DIOECY AND A REEVALUATION OF LEPIDOCORDIA AND ANTROPHORA (BORAGINACEAE: EHRETIOIDEAE)
James S Miller1, Joan W Nowicke2
1Missouri Botanical Garden, PO Box 299, St. Louis, Missouri, 63166.
American Journal of Botany
|August 25, 2018
Summary
Two plant genera, Antrophora and Lepidocordia, are merged into Lepidocordia based on new evidence. This taxonomic revision reflects their shared dioecious breeding system and distinct floral morphs.
Area of Science:
- Botany
- Plant Taxonomy
- Systematics
Background:
- The genera Lepidocordia and Antrophora were previously considered distinct based on limited early collections.
- These monotypic genera, from South America and Central America respectively, showed apparent differences.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reevaluate the taxonomic relationship between Lepidocordia and Antrophora using recent extensive collections.
- To determine the phylogenetic placement and taxonomic status of these genera within the Ehretioideae subfamily.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of leaf architecture.
- Pollen morphology examination.
- Fruit anatomy studies.
- Investigation of the breeding system, including floral morphs (pistillate and staminate).
Main Results:
- Both Lepidocordia punctata and Antrophora williamsii were found to be dioecious, exhibiting both pistillate and staminate floral morphs.
- New data on leaf, pollen, and fruit anatomy support the merging of the two genera.
- Antrophora williamsii is now classified as Lepidocordia williamsii.
Conclusions:
- The genera Antrophora and Lepidocordia are congeneric, with Antrophora being reduced to Lepidocordia.
- Lepidocordia, along with Rochefortia, represents the only dioecious genera within the Ehretioideae subfamily, highlighting their distinctiveness.
Related Concept Videos
03:24Seedless Vascular Plants
Seedless Vascular Plants Were the First Tall Plants on Earth
03:40Introduction to Seed Plants
Most plants are seed plants—characterized by seeds, pollen, and reduced gametophytes. Seed plants include gymnosperms and angiosperms.
02:40Epiphytes, Parasites, and Carnivores
Plants often form mutualistic relationships with soil-dwelling fungi or bacteria to enhance their roots’ nutrient uptake ability. Root-colonizing fungi (e.g., mycorrhizae) increase a plant’s root surface area, which promotes nutrient absorption. While root-colonizing, nitrogen-fixing bacteria (e.g., rhizobia) convert atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into ammonia (NH3), making nitrogen available to plants for various biological functions. For example, nitrogen is essential for the biosynthesis of the...
02:40Pollination and Flower Structure
Flowers are the reproductive, seed-producing structures of angiosperms. Typically, flowers consist of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Sepals and petals are the vegetative flower organs. Stamens and carpels are the reproductive organs.
02:40The Tree of Life - Bacteria, Archaea, Eukaryotes
The “tree of life” describes the evolution of life and the evolutionary relationships between organisms. The root of the tree is the common ancestor to all life on Earth. All other species radiate from this point, much like the branches of a tree. The numerous tips of these branches on the tree of life represent every living, or extant, species. Extinct species, which are species that no longer exist, can be found towards the center of the tree. Currently, these organisms, both extant and...
01:34Woodward–Hoffmann Selection Rules and Microscopic Reversibility
Electrocyclic reactions, cycloadditions, and sigmatropic rearrangements are concerted pericyclic reactions that proceed via a cyclic transition state. These reactions are stereospecific and regioselective. The stereochemistry of the products depends on the symmetry characteristics of the interacting orbitals and the reaction conditions. Accordingly, pericyclic reactions are classified as either symmetry-allowed or symmetry-forbidden. Woodward and Hoffmann presented the selection criteria for...