Wild and cultivated comestible plant species in the Gulf of Mexico: phylogenetic patterns and convergence of type of use.

Cross-cultural research on edible plants might include ecological and evolutionary perspectives to understand processes behind species selection and management. With a database of approximately 500 comestible plants of the Province of the Gulf of Mexico in Mesoamerica, phylogenetic analyses are conducted to identify convergence and phylogenetic signal of type of use and significant clustering in the resulting phylogenetic trees. Analyses considered type of management (wild/managed vs. cultivated), type of use (edible, condiment, for wrapping food) and organ utilized. Elevated phylogenetic diversity and signal are expected for wild comestible taxa, indicating that people are using lineages across the angiosperm tree for food, resulting in broadness in diet and use of their regional resources. Main results are: (i) condiment species were identified in groups with an elevated phylogenetic signal; (ii) hot nodes for lineages utilized for wrapping food were found in many monocot groups as well as in epiphytes of cloud forests with leathery leaves; (iii) edible taxa were identified with the highest significant clustering restricted to certain branches in the phylogeny; (iv) wild and cultivated edible plants belong to identical lineages with replacement of species, implying that same plant groups known for their comestible benefits are substituted by species distributed in the Province and (v) wild versus cultivated lineages for condiment are different. Most food species in the Province belong to four families, namely Fabaceae, Cactaceae, Solanaceae and Asparagaceae. Analyses discovered underutilized wild species in identical clades to managed/cultivated taxa that can be studied further to identify cultivation practices. Results suggest that people are utilizing different lineages in the angiosperm tree available locally, for particular uses, like condiment or for wrapping food. Evidence can be used to study further undervalued edible species closely related to the most common food taxa as well as for bioprospection of their nutritional content.

Edible native plants of the Gulf of Mexico Province.

Background: Currently, at the global level, human food is mainly based on a few crops extensively cultivated as monocultures. Climate change, changes in land to agriculture and cattle raising, as well as the scarcity of water all affect and reduce the possibility of cultivating alternative crops. One way to face this global problem is to promote the knowledge, production and consumption of native food species on a regional scale.For this study, two databases were constructed for the Gulf of Mexico Province: 1) edible plant species with their corresponding common name, category of use, plant organ(s) utilised as food and type of management; 2) distribution records of these edible species. These species, in addition to being part of the biological diversity of Mexico are of high nutritional, cultural and gastronomical value and have been present in the diet of the inhabitants and ethnic groups in the region since pre-Hispanic times. New information: This study presents the native edible plants of the Gulf of Mexico Province, an area inhabited by 15 ethnic groups. The main novelty of this contribution is the edible plant species database, which includes the records of 482 species that belong to 101 families and 268 genera. We also present information rarely reported in an ethnobotanical inventory: 1) category of food use, 2) category of plant organ used, 3) common name, 4) type of management and 5) the georeferenced distribution of species occurrence in the Gulf of Mexico Province.

Phylogeography and population differentiation in Hepatozoon canis (Apicomplexa: Hepatozoidae) reveal expansion and gene flow in world populations.

BACKGROUND: Hepatozoon canis is a protozoan transmitted to dogs and other wild carnivores by the ingestion of ticks containing mature oocysts and is considered the principal cause of canine hepatozoonosis in the world. Here, we examined ribosomal RNA 18S gene sequence variation to determine the genetic differences and phylogeographic diversity of H. canis from various geographical areas around the world. METHODS: We used 550 publicly available sequences of H. canis from 46 countries to assess haplotype relationships, geographical structure, genetic diversity indices, and relationships among populations. We performed neutrality tests and pairwise comparisons of fixation index (FST) values between groups and pairwise comparisons of FST values between populations. To determine whether populations are structured, analyses of molecular variance (AMOVAs) and spatial analysis of molecular variance (SAMOVA) were performed. RESULTS: The dataset of H. canis yielded 76 haplotypes. Differentiation among populations indicated that there is no phylogeographical structure (GST = 0.302 ± 0.0475). Moreover, when samples were grouped by continents a significant FST was obtained, meaning that populations were genetically differentiated. The AMOVA showed that 57.4% of the genetic variation was explained by differences within populations when all locations were treated as a single group and revealed that there is no population structure when populations are grouped into two, three, and four groups (FCT, p > 0.05), suggesting that dispersal between populations is high. SAMOVA revealed significant FCT values for groups K = 5. The Tajima's D and Fu's Fs show that populations have undergone recent expansion, and the mismatch distribution analysis showed population expansion (multimodal distribution). CONCLUSIONS: The current molecular data confirmed that H. canis does not show phylogeographic or population structure. The haplotypes exhibit low genetic differentiation, suggesting a recent expansion due to gene flow among populations. These results provide pivotal information required for future detailed population genetic analysis or to establish control strategies of this parasite.

Climate change and conservation in a warm North American desert: effect in shrubby plants.

BACKGROUND: Deserts are biologically rich habitats with a vast array of animals and plants adapted to xeric conditions, and most deserts are among the planet's last remaining areas of total wilderness. Among North American deserts, the Chihuahuan Desert has the highest levels of diversity and endemism. To understand the effect of future climate change on plants distributed in this arid land and propose effective conservation planning, we focused on five endemic shrubby species that characterize the Chihuahuan Desert and used an integrative approach. METHODS: Ecological niche-based modeling, spatial genetics and ecological resistance analyses were carried out to identify the effect of global warming on the studied five shrubby species. Key areas that need to be preserved were identified taking into account the existing protected areas within the Chihuahuan Desert. RESULTS: The extent of future distribution will vary among these species, and on average expansion will occur in the western part of the Chihuahuan Desert. For most species low environmental resistance to gene flow was predicted, while higher future resistance was predicted for one species that would lead to increased population isolation. The highest haplotype diversity was identified in three hotspots. Based on future suitability of habitat and in the haplotype diversity we suggest preserving two hotspots of genetic diversity in the Sierra Madre Oriental, located in areas without protection. The third hotspot was detected in the well preserved Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Man and Biosphere Reserve. CONCLUSION: Global climate change will have an effect in arid adapted plants, favoring expansion in the western of the Chihuahuan Desert however negatively affecting others with high ecological resistance disrupting gene flow. Two hotspots of genetic diversity in the Sierra Madre Oriental should be protected.

Colonization in North American Arid Lands: The Journey of Agarito (Berberis trifoliolata) Revealed by Multilocus Molecular Data and Packrat Midden Fossil Remains.

Here we conduct research to understand the evolutionary history of a shrubby species known as Agarito (Berberis trifoliolata), an endemic species to the Chihuahuan Desert. We identify genetic signatures based on plastid DNA and AFLP markers and perform niche modelling and spatial connectivity analyses as well as niche modelling based on records in packrats to elucidate whether orogenic events such as mountain range uplift in the Miocene or the contraction/expansion dynamics of vegetation in response to climate oscillations in the Pliocene/Pleistocene had an effect on evolutionary processes in Agarito. Our results of current niche modelling and palaeomodelling showed that the area currently occupied by Berberis trifoliolata is substantially larger than it was during the Last Interglacial period and the Last Glacial Maximum. Agarito was probably confined to small areas in the Northeastern and gradually expanded its distribution just after the Last Glacial Maximum when the weather in the Chihuahuan Desert and adjacent regions became progressively warmer and drier. The most contracted range was predicted for the Interglacial period. Populations remained in stable areas during the Last Glacial Maximum and expanded at the beginning of the Holocene. Most genetic variation occured in populations from the Sierra Madre Oriental. Two groups of haplotypes were identified: the Mexican Plateau populations and certain Northeastern populations. Haplogroups were spatially connected during the Last Glacial Maximum and separated during interglacial periods. The most important prediction of packrat middens palaeomodelling lies in the Mexican Plateau, a finding congruent with current and past niche modelling predictions for agarito and genetic results. Our results corroborate that these climate changes in the Pliocene/Pleistocene affected the evolutionary history of agarito. The journey of agarito in the Chihuahuan Desert has been dynamic, expanding and contracting its distribution range and currently occupying the largest area in its history.

Munroa argentina, a Grass of the South American Transition Zone, Survived the Andean Uplift, Aridification and Glaciations of the Quaternary.

The South American Transition Zone (SATZ) is a biogeographic area in which not only orogeny (Andes uplift) and climate events (aridification) since the mid-Miocene, but also Quaternary glaciation cycles had an important impact on the evolutionary history of the local flora. To study this effect, we selected Munroa argentina, an annual grass distributed in the biogeographic provinces of Puna, Prepuna and Monte. We collected 152 individuals from 20 localities throughout the species' range, ran genetic and demographic analyses, and applied ecological niche modeling. Phylogenetic and population genetic analyses based on cpDNA and AFLP data identified three phylogroups that correspond to the previously identified subregions within the SATZ. Molecular dating suggests that M. argentina has inhabited the SATZ since approximately 3.4 (4.2-1.2) Ma and paleomodels predict suitable climate in these areas during the Interglacial period and the Last Glacial Maximum. We conclude that the current distribution of M. argentina resulted from the fragmentation of its once continuous range and that climate oscillations promoted ecological differences that favored isolation by creating habitat discontinuity.

Systematics and phylogeny of Oecopetalum (Metteniusaceae), a genus of trees endemic to North and Central America

El género Oecopetalum Greenm. & C.H. Thomps. (Metteniusaceae) se distribuye en el sureste de México y en América Central (Guatemala, Nicaragua y Costa Rica). Tres especies han sido descritas. Estudiamos especímenes de herbario de Oecopetalum y realizamos un análisis filogenético basado en los genes de los cloroplastos matK y ndhF para responder a las preguntas principales: ¿Cuántas especies hay en el género Oecopetalum? ¿Es Oecopetalum monofilético? ¿Cuáles son las relaciones genéricas con otros miembros de la familia? Oecopetalum es un género monofilético con solo dos especies y Pittosporosis es el grupo hermano. La relación transatlántica de Oecopetalum y Pittosporosis es un patrón geográfico recurrente en la familia Mettenuisaceae, así como en Icacinaceae. Nuestros resultados, en concordancia con la evidencia fósil y las relaciones de otros grupos, apoyan el modelo boreotropical de migraciones terrestres de táxones tropicales desde latitudes altas durante el Paleoceno-Eoceno, globalmente cálido.

Oecopetalum Greenm. & C.H. Thomps. (Metteniusaceae) is distributed in the southeastern portion of Mexico to Central America (Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica). Three species have been described. We studied herbarium specimens of the genus Oecopetalum and performed a phylogenetic analysis based on the plastid genes matK and ndhF to answer several major questions: How many species are in the genus Oecopetalum? Is Oecopetalum monophyletic, and how is the genus related to other members of the family? Our results indicate that Oecopetalum is monophyletic, with only two species, and sister to the Asian genus Pittosporopsis. The Trans-Atlantic relationship of Oecopetalum and Pittosporosis is a recurrent geographic pattern in the families Mettenuisaceae and Icacinaceae. Our results, in agreement the fossil record and previous phylogenetic studies, support the boreotropical model of high-latitude terrestrial migrations of tropical taxa during the globally warm Paleocene-Eocene.