Lindelofia longiflora (Royle ex Benth.) Baill. var. falconeri (Cl.) Brand (Family: Boraginaceae) is investigated cytologically (n= 12) for the first time from the cold deserts of Pangi Valley, Chamba District (Himachal Pradesh) in India. We report the formation of syncytes and 2n pollen grains in the species. During meiosis, the majority of the pollen mother cells (PMCs) exhibited 12 bivalents, equal segregation of chromosomes during anaphases, regular tetrads, and normal‐sized pollen grain formation. Occasionally, two proximate PMCs fused during the early stages of prophase‐I and resulted in the formation of syncytes. The frequency of syncytes in the accession is rather low, at 25 out of 1866 (1.33%). Such syncyte PMCs are detectable during meiosis due to their larger size compared to typical PMCs. The syncytes or polyploid cells showed normal 24 bivalents and depicted perfectly regular meiotic course. But the products of such PMCs yield 2n or larger sized pollen grains that are almost double the size of typical normal or n pollen grains. The origin of syncytes as a consequence of the fusion of meiocytes during the early stages of meiosis‐I could be attributed to low temperature stress conditions prevailing in the Pangi Valley, where temperature during May and June dip to below freezing, the time the plants enters the reproductive/flowering bud stage. It is possible that such apparently fertile 2n pollen grains originating from syncytes might play a role in the origin of intraspecific polyploids in the species.

Pangi Valley is the interior most tribal area in Himachal Pradesh of Northwest Himalaya. An ethnobotanical investigation is attempted to highlight the traditional knowledge of medicinal plants being used by the tribes of Pangi Valley. Various localities visited in the valley 2-3 times in a year and ethnobotanical information was collected through interviews with elderly people, women, shepherds, and local vaids during May 2009 to September 2013. This paper documented 67 plant species from 59 genera and 36 families along with their botanical name, local name, family name, habit, medicinal parts used, and traditional usage, including the use of 35 plants with new ethnomedicinal and other use from the study area for the first time. Wild plants represent an important part of their medicinal, dietary, handicraft, fuel wood, veterinary, and fodder components. These tribal inhabitants and migrants depend on the wild plant resources for food, medicines, fuel, fibre, timber, and household articles for their livelihood security. The present study documents and contributes significant ethnobotanical information from the remote high altitude and difficult region of the world, which remains cut off from rest of the world for 6-7 months due to heavy snowfall.

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Summary Presently, A. millefolium, a morphogenetically variable species, has been scored from phytogeographically isolated and unexplored areas of the northwest Himalayas for chromosome counts and male meiotic course. All the studied accessions shared the same meiotic chromosome number of n = 9 and existed at diploid level. A majority of the accessions exhibited the normal meiotic course including microsporogenesis and almost cent per cent pollen fertility. However, three accessions scored from Sangla Valley (Chittkul, 3450 m) and Solang Valley (Dhundi, 3000 m and Palchan, 2480 m) showed the presence of multiple associations of chromosomes in PMCs (pollen mother cells). The quadrivalents formed as a consequence to reciprocal translocations are either chain or ring type (typical ring and zigzag). Meiocytes with multivalents depicted relatively higher chiasma frequency than those with normal bivalent formation. In 4.77% of PMCs, chromosomes remained as laggards during anaphase-I and organized into micronuclei during sporad formation. Consequently sterile/unstained pollen grains were observed. This is the first report of structural heterozygosity for reciprocal translocations in the species.