China

  2010 AUG 31 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "Reticulate evolution resulting from gene flow among diverged taxa was studied on the example of the Fagus sylvatica species complex in Europe and western Asia. F. sylvatica L. is one of the most widespread woody species of the Northern Hemisphere with two commonly recognized subspecies (namely, F. sylvatica subsp. sylvatica and F. sylvatica subsp. orientalis) and two putatively hybridogenous or intermediate taxa (F. moesiaca and F. taurica). Whereas the distribution of F. sylvatica subsp. sylvatica in Europe is almost continuous, the Asian range of F. sylvatica subsp. orientalis is fragmented into several larger regional populations," investigators in Zvolen, Slovakia report ...read more

  2010 AUG 31 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "Rice blast is one of the most devastating diseases affecting rice production worldwide. One japonica landrace, Heikezijing, from the Taihu Lake area in China, has been reported to be highly resistant to most of the rice blast isolates collected from China and Japan," scientists writing in the journal Phytopathology report.

  "To effectively dissect the inheritance of its resistance, a population of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) (F-2:8) was constructed from a cross between Heikezijing and Suyunuo, a blast-susceptible cultivar. Nineteen blast isolates from China and Japan were inoculated into 166 RILs and their parents, and 22 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) conferring resistance to these isolates were identified and mapped onto rice chromosomes 1, 7, 9, 11, and 12. Most of the QTLs conferred race-specific resistance to blast. Some QTLs, such as qtlII-5-5, conferred resistance to two or more isolates. One blast-resistant gene cluster, including qtlII-2-2, qtlII-3-1, qtlII-4-1, qtlII-5-5, qtlII-6-1, qtlII-7-5, qtlII-8-2, qtlII-9-2, qtlII-104, and qtlII-11-1, was found on the long arm of chromosome 11 in the japonica landrace. These loci offered effective resistance toward as many as 17 isolates, including 16 isolates from seven Chinese race groups and 1 isolate from Japan," wrote X.L. Shi and colleagues ...read more

  2010 AUG 31 - (VerticalNews.com) -- "Premise of the study : Genetic and chromosomal variations in plants are often reflected in the geographical distribution patterns. Therefore, identifying such phylogeographical patterns on population is important for understanding the process of plant diversification and speciation, and analyzing both molecular and cytological aspects is necessary," scientists in Okayama, Japan report.

  "We investigated the phylogeographic pattern and genetic diversity of the widespread Japanese sedge, Carex conica complex, based on chloroplast DNA haplotypes and chromosomal variations. Sixteen distinct haplotypes were detected from 258 individuals in the C. conica complex inferred from the cpDNA sequences of intergenic spacer (IGS) between atpB and rbcL, IGS between trnT and trnL, trnL intron, and IGS between trnL and trnF. Most haplotypes showed distinct geographical structures. Phylogenetic analyses revealed two major clades, clades I and II, among 16 haplotypes of the complex. The haplotypes of clade I were mainly found in eastern Japan, while most haplotypes of clade II were found in western Japan. Four intraspecific aneuploids of 2n = 32, 34, 36, and 38, with forming normal bivalents in meiotic divisions, were also found in the complex. The geographical distribution of these intraspecific aneuploids corresponded well with those of the haplotypes," wrote O. Yano and colleagues, Okayama University ...read more