In this paper a key, descriptions and new results are provided for Trigonella sect. Ellipticae occuring within the area covered by the flora of Iran. Trigonella sect. Ellipticae comprises perennial herbs, becoming woody at the base, with standard as long as keel and pods glabrous or rarely covered with gray dense and appressed hairs. Trigonella lasiocarpa Ranjbar & Hajmoradi, T. binaloudensis Ranjbar & Karamian, T. stipitata Ranjbar & Joharchi and T. torbatejamensis Ranjbar are described and illustrated as new species based on habit and pollen morphology. The relationships between the new species and their closest relatives are discussed. The pollen morphology of 26 specimens belonging to 11 species was studied with light and electron microscopy and discussed in the context of existing hypotheses on the systematic relationships within T. sect. Ellipticae. In addition, T. heratensis Rech. f. and T. adscendens Aphan. & Gontsch. are reported as new records for Iran.
A survey on chromosome counts of different sections belonging to the genus Trigonella L. (Fabaceae) throughout the world is presented and the relationships between chromosome data of its sections and their biogeography are also discussed here. In addition, chromosome numbers of 58 populations belonging to 19 species growing in Iran are reported. All studied species except T. monantha and T. orthoceras were diploid with chromosome number 2n = 2x = 16. T. monantha with four subspecies (2n = 4x = 28, 2n = 6x = 42) and T. orthoceras (2n = 6x = 48) were polyploid taxa. Based on the results, x = 7, 8 was determined for Trigonella genus. According to the chromosome and geographical data, Iran can be regarded as the center of origin of Trigonella genus.
A new species, Trigonella bakhtiarica, from the Iranian province Chahar Mahal Va Bakhtiari is described, illustrated and compared to its most closely related species, T. aphanoneura. Trigonella bakhtiarica has a longer corolla and differs in the shape, surface and size of its pods, which are taxonomically informative characters in Trigonella sect. Ellipticae. Chromosome counts and meiosis assays show that both species are diploid, and that their euploid plants possess a somatic chromosome number of 2n = 2x = 16, which is consistent with the predicted base number of x = 8.
Summary Chromosome number, meiotic behaviour and morphological characters related to habit and pollen grains were studied in 8 populations of Trigonella disperma of Trigonella sect. Ellipticae native to Iran. All populations are diploid and possess a chromosome number of 2n=2x=16, which is consistent with the proposed base number of x=8. This taxon displayed regular bivalent pairing and chromosome segregation at meiosis. However, some meiotic abnormalities observed included varied degrees of sticky chromosomes with laggards and bridges in metaphase I or II, asynchronous nuclei in metaphase II, desynapsis in metaphase I, and cytomixis. This paper reports the first known study of the meiotic chromosome number and behaviour of T. disperma. We evaluated and determined the population limits within T. disperma, employing multivariate statistics. Results from meiotic behaviour supports the phenetic grouping. We found a striking association between morphological patterns of the pollen grains, meiotic behaviour and habit morphology. Our results showed that Iranian populations of T. disperma represent the same chromosome, suggesting that the pollen size in different populations can be served to obtain useful information. The environment of origin seems to have an effect on the chromosomes within different populations.
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