A new plant family, Kewaceae, has been created to accommodate some species previously placed in Molluginaceae, a family of herbs and small shrubs from arid lands. DNA studies of Molluginaceae have shown that not all species traditionally attributed to this family are closely related. Several genera have already been removed from Molluginaceae and placed in other families, and recent studies have shown that the genus Hypertelis is also polyphyletic. The type species did belong to Molluginaceae, but the remaining eight species in the genus did not. No older genus name was available for these eight species so a new genus name had to be chosen. The genus was named Kewa in honour of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, as some material used in the analysis came from the Kew DNA bank and Kew has long-standing research interests in the areas where these species occurs: southern Africa, Saint Helena and Madagascar. This new genus occupies an isolated position in Caryophyllales and so has been placed in a new family: Kewaceae. Phytotaxa 181, 238 (2014).

Contact: Dr Maarten Christenhusz (m.christenhusz@kew.org)

Plant families surveySince the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group’s third version of the classification of flowering plants (APG III, 2009) many additional data have become available on the relationships of taxa that were insufficiently studied, resulting in the need to re-evaluate some family delimitations. Because there is often a choice between narrower and broader family concepts), a survey was prepared by Kew scientists with the aim of gauging the feeling of taxonomic community on some of these matters. The survey was held in August 2014 during which 441 respondents from 42 countries (representing all inhabited continents) voted on 22 questions related to the delimitation of fern and flowering plant families. The responses have now been analysed and the results will be made available to the wider community. They will inform the process leading to the next version of the APG classification.

Contact: Dr Maarten Christenhusz (m.christenhusz@kew.org)

Kew ScientistISSN: 0967-8018

Autumn 2014 Issue 46

www.kew.org

News from The Living Col lect ions, The Herbarium and The Laboratories at Kew & Wakehurst P lace

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Kew wins Google Impact Challenge UK awardKew has won a £500k grant in the 2014 Google Impact Challenge UK, a competition sponsored by Google and Nesta that invited charities to pitch innovative ideas on using technology for social and environmental purposes. From over 200 applicants, just ten charities were selected as finalists and, of these, Kew, Centrepoint and WeFarm won the maximum grant and RNIB was chosen by public vote.

Kew’s winning project with Oxford University sets out to transform how mapping of disease-bearing mosquitoes is carried out. Miniature sensors will be developed to detect the unique wing-beat of a mosquito and identify the species from the acoustic signal. These sensors, embedded in wearable devices such as a wristband or cattle ear-tag, together with the microphones of smartphones, adapted by an app, will crowd-source real-time acoustic data on the presence of mosquitoes in the landscape. These data will be combined with daily recordings of temperature and humidity and detailed

A plant family named for Kew

Kewaceae

remote sensing and vegetation mapping to understand how different mosquito species interact with plants in their habitat.

With over 60% of the world population routinely exposed to mosquitoes that transmit malaria, dengue fever and other deadly diseases, the potential benefits of the project are huge. The datasets created by the project will refine how mosquito control programmes are planned and delivered all over the world.

Contact: Prof. Katherine Willis (k.willis@kew.org) Abigail Barker (a.barker@kew.org)

A wearable sensor will detect mosquito wing-beats

Kewa acida (Kewaceae)

A.M

cRobb/RBG K

ew

Direction

The next 255 years of Kew science

As many of you know, Kew science has undergone a restructure. This has been driven partly by a cut in income of the kind being experienced by organisations across the public sector, and partly by the need to revitalise our science and make the outputs more tangible and coherent to the outside world, as two external reviews have advocated. Given that I have now been in the new post of Director of Science here at Kew for a year, this seemed a good opportunity to describe the changes in the context of my own reflections on the past twelve months.

The first thing that amazed me when joining Kew (and still does) was the quality and extent of the collections. It is not just the number that is remarkable but their geographical and temporal breadth, and the range of biological materials they contain: dried, living, preserved in alcohol, whole organisms, chemical compounds, genes, and many others. These collections were started over 250 years ago. More recently they have been expanded to include fungi. They are a national and international public resource: they don’t ‘belong’ to Kew scientists or anyone else - we are their custodians. Preserving and enhancing these collections has to remain a top priority of Kew science. A major part of achieving this aim is ensuring that they are all managed to an equally high standard, and that duplication of roles and collections is minimised. For this reason, in the new structure all collections at Kew will be managed under one ‘Collections’ department.

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Another key role which reaches back to the earliest days of Kew is naming and identification. Coming from a university environment where the teaching of taxonomy has all but died out, I have found it truly inspiring that Kew is still carrying out naming and identification to the highest standards. It is an aspect of Kew’s work that is under-appreciated outside the botanical community; Kew needs to publicise this aspect of its work much more widely. There’s a perfect example in this edition of Kew Scientist of the description of a new genus and family (p 1). Going forwards, Kew needs to build on and enhance this activity. This is why ‘Naming and Identification’ will also become its own department within the new structure.

When viewing Kew’s collections-based research ‘from the outside’ it is clear that there are three areas of science where Kew makes a unique and valuable contribution: comparative plant and fungal biology; plant and fungal conservation; and the identification of the natural capital of plants and fungi, particularly with respect to their contribution to human well-being. The pages of Kew Scientist abound with examples of Kew’s on-going work in these areas. In the new structure each of these areas will therefore become a discrete department, allowing research to focus into well-defined clusters.

Finally, there are three other factors that I’ve had to take into account over the past year. The first is a reduction in core income from the UK government. No-one wants to come into a job where their first task is to cut the budget, but this is the job we were given (and we are not alone). An important component of my approach is to find new ways of raising income from a variety of sources, and quickly. For this reason a new research grants office,

within the Science Directorate office, has been set up to facilitate and support Kew scientists in applying for grant income. There is also a closer working relationship with the Kew Foundation to fundraise for particular aspects of the new structure. Second, the number of trained taxonomists is in decline the world over. Given that most universities no longer teach or train taxonomists, places like Kew must do something about this, and urgently. We don’t have the budget to create new positions in taxonomy, but we do have an extremely skilled set of teachers of taxonomy within our existing staff. We are therefore launching a new MSc programme, in ‘Plant and Fungal Taxonomy, Diversity and Conservation’, based at Kew and partnered with Queen Mary University of London, launching in September 2015 (www.kew.org/msc). Our aim is to train the new generation of taxonomists drawn from both the UK and internationally – an aim which would (I hope) have met with the wholehearted approval of our scientific forefathers here at Kew, men like Banks and Hooker. Third, we need to make our global knowledge and resources much more widely available and in a form that is much more accessible, especially to non-specialists, from teenagers to policy-makers. For this reason, a new Biodiversity Informatics and Spatial Analysis department will be created, whose primary role will be to make Kew’s scientific collections and outputs available as web-based resources and formats accessible to the global community.

With Kew science focused in these new departments, I am confident that we have a structure that will enable the world-class scientists at Kew to move from strength to strength and enable Kew to become a truly global resource in plant and fungal knowledge. The next 255 years begin here.

Prof. Katherine Willis, Director of Science

OSSEA FellowshipsAt the 21st World Orchid Conference (WOC) in Johannesburg (10-14 September 2014), Mark Chase and Alec Pridgeon were awarded Fellowships of the Orchid Society of South East Asia (OSSEA), marked by the presentation of gold medals. The awards were largely in recognition of their role in editing Genera Orchidacearum, of which Volume 6 covered many taxa that are well represented in SE Asia.

All four editors of Genera Orchidacearum now hold Fellowships of OSSEA, as Finn Rasmussen (University of Copenhagen) received the same award in Johannesburg and Phillip Cribb (Kew Honorary Research Fellow) had previously been awarded a Fellowship at the 18th WOC in 2005.

Awards

Most influential scientific mindsMark Chase is listed as one of the most highly cited researchers in the Plant & Animal Science category of ‘The World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds: 2014’, compiled by the Intellectual Property and Science business of Thomson Reuters. His highly cited papers include many on the phylogeny and evolution of angiosperms inferred through the analyses of DNA sequences.

PhDsThe following students, co-supervised by Kew staff, successfully defended their PhD theses:

Barbara Turner, ‘Evolution and biodiversity of New Caledonian Diospyros’ (April 2014)

Vanessa Staggemeier, ‘Ecological and evolutionary studies in Myrtaceae with emphasis on the phenological patterns of diversity and distribution’ (May 2014).

Flora of Thailand conferenceThe 16th Flora of Thailand Conference (RBG Kew; 7–12 September, 2014) attracted over 130 participants from 17 countries and had the theme ‘Thai Botany and the European connection – building on 100 years of collaboration.’ The conference was opened by HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn who has long-standing interests in plant conservation and has visited Kew a number of times. Topics presented ranged from progress on plant families being written up for the Flora to conservation planning and habitat restoration. The editorial board set itself the ambitious target of completing the Flora by 2021. Through careful planning and greater emphasis on electronic data gathering and dissemination, it was felt this target could be achieved, especially with a young generation of Thai botanists leading and contributing to family accounts.

Contact: Dr Dave Simpson (d.simpson@kew.org)

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Kew scientists collaborated on a multi-author study, led by Angela Moles (University of New South Wales), that asked the simple question ‘Which is the better predictor of plant traits: temperature or precipitation?’. This was the first of an intended series of analyses of an unprecedented global dataset, including data for 21 plant traits from 447,961 species-site combinations worldwide.

The study provides the first broad quantification of the relative importance of precipitation and temperature in shaping plant ecological strategies. The meta-analysis showed that mean annual temperature was more strongly correlated with 15 of the 21 plant traits (including plant height and seed mass, both positively) than was mean annual precipitation.

Interestingly, the six instances where the opposite was true included both plant and leaf lifespan. Future work will focus on variables such as climate extremes, potential evapo-transpiration, irradiance, soil properties, and their interactions.

Kew’s contribution to the dataset was seed trait data, disseminated on the web through the Seed Information Database and also shared through the ‘TRY’ consortium of ecological trait data. The work exemplifies the growing potential for Kew’s involvement in collaborative, large-scale analyses and the value of freely sharing its scientific data. J. Veg. Sci. 25, 1167 (2014).

Contact: Dr John Dickie (j.dickie@kew.org)

Does temperature or precipitation shape plant traits?

Plant traits and ecosystems

Do plants grow tall because it is wet or hot?

RBG K

ew

Nectar produced by flowers to attract pollinators often contains deterrent or toxic compounds produced by the plant that are normally associated with herbivore defence. The significance of these nectar toxins is not fully understood, and they may have a negative impact on pollinator behaviour and health. Phil Stevenson (University of Greenwich/Kew) has been collaborating with Erin Tiedeken, Jane Stout (Trinity College Dublin) and Geraldine Wright (Newcastle University) to investigate whether a generalist bumblebee, Bombus terrestris, is deterred by these nectar toxins.

The team found that bumblebees continued to feed on sugar solutions containing toxins even when the toxin concentration was much higher than it occurred naturally in nectar. It would be difficult for bumblebees to avoid flowers producing chemicals that may then harm them or the brood, and the poor acuity that bumblebees have for detecting nectar toxins allows the trait to persist in plant populations.

Pollination is a key ecosystem service provided by flower-visiting insects. It is estimated that over 87% of the world’s flowering plant

species rely on pollination by insects and other animals. Knowledge about how pollinators such as bees interact with flowers can help to understand what factors are potential hazards. Consumption of toxins could be an additional stress factor contributing to pollinator declines that bees must cope with alongside pesticides, diseases and land use change. J. Exp. Biol. 217, 1620 (2014).

Contact: Prof. Phil Stevenson (p.stevenson@kew.org)

Nectar toxins not detected by bumblebees

Naturally occurring grayanotoxin in Rhododendron nectar does not deter bumblebees

T. Marks

Pollinia of Dactylorhiza fuchsii

Desiccation tolerance trait in orchid pollenMany orchids display unique relationships with their pollinators, although in non-rewarding species seed-set can be pollinator-limited due to reduced visitations. To compensate for this, many flowers are long-lived, and for this to be effective their pollen must also exhibit similar attributes. Tim Marks, Philip Seaton and Hugh Pritchard have studied pollen longevity in four entomophilous UK terrestrial species (Anacamptis morio, Dactylorhiza fuchsii, D. maculata and Orchis mascula) to understand the physiology that accommodates changes in environmental conditions experienced in the flower and when carried in pollinia on pollinating insects.

Pollen proved tolerant to a wide range of relative humidity, reflecting conditions experienced during the summer flowering of these species and the drying that would occur during inter-flower transit on the pollinator. Modelling pollen longevity under differing storage conditions showed that, that like seeds, viability was enhanced by both reduced temperature and water content. Pollen of D. fuchsii, stored for six years at -20°C and <10% moisture content, was found to successfully sire seed, thus proving the potential of pollen as an alternative target for germplasm conservation. Ann. Bot. 114, 561 (2014).

Contact: Dr Tim Marks (t.marks@kew.org)

Potential landscape effects of toxic pollenLupinus mutabilis is an important crop in the Andes where it provides protein for small holder farmers. A study has found that lupanine occurs in L. mutabilis pollen, which is harvested by bumble bees to feed their brood. Experiments found that colonies of bumble bees fed lupanine produced fewer and smaller males. If the scale of exposure is large, as it could be where lupins are grown for food, the problem could affect many colonies with whole landscape effects. If the toxins make bees weaker they could have interactive additive effects when encountering other stressors such as disease or pesticide exposure. J. Chem. Ecol. 40, 878 (2014).

Contact: Prof. Phil Stevenson (p.stevenson@kew.org)

P. Stevenson

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Red Listing

Cypripedium formosanum assessed as Endandered on the IUCN Red List

Hassan Rankou (Red List Authority, Orchid Specialist Group) at Kew and colleagues from North America and China have completed the Red Listing of the 52 species of Cypripedium (temperate slipper orchids). The assessments were published in June 2014 in an update to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Most slipper orchids require particular environments and are sensitive to environ-mental change and, as a result, many are severely threatened by habitat destruction (logging, deforestation etc.) In addition, climate change and intrinsic characteristics of the species could lead to near extinction in the wild. Although all species of slipper orchid are protected under CITES Appendix I,

which prohibits international trade without licensing, collection of these species is further fragmenting populations and preventing any natural recovery. The Red List assessments revealed that 79% of species are threatened, with 8% being Critically Endangered, 46% Endangered and 25 % Vulnerable.

The assessment of Cypripedium species is part of a larger project aimed at Red Listing all species of slipper orchids (the complete subfamily Cypripedioideae, with five genera and about 160 species), and publishing these on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species by the end of 2015.

Contact: Hassan Rankou (h.rankou@kew.org)

Red Listing of Cypripedium completed

S. Gale

Cameroon Red List assessments and agreementIn the first week of September 2014, 87 global species conservation assessments from Tropical Africa’s first Red Data Book for Plants (Red Data Book of the Flowering Plants of Cameroon; by J.M. Onana & M. Cheek; Kew Publishing, 2011) were reviewed, updated and edited on the IUCN online Species Information Service . These were released on the IUCN Red List website (www.redlist.org) in November 2014 and constituted the largest block of new Tropical African assessments appearing on the site this year. Most of the species are increasingly threatened by agriculture, logging, mining or other forms of development. The work was completed in the Kew Herbarium by Craig Hilton-Taylor (Head, IUCN Global Red List Unit), Jean-Michel Onana (Chairman, IUCN SSC Central African Red Listing Authority; Head of Biodiversity Programmes, Cameron Ministry of Science and Scientific Innovation — MINRESI) and Martin Cheek, Lucia Lopez Poveda, Tivvy Harvey and George Gosline from Kew. It is hoped to repeat this progress, if funding is available, to cover the remainder of the 815 Cameroonian plant species that were assessed as threatened in 2011.

On 5 September 2014, Kew’s Director of Science, Kathy Willis, signed a five year extension of the Memorandum of Collaboration agreed with Cameroon, witnessed by Jean-Michel Onana (MINRESI). This document will facilitate new research projects between Kew and MINRESI. Within Tropical Africa, the highest number of plant species per degree square is found in Cameroon.

Contact: Dr Martin Cheek (m.cheek@kew.org)

A Vascular Plant Red List for England (by P.A. Stroh et al.; Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, 2014) presents, for the first time, a comprehensive and objective assessment of threat, using globally recognised IUCN categories and criteria, for over 1,800 native and archaeophyte species found in England. The book, of which Kew’s Mike Fay was a co-author, has numerous photographs and maps and includes sections on comparisons of threat with other parts of Great Britain, ecological characteristics of threatened species, extinct taxa, geographic range and species for which

A Vascular Plant Red List for England

England has a particular responsibility. The book was launched at a BSBI meeting at Kew on 18 September 2014 and can be downloaded free via the BSBI website: http://www.bsbi.org.uk/england.html.

Contact: Dr Mike Fay (m.fay@kew.org)

Prof. Kathy Willis signing the Memorandum of Collaboration witnessed by Dr Jean-Michel Onana

RBG K

ew

Endangered dragon tree in top 10 new speciesThe International Institute for Species Exploration 2014 list of the top 10 new species, described during the previous year, includes Dracaena kaweesakii (Kaweesak’s dragon tree), described by Paul Wilkin and colleagues. It is the only angiosperm to feature on this year’s list. Kaweesak’s dragon tree, from the limestone mountains of the Loei and Lop Buri Provinces in Thailand, had gone unnoticed by science, despite being over 12 m tall. With possibly only 2,500 individuals, and threats from limestone extraction, the species has been assessed as Endangered. Phytokeys 26, 101 (2013).

Contact: Dr Paul Wilkin (p.wilkin@kew.org)

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Extinction studies

Extinct grass sequenced to trace C4 originCollections of specimens held by herbaria and museums are invaluable material for biodiversity inventory and evolutionary studies, with specimens accumulated over 300 years readily available for sampling. Unfortunately, most specimens yield low-quality DNA. However, recent advances in sequencing technologies, so-called next-generation sequencing, are revolutionizing phylogenetic investigations at a deep level.

Sartidia perrieri is an extinct grass from a now densely populated area of Central Madagascar. It was collected once 100 years ago and not seen since. In what is believed to be the first successful application of next-generation sequencing to an extinct plant, DNA from S. perrieri was extracted from the specimen and sequences were assembled for the full plastid genome and a single copy gene involved in photosynthesis.

Sartidia carried out photosynthesis using the standard C3 pathway, while its sister lineage, the African grass Stipagrostis, uses the C4 pathway enabling it to fix more carbon dioxide in arid climates. The study found that Sartidia genes are typical of C3 species, meaning the evolution of C4 photosynthesis mechanisms in Stipagrostis started taking place after the divergence of Sartidia and Stipagrostis. Advancing our knowledge of C4 photosynthesis is a vital area of research as it could help humanity adapt to climate change by enabling crops to grow in drier and warmer areas. J. Exp. Bot. (in press) doi: 10.1093/jxb/eru395.

Contact: Dr Maria Vorontsova (m.vorontsova@kew.org)

Herbarium specimen of the extinct Sartidia perrieri

Muséum

National d’H

istoire Naturelle

Extinct fungus actually two misidentified extant speciesFruit bodies of the fungus Clavariadelphus truncatus emerge from the woodland floor like pale brown flat-topped (truncated) stalagmites. Although a conspicuous fungus, it has no vouchered British records since Carleton Rea’s find in Shrawley Wood, Worcs, in 1924 and was unofficially declared extinct here in 2006. As curators of the British and Irish basidiomycete checklist, Kew mycologists were therefore initially very excited to see the publication of a recent Welsh find. Unfortunately, the specimens had not been critically examined, evidently being identified on overall fruitbody shape, a highly risky approach for fungi.

A microscopic examination at Kew revealed that they were specimens of the common Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca (false chanterelle) rendered completely unrecognisable in the field due to a developmental abnormality. This prompted a revision of Rea’s historic specimen preserved in Kew’s fungarium and comparison with authentic material collected overseas. Unfortunately for the British status of C. truncatus, Rea’s specimen failed the diagnostic potassium hydroxide test. On this and other criteria it was redetermined as a specimen of the more familiar C. pistillaris (giant club).

It would appear, therefore, that C. truncatus is neither extinct nor extant in Britain but has never occurred here and will now be excluded from the British list. Field Mycol. 15, 51 (2014).

Contact: Dr Martyn Ainsworth (m.ainsworth@kew.org)

The real Clavariadelphus truncatus fruiting in the Czech Republic.

S. Skeates

Funding for UK seed projectsKew has recently received the following funding for UK seed conservation projects:

£450,000 (The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation) for the collection and ex situ conservation of threatened UK native species.

£100,000 (J. Paul Getty Charitable Trust) for the UK Native Seed Hub.

£175,000 (players of People’s Postcode Lottery) to expand the collecting programme of the UK National Tree Seed Project and facilitate population genetic studies for target species.

High extinction risk to Madagascar palmsA team of Kew scientists has assessed the extinction risk of the palm species of Madagascar using the latest Red List categories and criteria defined by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Their results, published in PLoS ONE, indicate that over 80% of the 195 palm species (of which 192 are endemic) are threatened. This proportion of threatened species exceeds all other plant groups in Madagascar for which comprehensive evaluations are available and it is nearly four times that estimated for plants globally.

Compared with a previous assessment in 1995, the number of ‘Endangered’ and ‘Critically Endangered’ species has substantially increased, mainly due to the discovery of 28 new species, most of which are highly threatened. For species included in both the 1995 and 2014 estimates, more have moved to lower threat categories than to higher categories, largely due to improved knowledge of species and their distributions, rather than a decrease in extinction risk. However, the Kew scientists also identified some cases of genuine deterioration in conservation status.

The primary threats to palms in Madagascar are habitat loss (due to agriculture) and biological resources use (either through direct exploitation or collateral damage). The recent extension of Madagascar’s protected area network is highly beneficial for palms, substantially increasing the number of threatened species populations included within reserves, although 28 threatened and data deficient palm species remain unprotected. Moreover, threats to palms persist even in reserves, indicating that definitive implementation of the new protected areas combined with local community engagement is essential for the survival of Madagascar’s palms. PLoS ONE 9, e106619 (2014).

Contact: Dr Bill Baker (w.baker@kew.org)

Dypsis ambositrae, now extinct in type location in Madagascar

J. Dransfield

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Natural Capital

New mushrooms found in porcini packetKew mycologists Bryn Dentinger and Laura Martinez-Suz have discovered three species of mushrooms that are new to science in a commercial packet of dried Chinese porcini purchased from a shop in London. Porcini mushrooms (Boletus section Boletus) are one of the most traded wild edible mushrooms, but although relatively well known, research at Kew has shown that they are more diverse than previously thought. China is a major exporter of porcini, mainly to Europe, but reliable identification of wild collected porcini can be difficult, especially from under-documented regions. Although it had been shown previously

that unknown species were entering the porcini trade, even the Kew mycologists were surprised when they used DNA-sequencing methods to identify 15 mushroom pieces from the commercial packet and found that all belonged to three diagnosable species, none of which had scientific names. The finding demonstrates the ubiquity of unknown fungal diversity, even in traded products, and the recognition of these species will enable better regulations to improve food safety and enable countries to adhere to international agreements on the exploitation of wild species. PeerJ 2:e570 (2014).

Dr Bryn Dentinger (b.dentinger@kew.org)

Contents of a commercial packet of dried porcini containing three species new to science

B. Dentinger

Mopane (Colophospermum mopane, Leguminosae) is one of the most charismatic trees of south-central Africa and an important and locally abundant resource. Its uses and economic value to rural populations have been reviewed by researchers from the University of Limpopo, Kew and CIFOR. Mopane is perhaps best known as the host for mopane worms, larvae of the moth Imbrasia belina, which are an important source of protein for people in both rural areas and cities. The trade in South Africa alone is estimated at USD 30-50 million per year. Wood is the other main product from mopane, providing firewood or hard, termite-resistant poles for constructing huts and cattle kraals. Figures from northern South Africa suggest an average of 7.8 kg of firewood per household per day, whilst a traditional hut requires around 1.48 m2 of poles. Trans. Royal Soc. S. Afr. 69, 117 (2014).

Contact: Jonathan Timberlake (j.timberlake@kew.org)

J. TimberlakeColphospermum mopane

Economic significance of mopane

Forest genetic resourcesThe first global study of forest genetic resources was published by FAO in June 2014. According to ‘The State of the World’s Forest Genetic Resources’ report, on which Hugh Pritchard from Kew was a co-author, about 50% of forest species used by humans are threatened by the conversion of forests to pastures and farmland, overexploitation and climate change. The report covers 8,000 species of the most utilized trees, shrubs, palms and bamboo. However, of the world’s 80,000 – 100,000 tree species, only 3% are actively managed for the products and services they provide, and only 1% are actively improved through selection and breeding. Data from 86 countries illustrate that there is insufficient awareness of the importance of forest genetic resources in improving forest production and enhancing ecosystems, and this often translates into national policies that are partial, ineffective, or non-existent. The report urges governments to commit to the FAO Global Plan of Action for Forest Genetic Resources to improve access to information on forest genetic resources and enhance collaboration to combat invasive species affecting forest genetic resources. Developing national seed programmes to ensure the availability of genetically appropriate tree seeds is also vital.

In a recent paper in Forest Ecology and Management (doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2014.08.012), scientists from Brazil and Kew review innovative approaches to the preservation of forest trees. These include capturing broad genetic diversity in living collections, improving the diagnosis of tree seed storage behaviour, advances in cryopreservation procedures for storing recalcitrant species, and integrating ex situ and in situ conservation approaches to ensure that best practice in horticultural and forestry are combined to maintain or enhance genetic diversity.

Contact: Prof. Hugh Pritchard (h.pritchar@kew.org)

Coffee germinationThe germination potential of coffee is an important aspect of coffee production both during berry processing and in producing seedlings. A team from Brazil, Canada, The Netherlands and Kew has studied the role of the growth regulator abscisic acid (ABA) in coffee germination, which is slow and lacks uniformity. The expression of genes associated with embryo growth increased during germination and ABA partially inhibited this expression. The expression of two cell wall modifying enzymes, required for weakening of the micropylar endosperm cap, increased during imbibition and ABA strongly inhibited expression of these genes. ABA, therefore, appears to play a dual role in the regulation of coffee seed germination, controlling both endosperm weakening and embryo growth by targeting these genes. Plant Growth Regul. (in press), doi: 10.1007/s10725-014-9960-6.

Contact: Dr Peter Toorop (p.toorop@kew.org)

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Plants for human well-beingUseful Plants Project Workshop At the Useful Plants Project Workshop (22-24 July 2014) ethnobotanists, taxonomists, plant physiologists and agriculturalists, amongst others, came together to review one of Kew’s flagship livelihoods projects and to plan for Kew’s future involvement in livelihoods projects. Oral presentations were given by project leaders from in-country partner organisations in Botswana, Kenya, Mali, Mexico and South Africa and Kew experts in sustainable plant use research and conservation. Talks covered project successes and failures and Kew’s past research and future opportunities, whilst providing a forum for the delegates to learn from each other through shared experiences. Guest speakers Stefano Padulosi (Biodiversity International) and Chikelu Mba (Food and Agricultural Organisation) covered ‘Neglected and underutilised species’ and the use of ‘Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture’. Finally, a ‘Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT)’ analysis and plenary session provided an in-depth analysis on Kew’s past and potential future role in conservation and livelihoods projects.

Contact: Dr Tiziana Ulian (t.ulian@kew.org)

Delegates of the Useful Plants Project Workshop at the Millennium Seed Bank

RBG K

ew)

Medicine, genomes and Fritillaria The genus Fritillaria has long attracted the attention of horticulturalists and practitioners in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Indeed, Fritillaria bulbs (beimu) have been used in TCM for over 2,000 years and are still one of the most widely used sources of TCMs today. In more recent years, Fritillaria has also attracted the attention of genomic scientists, including those at Kew seeking to understand the origin, evolution and significance of the huge diversity of plant genome sizes. This is because Fritillaria species have exceptionally large genomes. Even the Fritillaria species with the smallest genome (F. maximowiczii) has 10 times as much DNA in each cell as we have in our own, while F. amabilis with the largest genome has nearly 30 times as much.

To assist in the study of Fritillaria for both TCM and plant genome size research, DNA samples have been sequenced from 171 individuals (= c. 66% of species) to provide insights into evolutionary relationships between the c. 140

MedPlant scholars undertaking fieldwork in Morocco

O. G

raceMedicinal Plants Summer School Two Kew scientists, Olwen Grace and Hassan Rankou, taught on the first Summer School for MedPlant scholars at Tahanaoute, Morocco (11-19 Sept. 2014). MedPlant is a European Commission-funded training network of 15 PhD and postdoctoral researchers from European universities, coordinated by the University of Copenhagen. It brings together evolutionary biologists, ethnobotanists, biochemists and pharmacists focused on phylogenetic exploration of the world’s medicinal plants. Kew is one of 25 partner institutes in the network. The Summer School focused on field methods for plant collecting, ethnobotany and science communication. Olwen Grace led a session on best practice in botanical field work and working to conservation agendas such as the Convention on Biological Diversity. Hassan Rankou delivered training on IUCN Red List assessment methodology, enabling students’ PhD research to contribute directly to global conservation initiatives.

Contact: Dr Olwen Grace (o.grace@kew.org)

Identifying medicinal plant ingredientsChristine Leon has worked with a team from the Institute of Medicinal Plant Development (China) to review recent key advances in the DNA barcoding of medicinal plant ingredients (herbal materia medica) as a contribution towards the safe and efficacious use of herbal medicines. Numerous adverse reactions have arisen following the use of inaccurately identified medicinal plant ingredients, prompting concern over the safety of herbal medicines. DNA barcoding provides a tool for addressing this problem, and a preliminary system for DNA barcoding herbal materials has been established based on a two-locus combination of ITS2 and psbA-trnH barcodes. There are 78,847 sequences belonging to 23,262 species in the system, which include more than 95% of crude herbal drugs in pharmacopeias, such as those of China, Japan, Korea, India, USA, and Europe. The system is being been used widely in traditional herbal medicine enterprises. Biotechnol. Adv. 15, 1237 (2014).

Contact: Christine Leon (c.leon@kew.org)

species comprising the genus. The results will assist in TCM research on Fritillaria by providing bioprospecting opportunities to identify additional species with medicinal potential, thereby reducing pressure on the few widely used species which are nearly all collected directly from the wild. In addition, the insights gained from this study will help target future research focused on the origin and evolution of the giant genomes of Fritillaria. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 80 , 11 (2014).

Contact: Peter Day (p.day@kew.org)

Three new palm generaRecent botanical exploration in eastern Malesia has resulted in the discovery of three spectacular palm taxa that have proved difficult to assign to genus. New evidence from molecular phylogenetic research has resulted in these taxa being recognised as three monotypic genera. Jailoloa is restricted to ultramafic vegetation in a single site in Halmahera and is Critically Endangered due to nickel mining. Manjekia is scattered throughout the limestone vegetation of Biak Island, east of the Bird’s Head Peninsula of New Guinea, and is Endangered, though parts of its distribution fall within a protected area. Wallaceodoxa, named to mark the centenary of Alfred Russel Wallace’s death, is found on Gag and Waigeo, two of the Raja Ampat Islands west of the Bird’s Head Peninsula, where it is Critically Endangered due to its small and rapidly reducing population. These new genera are unexpected additions to the palm flora of Malesia, and demand urgent conservation attention. Kew Bull. 69, 9525 (2014).

Contact: Dr Bill Baker (w.baker@kew.org)

The newly-described palm genus Manjekia

W. Baker

Fritillaria meleagris

P. Day

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Kew ScientistRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew,Richmond, Surrey TW9 3AB.Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5000Fax: +44 (0)20 8332 5310Internet: www.kew.org

Editorial advisory teamDr W. Baker, Dr C. Clennett, Dr C. Clubbe, Dr B. Dentinger, Dr F. Forest, P. Griffiths, Dr R. de Kok, Dr G. Lewis, N. McGough, M. Ramsay, N. Rothwell, Dr P. Rudall, Prof. M. Simmonds, Dr P. Toorop, R. Wilford

Editor Dr M. FayProduction Editor Dr G. KiteDesign Design & Photography, RBG Kew

Published in Spring and Autumn.

Printed on uncoated, 100% recycled paper.

Maximizing the phylogenetic diversity of seed banksThe conservation of plant species in botanical gardens and seed banks is an important complement to conserving species in their natural habitat. It is therefore necessary to give the same attention to the biological diversity represented in ex situ conservation facilities as is often given to protected areas. The Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) contains probably the most diverse ex situ plant collection in the world. Assessing the diversity of the entire MSB would be an immense task, so a group from Kew and the University of Oxford assessed the holding of legumes (Leguminosae) as a model, comparing the collections with all known legume genera, their known geographic range (at country and regional levels) and a genus-level phylogenetic tree of the legume family constructed for this study.

The team found that MSB contains over half the phylogenetic diversity of legumes at the genus level. However, the priority given to collecting seed from economically important and threatened species has led to the banking of a sub-optimal phylogenetic diversity. Substantial improvement to the phylogenetic diversity could be made by strategic banking of relatively few legume taxa, among which Zollernia was the most irreplaceable based on phylogenetic distinctiveness. The assessment methods employed by the team can therefore be used to target those species that will improve the phylogenetic diversity of ex situ collections. Conserv. Biol. (in press), doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12390

Contact: Dr John Dickie (j.dickie@kew.org)

Zollernia (Z. glabra shown) is the most irreplaceable legume genus that is absent from the Millennium Seed Bank

Magnoliidae phylogenyThe Magnoliidae are a large group of early-diverging angiosperms consisting of about 10,000 species assigned to 20 families and four orders (Canellales, Piperales, Laurales, and Magnoliales) and comprising numerous economically important species (e.g. magnolia, cinnamon, nutmeg, avocado, pepper). Magnoliidae have been supported as a clade in the majority of large-scale molecular phylogenetic studies of angiosperms, but many relationships within this group remained largely debated. Researchers from Kew and the Université Paris-Sud (France) reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships within Magnoliidae as a whole using a sampling of 199 species (representing ca. 75% of genera) and 12 molecular markers from the all three genomes. Phylogenetic analyses produced trees with good resolution and high support values confirming the presence of two major clades in Magnoliidae (Canellales + Piperales and

Laurales + Magnoliales), as shown by certain previous studies. Several previously ambiguous relationships are now well supported such as the monophyly of Aristolochiaceae s.l. (incl. Asaroideae, Aristolochioideae, Lactoris and Hydnoraceae). This study provides a robust phylogenetic background to address the evolutionary history of an important and highly diverse clade of early-diverging angiosperms. Mol. Phylogen. Evol. (2014) 70, 84 (2014).

Contact: Dr Felix Forest (f.forest@kew.org)

Identifying fungiDNA phylogenetic comparisons have shown that morphology-based species recognition often underestimates fungal diversity. The need for accurate DNA sequence data, linked to correct taxonomic names and specimen data, has never been greater. Molecular ecology and microbiome projects using high-throughput sequencing require fast and effective methods for species assignments, yet a significant number of fungal DNA sequences in GenBank are deposited under erroneous or imprecise names. Mycologists from 58 institutions, including Kew, have begun to address this problem by re-annotating a set of ITS sequences covering c. 2,500 species and each order of fungi. These verified sequences are deposited in a curated public database (RefSeq Targeted Loci; RTL) at the NCBI, and will be visible during routine sequence similarity searches. Database (2014) doi:10.1093/database/bau061.

Contact: Dr Bryn Dentinger (b.dentinger@kew.org)

Magnolia virginiana

F. ForestG

. Lewis

While studying the medicinal properties of plants, researchers at Kew noticed unusually large flavonoid glycosides in Iberis saxatilis. The largest had a molecular mass of 1,300 Da, the seventh largest flavonoid glycoside known (excluding anthocyanins). Determining their structures revealed they were the only known examples of flavonoids bearing a pentasaccharide – mono-, di- or trisaccharides are more typical. Why this candytuft has evolved these unusual flavonoid glycosides is not clear. Phytochemistry 88, 85 (2013).

Contact: Dr Geoffrey Kite (g.kite@kew.org)

The structures were determined by Kew phytochemist Dr Nigel Veitch using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Sadly, Nigel died in September 2014. Nigel was a world expert in the structural determination of plant compounds by NMR, with a particular interest in flavonoid diversity. He received the Jack L. Beal Award from the American Society of Pharmacognosy in 2003. Nigel and his phyto-chemical skills and knowledge will be greatly missed at Kew and by the wider community.

Candytuft flavonoids

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