Curcuma comprises 120 species that occur throughout tropical and subtropical Asia. The taxonomy of the genus is haunted by polyploid speciation and homoploid hybridization, making it the most challenging genus in Zingibereae (Zingiberaceae). Curcuma is best known for turmeric (C. longa), but numerous species are extensively used as medicinal plants, ornamentals, and sources of starch, among many other uses. The delimitation of the genus has been a matter of dispute since its establishment by Linnaeus (1753), and further conflict has arisen from recent molecular and morphological studies suggesting either paraphyly of Curcuma or the necessity to broaden the genus to include four small genera (Laosanthus, Paracautleya, Stahlianthus, Smithatris) as well as several species currently placed in Kaempferia and Hitchenia. All previous infrageneric classifications were based on limited material that did not include species from the Indochinese f loristic region, and these classifications are unable to unequivocally accommodate all currently known members of the genus. To test the monophyly and delimitation of Curcuma and to gain more insight into infrageneric relationships, three plastid regions (trnL–trnF, psbA–trnH, matK) and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA were sequenced. Fifty Curcuma species covering the morphological and geographic variation of the genus and 12 Curcuma–like species currently or previously treated as members of other genera were included in this study. In addition, four Zingibereae and three other Zingiberaceae species were used as outgroups. The results of maximum parsimony and Bayesian analyses clearly support a broad generic boundary for Curcuma, with inclusion of Laosanthus, Paracautleya, Stahlianthus, Smithatris and some species of Kaempferia and Hitchenia (K. scaposa, K. candida, H. caulina, H. glauca). Four main groups in Curcuma s.l. were detected, and their importance for classification at the subgenus level is discussed. A new infrageneric classification is proposed here with a formal description of a new subgenus. Cloning uncovered a broad range of variation of ITS sequences within individuals, particularly in the terminal ‘Curcuma’ group containing representatives of the nominal subgenus Curcuma. This ‘intra–individual ITS polymorphism’ increases with ploidy level and is coupled with preferred vegetative reproduction. Additional studies are needed to further uncover highly complex relationships in this subgenus.

The European steppes and their biota have been hypothesized to be either young remnants of the Pleistocene steppe belt or, alternatively, to represent relicts of long-term persisting populations; both scenarios directly bear on nature conservation priorities. Here, we evaluate the conservation value of threatened disjunct steppic grassland habitats in Europe in the context of the Eurasian steppe biome. We use genomic data and ecological niche modelling to assess pre-defined, biome-specific criteria for three plant and three arthropod species. We show that the evolutionary history of Eurasian steppe biota is strikingly congruent across species. The biota of European steppe outposts were long-term isolated from the Asian steppes, and European steppes emerged as disproportionally conservation relevant, harbouring regionally endemic genetic lineages, large genetic diversity, and a mosaic of stable refugia. We emphasize that conserving what is left of Europe's steppes is crucial for conserving the biological diversity of the entire Eurasian steppe biome.

Quaternary climatic oscillations profoundly impacted temperate biodiversity. For many diverse yet undersampled areas, however, the consequences of this impact are still poorly known. In Europe, particular uncertainty surrounds the role of Balkans, a major hotspot of European diversity, in postglacial recolonization of more northerly areas, and the Carpathians, a debatable candidate for a northern 'cryptic' glacial refugium. Using genome-wide SNPs and microsatellites, we examined how the interplay of historical processes and niche shifts structured genetic diversity of diploid Arabidopsis arenosa, a little-known member of the plant model genus that occupies a wide niche range from sea level to alpine peaks across eastern temperate Europe. While the northern Balkans hosted one isolated endemic lineage, most of the genetic diversity was concentrated further north in the Pannonian Basin and the Carpathians, where it likely survived the last glaciation in northern refugia. Finally, a distinct postglacial environment in northern Europe was colonized by populations of admixed origin from the two Carpathian lineages. Niche differentiation along altitude-related bioclimatic gradients was the main trend in the phylogeny of A. arenosa. The most prominent niche shifts, however, characterized genetically only slightly divergent populations that expanded into narrowly defined alpine and northern coastal postglacial environments. Our study highlights the role of eastern central European mountains not only as refugia for unique temperate diversity but also sources for postglacial expansion into novel high-altitude and high-latitude niches. Knowledge of distinct genetic substructure of diploid A. arenosa also opens new opportunities for follow-up studies of this emerging model of evolutionary biology.

Detailed knowledge of the geographic distribution of cytotypes is a prerequisite for any experimental or molecular study of ploidy-variable plant systems. The Arabidopsis arenosa group, an intricate di-tetraploid complex from the plant model genus Arabidopsis, has remained largely neglected regarding the distribution and habitat associations of its cytotypes. Using flow cytometry, we conducted a large population-level cytological screen across the A. arenosa group range, involving more than 2900 individuals from 194 populations. We characterized a largely parapatric distribution of the diploid (Southeast Europe) and tetraploid (Northwest Europe) cytotypes with two contact zones -a narrow contact zone in the Slovenian Forealps and a diffuse contact zone across the Carpathians. In addition, a previously unknown isolated diploid lineage with distinct ecology was revealed from sandy areas of the southeastern Baltic coast. We also recorded several adult triploid individuals for the first time in wild Arabidopsis arenosa. Particularly in the Western Carpathians, the diploid and tetraploid populations are largely intermingled, and both cytotypes are spread along the whole lowland-alpine gradient of habitats, exhibiting no signs of ploidy-linked habitat differentiation. In contrast with the complexity at the landscape scale, the within-population cytological homogeneity and the rare occurrence of triploids indicate that the contact zone is rather stable.

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