Sonerileae/Dissochaeteae (Melastomataceae) comprises ca. 50 genera, two thirds of which occur in Southeast Asia. Phylogenetic relationships within this clade remain largely unclear, which hampers our understanding of its origin, evolution, and biogeography. Here, we explored the use of chloroplast genomes in phylogenetic reconstruction of Sonerileae/Dissochaeteae, by sampling 138 species and 23 genera in this clade. A total of 151 complete plastid genomes were assembled for this study. Plastid genomic data provided better support for the backbone of the Sonerileae/Dissochaeteae phylogeny, and also for relationships among most closely related species, but failed to resolve the short internodes likely resulted from rapid radiation. Trees inferred from plastid genome and nrITS sequences were largely congruent regarding the major lineages of Sonerileae/Dissochaeteae. The present analyses recovered 15 major lineages well recognized in both nrITS and plastid phylogeny. Molecular dating and biogeographical analyses indicated a South American origin for Sonerileae/Dissochaeteae during late Eocene (stem age: 34.78 Mya). Two dispersal events from South America to the Old World were detected in late Eocene (33.96 Mya) and Mid Oligocene (28.33 Mya) respectively. The core Asian clade began to diversify around early Miocene in Indo-Burma and dispersed subsequently to Malesia and Sino-Japanese regions, possibly promoted by global temperature changes and East Asian monsoon activity. Our analyses supported previous hypothesis that Medinilla reached Madagascar by transoceanic dispersal in Miocene. In addition, generic limits of some genera concerned were discussed.

Phyllagathis Blume and Bredia Blume (Sonerileae s.l., Melastomataceae) are two closely related Asian genera with similar morphology and overlapping geographical range. Their generic circumscription and phylogenetic relationships are far from fully understood. We present here a molecular phylogenetic investigation for the two genera using nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer and chloroplast (trnV‐trnM) sequence data. Seventeen genera of Sonerileae s.l. were included in the analyses, with Phyllagathis and Bredia densely sampled to cover their geographical range and morphological diversity. We identified 14 well supported species clusters within Sonerileae s.l.–Medinilla. Phylogenetic analyses together with reconstruction of morphological characters clearly indicated the taxonomic mess in generic delimitation of Sonerileae s.l. Many of the characters traditionally used in generic delimitation were highly homoplasious. Bredia and Phyllagathis, as well as Allomorphia, Anerincleistus, Fordiophyton, and Oxyspora, were revealed to be non‐monophyletic. Bredia, as currently defined, contains two groups of species with different phylogenetic affiliations. Bredia should be recircumscribed to exclude the Bredia–Phyllagathis clade I and accommodate the Bredia–Phyllagathis clade II as the type of the genus is included in the latter clade. Most species sampled in Phyllagathis spread across eight well supported clades throughout the phylogenetic tree. The type of Phyllagathis showed no close affiliation with other members of Phyllagathis nor its putative relatives. Phyllagathis, as presently circumscribed, is heterogeneous, encompassing multiple evolutionary lineages. As sequence data of nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer and chloroplast trnV‐trnM failed to resolve the phylogenetic relationships among these lineages, the formal taxonomic adjustment of Phyllagathis is postponed until further evidence can be gathered.

No abstract

Bredia (Melastomataceae) is an Asian genus that extends from central and southern mainland China to Taiwan and the Ryukyu islands. Molecular phylogenetic analyses reveal that the type of Bredia is nested in a clade of 20 species, while Tashiroea, a genus previously synonymized in Bredia, falls in another distantly related clade of 10 species. Our morphological survey shows that the two clades can be distinguished by several diagnostic features including leaf indumentum, texture, leaf surface sculpture under SEM, presence/absence of yellowish uniseriate trichomes, and capsule morphology. Based on molecular and morphological evidence, Bredia is recircumscribed and Tashiroea is resurrected. Description and a list of species are provided for the two genera with the description of a new species, T.villosa.

Natural hybridization plays an important role in speciation, genetic exchange, and adaptive evolution. However, it can also lead to the extinction of rare species or can generate super invasive species. Studies of natural hybridization involving rare species can therefore provide valuable information for species protection. In Melastoma, M. penicillatum and M. dendrisetosum are endemic to Hainan, China. M. dendrisetosum is at the edge of extinction, with a wild population of less than 300 individuals. Based on morphological observations during our field survey, we found that there are putative hybrids formed between the two endemic species and their widespread congeners, i.e. M. candidum × M. penicillatum and M. sanguineum × M. dendrisetosum. In this study, we sequenced four low-copy nuclear genes and five chloroplast DNA intergenic spacers of the putative hybrids and their putative parents. We found that these putative hybrids showed chromatogram signal additivity between putative parental species on differentially fixed sites at these nuclear genes. Haplotype networks also showed that at all four nuclear loci analyzed, alleles of the putative hybrids were shared with those of their putative parental species. The results above confirmed that hybridization occurred between M. candidum and M. penicillatum, and between M. sanguineum and M. dendrisetosum. Also,

Eriocaulaceae, a family of herbaceous plants in the order Poales, includes some well-known species used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine. The phylogenetic position of Eriocaulaceae in Poales remains controversial. In this study, we reported the complete chloroplast genome of Eriocaulon sexangulare (Eriocaulaceae) assembled from Illumina sequencing reads. The complete chloroplast genome was 151,435 bp in length with 38.60% overall GC content, containing a large single copy (LSC) region of 81,533 bp, a small single copy (SSC) region of 17,114 bp and a pair of inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,394 bp. A total of 134 genes were annotated, including 88 protein-coding genes, 8 rRNAs, and 38 tRNAs. Phylogenetic analysis showed that E. sexangulare is most closely related to Syngonanthus chrysanthus (Eriocaulaceae) and the family Eriocaulaceae is sister to Mayacaceae.

No abstract

Treatment with estrogen improved the systemic and splanchnic hyperdynamic circulation in PPVL rats, in part due to the alleviation of oxidative stress.