Phylogenetic, population structure, and population demographic analyses reveal that Vicia sepium in Japan is native and not introduced.

Vicia sepium (bush vetch) is a perennial legume widely distributed throughout the Eurasian continent. However, its distribution in Japan is limited to Mt. Ibuki and small parts of central and southern Hokkaido.

Mycorrhizal communities of two closely related species, Pyrola subaphylla and P. japonica, with contrasting degrees of mycoheterotrophy in a sympatric habitat.

Mycoheterotrophic plants typically form associations with a narrow range of mycorrhizal fungi. Consequently, mycorrhizal specialization is often considered to be an important step in mycoheterotrophic evolution. However, it remains unclear whether such specialization is likely to occur in plants of the genus Pyrola, which are generally associated with fungi in multiple ectomycorrhizal families.

Corrigendum: New microsatellite markers recognize differences in tandem repeats among four related Gastrodia species (Orchidaceae) [Genes Genet. Syst. (2019) 94, p. 225-229].

Tables 3 and 4 on p. 228 should be replaced with the corrected Tables 3 and 4 shown bellow.

Evidence for newly discovered albino mutants in a pyroloid: implication for the nutritional mode in the genus Pyrola.

Premise: Difficulties in comparing extremely divergent features in fully mycoheterotrophic plants with those in closely related chlorophyllous plants have complicated attempts to reveal the evolutionary patterns and processes of fully mycoheterotrophic plants. Albino mutants of partially mycoheterotrophic plants, generally observed in Orchidaceae, have provided an ideal model for investigating the evolution of mycoheterotrophy within similar genetic backgrounds. In 2018, we found a putative albino population of Pyrola (Ericaceae).

New microsatellite markers recognize differences in tandem repeats among four related Gastrodia species (Orchidaceae).

Gastrodia is the most species-rich genus among mycoheterotrophic plants, and is thus an essential taxon to understand the mechanism of species diversification in mycoheterotrophs. In this study, we developed microsatellite markers with high transferability for four Gastrodia species to examine genetic differentiation and similarity among species, populations and individuals. The 12 microsatellite markers developed from a G.

First molecular phylogenetic insights into the evolution of Eriocaulon (Eriocaulaceae, Poales).

Eriocaulon is a genus of c. 470 aquatic and wetland species of the monocot plant family Eriocaulaceae. It is widely distributed in Africa, Asia and America, with centres of species richness in the tropics.

Development of microsatellite markers for the completely cleistogamous species Gastrodia takeshimensis (Orchidaceae) that are transferable to its chasmogamous sister G. nipponica.

We developed microsatellite markers to compare the genetic variation between the putatively cleistogamous Gastrodia takeshimensis (Orchidaceae) and its chasmogamous sister species G. nipponica. We expected low genetic variation in G.

Comparative morphological analysis of two parallel mycoheterotrophic transitions reveals divergent and convergent traits in the genus Pyrola (Pyroleae, Ericaceae).

The genus Pyrola includes species with different degree of mycoheterotrophy; some species possess individuals that rely on all carbon through their associations with fungi (full mycoheterotrophy, FM), whereas some species obtain carbon through both fungi and photosynthesis by itself (partial mycoheterotrophy, PM). To investigate how plant functional traits of photosynthesis and reproduction are related to the degree of mycoheterotrophy in the initial stage of the transition from PM to FM, we determined morphological traits in FM (or nearly FM) and PM species in two independent lineages, P. picta and P.

Genetic analysis of Japanese and American specimens of Scirpus hattorianus suggests its introduction from North America.

Scirpus hattorianus is a possible alien species in Japan, and a clarification of its unclear taxonomy is required to reveal its origin. It is not known whether the plants initially described from Japan represent the same species distributed in North America. To clarify the origin of the species, we attempted to sequence old specimens collected about 80 years ago using newly designed primer pairs specific for short sequences, including the variable sites.

Development of microsatellite markers for partially and putative fully mycoheterotrophic varieties of Pyrola japonica sensu lato (Ericaceae).

We developed microsatellite markers to compare the genetic variation and reproductive biology between the partially mycoheterotrophic Pyrola japonica var. japonica and the putative fully mycoheterotrophic P. japonica var.

Variation in vegetative morphology tracks the complex genetic diversification of the mycoheterotrophic species Pyrola japonica sensu lato.

Premise Of The Study: Although the evolution of full mycoheterotrophy has attracted many plant researchers, molecular phylogenetic studies that focus on the transition from partial to full mycoheterotrophy are limited to a few taxa. Pyrola japonica sensu lato is an ideal model for examining the evolution of mycoheterotrophy, owing to its variable leaf size, which suggests that the species comprises several transitional stages.

Methods: To elucidate the molecular and morphological changes that occur during the evolutionary transition between partial and full mycoheterotrophy in P.