a great success due to both thehospitality of the Botanic Garden Meise in hosting theconvention, and to the hard work and efforts of theorganisers.  It is hoped that this was the first of manyconventions to come and should you hear about an IESconvention in the future you should not hesitate to join in. Photos: Detlef SchnabelOperculicarya pachypusJoyce James of Chippenham was delighted to see theflowers on her plant of Operculicarya pachypus earlier thisyear, as she has had the plant for 20 years and this is onlythe second time it has flowered.  The flowers were tiny, just4mm in diameter.  Joyce wonders how she can persuadethe flowers to produce seed and would welcome anyadvice in this regard which she can use when the plantflowers again. joycejames862@btinternet.comEchinopsis terscheckii floweringJohn Hayward from Ipswich has sent a photo of his 50year-old cactus which has finally flowered.  He says: “The plant was bought soon after I startedgrowing succulents around 1959 which makes it well over50 years old.  It was labelled Echinopsis poco in those daysbut at some time I renamed it Trichocereus validus.However, Graham Charles has told me its correct namenowadays is Echinopsis terscheckii.After being bedded out in my centre bed about 30 yearsago it has reached a height of 2m and a diameter of 19cm.The flowers which opened in the evening and lasted all thefollowing day are about 20cm long and almost the same indiameter.My greenhouse is 15×16ft (4.5×4.8m) with an apex 11ft(3.3m) high.  I heat with both electricity and oil and aim tomaintain a minimum of 40°F (4.5°C).  The plant in questionstill has some room to grow but an Espostoa growing in thebed is about 2ft (0.6m) higher and I would like to flower thisbefore it hits the roof or I get called to the big greenhousein the sky.”Text and photos: John Hayward.Email: john.hayward884@btinternet.comFig. 7  Open flower of E. terscheckiiFig. 6  Echinopsis terscheckii in bud during August 2015 Fig. 5  Operculicarya pachypus flowering (Photo: Joyce James)279CactusWorld 2015 Vol. 33 (4)Carnegiea giganteaDerek Bowdery from King’s Lynn shows us what can beachieved with a little patience.  In the early 1970s Derekpurchased a seedling Carnegiea from a cactus nursery inthe UK.  The plant remained growing in a pot until 1996when it was planted into Derek’s cactus bed by the lateCharlie Glass who was visiting from America (Figs. 8 & 9).From then its growth has been phenomenal (Fig. 10) andon 28 June this year, the day of Derek’s Branch Show,Keith Flanagan, who was visiting at the time, noticed that itwas in bud (Figs 11, 12 & 13).  Initially ants fed on thesugar exuded from the developing buds (Fig. 13).  The firstflower to open was at night on 7 August 2015 and eachbloom lasted two days (Fig. 14).  In total there were eightflowers.  With no bats to pollinate the flowers Derek, withthe help of step ladders and a paintbrush, tried his best.  Todate one flower remains attached to the plant (the windowcleaner didn’t help!) – only time will tell if he hassucceeded.  Watch this space!Fig. 8  Derek keeping a carefuleye on his Carnegiea asCharlie Glass plants it out inthe cactus bed in 1996 (Photo: Unknown)Fig. 10  Derek’s plantmeasuring approximately ‘oneand a half Bowderies’ (7 foot)(Photo: King’s Lynn Branchmember)Fig. 9  Charlie happy with theresult  (Photo: Fred Braun)Fig. 11  The developing budswith visiting ants (4 July) (Photo: Derek Bowdery)Figs. 12 & 13  In bud (Photo: Derek Bowdery)Fig. 14  In flower (9 August)(Photo: Derek Bowdery)8 9 1011 1213 14280 CactusWorld 2015 Vol. 33 (4)Are your cacti stressed?University of Adelaide research has shown for the first timethat, despite not having a nervous system, plants usesignals normally associated with animals when theyencounter stress.Published in the journal Nature Communications, theresearchers at the Australian Research Council (ARC)Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology reported howplants respond to their environment with a similarcombination of chemical and electrical responses toanimals, but through machinery that is specific to plants.“We’ve known for a long-time that the animalneurotransmitter GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) isproduced by plants under stress, for example when theyencounter drought, salinity, viruses, acidic soils or extremetemperatures,” says senior author Associate ProfessorMatthew Gilliham, ARC Future Fellow in the University’sSchool of Agriculture, Food and Wine.  “But it was notknown whether GABA was a signal in plants.  We’vediscovered that plants bind GABA in a similar way toanimals, resulting in electrical signals that ultimatelyregulate plant growth when a plant is exposed to a stressfulenvironment.”By identifying how plants respond to GABA theresearchers are optimistic that they have opened up manynew possibilities for modifying how plants respond tostress.  “The major stresses agricultural crops face likepathogens and poor environmental conditions account formost yield losses around the planet, and consequentlyfood shortages,” says co-lead author Professor StephenTyerman.  “By identifying how plants use GABA as a stresssignal we have a new tool to help in the global effort tobreed more stress resilient crops to fight food insecurity.”Despite a similar function, the proteins that bind GABA andtheir mammalian counterparts only resemble each other inthe region where they interact with the neurotransmitter;the rest of the protein looks quite different.  “This raisesvery interesting questions about how GABA has beenrecruited as a messenger in both plant and animalkingdoms,” says co-lead author Dr Sunita Ramesh.  “Itseems likely that this has evolved in both kingdomsseparately.”  The researchers say these findings could alsoexplain why particular plant-derived drugs used assedatives and anti-epileptics work in humans.  These drugsare able to interact with proteins in the GABA-signallingsystem in both plants and animals, suggesting that futurework on other plant GABA signalling agents will alsobenefit the medical field.The above is reprinted from materials provided byUniversity of Adelaide.Journal Reference:Sunita A Ramesh, Stephen D Tyerman, Bo Xu, Jayakumar Bose,Satwinder Kaur, Vanessa Conn, Patricia Domingos, SanaUllah, Stefanie Wege, Sergey Shabala, José A Feijó, Peter RRyan, Matthew Gillham. (2015) GABA signalling modulatesplant growth by directly regulating the activity of plant-specificanion transporters. Nature Communications 6: 7879.  DOI:10.1038/ncomms8879The ‘Monster of Market Street’Diana Keen from Somerset has a very tall cereoid cactus(probably Cereus jamacaru) which had outgrown thehouse.  About five years ago she contacted Tony Irons foradvice and he suggested growing it outside, along withother cultivation hints.  Diana changed the compost andplaced it against the south-facing wall of her home, so itgets the best of the weather and sunshine.  During the pastfew years it has gone from strength to strength and hasreached the bedroom window.  It is now known as the‘Monster of Market Street’.  Finally it has flowered for thefirst time in 64 years, and she is absolutely thrilled.Correction to correctionDr Detlev Metzing has contacted me with the followinginformation.  “We all prefer stability in nomenclature, but sometimes wehave to say goodbye to old, fond names.  This is so in thecase of Hildewintera, which was not validly published byFriedrich Ritter in 1966.  The correct name to be used isWinterocereus (Taxon 56(1): 226–228, 2007).  The nameHildewintera was used in the June 2015 issue ofCactusWorld twice (CactusWorld 33(2): 101, 122).  Analternative is to lump the two species in Cleistocactus, butthat is a matter of taxonomy, not nomenclature.”Mammillaria Society – free seedsThe Mammillaria Society have announced that due to anumber of bequests this year, all seeds in this year’s andfuture years’ seed offerings will be free of charge tomembers.  See website for further details on how to join:www.mammillaria.netFig. 15  The ‘Monster of Market Street’ growing in the garden.Inset, detail of flower (Photos: Diana Keen)

The origin and predominance of Aloe vera

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The origin and predominance of Aloe vera

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