- Email: [email protected]
Reporting on the state of plant invasions in South Africa
Abstracts
Marloth of dispersal by the rock dassie (Procavia capensis). This rock dwelling generalist eats only the thin, fleshy pericarp of the fruit. Experiments with eaten and control Heeria argentea fruits show lack of germination in control fruits. We show the benefits of this directed dispersal is to ensure establishment and growth in rocky fire refugia. This is a remarkable example of directed dispersal to sites that are rare in these fire-swept landscapes. We suggest that an entire community of trees has converged in distribution and dispersal mechanism due to the selective pressure of fire. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.196
Encephalartos Lehm. is an African endemic cycad genus comprising of 68 species and subspecies with South Africa being a diversity hotspot with 37 species. Of these, approximately 70% are threatened with extinction and all classed as CITES Appendix 1. Yet, species delimitation and relationships within the genus are uncertain and in need of taxonomic revision. In the current study, DNA sequences from three plastid regions (rbcLa, psbA–trnH and matK) and two nuclear regions (ITS and NEEDLY) for 284 samples (67 taxa) were used to produce a complete species level phylogeny for the genus. Results confirmed the monophyly of the genus. Furthermore, three supported clades were retrieved in Encephalartos that could provide the first step towards a sectional classification for the genus. Results of the phylogenetic analyses will be presented.
Revealing the survival secrets of resurrection plants to improve crops: Expression of a co-chaperone from Tripogon loliiformis improves chickpea stress tolerance
doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.198
B. Williams, S. Bhowmik, H. Long, A. Cheng, S. Mundree Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4001, Australia
Reporting on the state of plant invasions in South Africa
Over the next fifty years there will be a massive challenge to sustain an ever-increasing global population. It is imperative that we devise the most efficient means of food production. Plant proteins are inherently more sustainable to produce and require less than 10 times water than animal-derived protein production. Accordingly, future diets are predicted to rely heavily on plantbased proteins. To meet the increased demands, current agricultural practices must increase by at least 70%. With climate forecasts predicting increasing erratic weather globally and reduced crop yields, how do we fulfil this ensuing supply-demand gap? A small group of angiosperms termed resurrection plants have the ability to tolerate desiccation and return from a dormant state upon availability of water may serve as a unique genetic resource for the generation of resilient crops that can survive and yield during unfavourable conditions. Here we describe a unique regulatory role for trehalose in the activation of autophagy and desiccation tolerance in Tripogon loliiformis. We show that T. loliiformis leaves are alive in the desiccated state and that pre-existing tissues, not new growth, resurrect upon the addition of water. Notably, we establish that treatment of leaves with trehalose triggers autophagy in vitro and that trehalose accumulation correlates with autophagosome formation in dehydrating and desiccated plants. To investigate whether survival strategies from resurrection plants can be expressed to crops a co-chaperone from T. loliiformis was constitutively expressed in chickpea. The resultant chickpea produced increased yields with larger, higher quality seed compared to nontransgenic controls. These findings illustrate that the tolerance strategies from resurrection plants can be transferred to crops to improve stress tolerance and yield and demonstrate significant potential for future crop development. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.197
A molecular phylogeny of the genus Encephalartos (Zamiaceae) J. Williamson, R.M. Kabongo, M.L. Pilosa, M. Van der Bank The African Centre for DNA Barcoding (ACDB), Department of Botany and Plant Biotechnology, University of Johannesburg, PO Box 524, Auckland Park 2006, Johannesburg, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (J. Williamson)
375
J.R.U. Wilsona,b, M. Gaertnerb,c, D.M. Richardsonb, S. Rahlaoa, B.W. Van Wilgena,b a South African National Biodiversity Institute, Kirstenbosch Research Centre, Claremont 7735, South Africa b Centre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland 7602, South Africa c Green Jobs Unit, Environmental Resource Management Department, City of Cape Town, Westlake Conservation Office, Ou Kaapse Weg, Cape Town, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (J.R.U. Wilson) South Africa has a rich history of conservation planning and assessing the state of biodiversity. However, there has, as yet, been no reports specifically on the state of biological invasions. Such a report is now required by October 2017 and every three years thereafter in terms of the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act: Alien & Invasive Species Regulations. In this presentation we will describe the current process of developing the National Status Report on Biological Invasions in South Africa, discuss the proposed framework for reporting (and in future monitoring) the state of plant invasions, and present some preliminary results drawing on papers produced as part of an upcoming March special issue of the journal African Biodiversity and Conservation (Bothalia). We are keen to get input from attendees both into the current reporting process, and into how both the reporting and monitoring processes can be developed in future. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.199
In vitro micropropagation and the production of secondary metabolites in Agathosma betulina (Berg.): An important aromatic ethnomedicinal plant H. Witbooia, L. Kambizia, N.P. Makungab a Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town Campus, PO Box 1906, Bellville 7535, Cape Town, South Africa b Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (L. Kambizi) The global demand for medicinal plant products has let to overexploitation and sometimes extinction of indigenous medicinal
Marloth of dispersal by the rock dassie (Procavia capensis). This rock dwelling generalist eats only the thin, fleshy pericarp of the fruit. Experiments with eaten and control Heeria argentea fruits show lack of germination in control fruits. We show the benefits of this directed dispersal is to ensure establishment and growth in rocky fire refugia. This is a remarkable example of directed dispersal to sites that are rare in these fire-swept landscapes. We suggest that an entire community of trees has converged in distribution and dispersal mechanism due to the selective pressure of fire. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.196
Encephalartos Lehm. is an African endemic cycad genus comprising of 68 species and subspecies with South Africa being a diversity hotspot with 37 species. Of these, approximately 70% are threatened with extinction and all classed as CITES Appendix 1. Yet, species delimitation and relationships within the genus are uncertain and in need of taxonomic revision. In the current study, DNA sequences from three plastid regions (rbcLa, psbA–trnH and matK) and two nuclear regions (ITS and NEEDLY) for 284 samples (67 taxa) were used to produce a complete species level phylogeny for the genus. Results confirmed the monophyly of the genus. Furthermore, three supported clades were retrieved in Encephalartos that could provide the first step towards a sectional classification for the genus. Results of the phylogenetic analyses will be presented.
Revealing the survival secrets of resurrection plants to improve crops: Expression of a co-chaperone from Tripogon loliiformis improves chickpea stress tolerance
doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.198
B. Williams, S. Bhowmik, H. Long, A. Cheng, S. Mundree Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4001, Australia
Reporting on the state of plant invasions in South Africa
Over the next fifty years there will be a massive challenge to sustain an ever-increasing global population. It is imperative that we devise the most efficient means of food production. Plant proteins are inherently more sustainable to produce and require less than 10 times water than animal-derived protein production. Accordingly, future diets are predicted to rely heavily on plantbased proteins. To meet the increased demands, current agricultural practices must increase by at least 70%. With climate forecasts predicting increasing erratic weather globally and reduced crop yields, how do we fulfil this ensuing supply-demand gap? A small group of angiosperms termed resurrection plants have the ability to tolerate desiccation and return from a dormant state upon availability of water may serve as a unique genetic resource for the generation of resilient crops that can survive and yield during unfavourable conditions. Here we describe a unique regulatory role for trehalose in the activation of autophagy and desiccation tolerance in Tripogon loliiformis. We show that T. loliiformis leaves are alive in the desiccated state and that pre-existing tissues, not new growth, resurrect upon the addition of water. Notably, we establish that treatment of leaves with trehalose triggers autophagy in vitro and that trehalose accumulation correlates with autophagosome formation in dehydrating and desiccated plants. To investigate whether survival strategies from resurrection plants can be expressed to crops a co-chaperone from T. loliiformis was constitutively expressed in chickpea. The resultant chickpea produced increased yields with larger, higher quality seed compared to nontransgenic controls. These findings illustrate that the tolerance strategies from resurrection plants can be transferred to crops to improve stress tolerance and yield and demonstrate significant potential for future crop development. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.197
A molecular phylogeny of the genus Encephalartos (Zamiaceae) J. Williamson, R.M. Kabongo, M.L. Pilosa, M. Van der Bank The African Centre for DNA Barcoding (ACDB), Department of Botany and Plant Biotechnology, University of Johannesburg, PO Box 524, Auckland Park 2006, Johannesburg, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (J. Williamson)
375
J.R.U. Wilsona,b, M. Gaertnerb,c, D.M. Richardsonb, S. Rahlaoa, B.W. Van Wilgena,b a South African National Biodiversity Institute, Kirstenbosch Research Centre, Claremont 7735, South Africa b Centre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland 7602, South Africa c Green Jobs Unit, Environmental Resource Management Department, City of Cape Town, Westlake Conservation Office, Ou Kaapse Weg, Cape Town, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (J.R.U. Wilson) South Africa has a rich history of conservation planning and assessing the state of biodiversity. However, there has, as yet, been no reports specifically on the state of biological invasions. Such a report is now required by October 2017 and every three years thereafter in terms of the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act: Alien & Invasive Species Regulations. In this presentation we will describe the current process of developing the National Status Report on Biological Invasions in South Africa, discuss the proposed framework for reporting (and in future monitoring) the state of plant invasions, and present some preliminary results drawing on papers produced as part of an upcoming March special issue of the journal African Biodiversity and Conservation (Bothalia). We are keen to get input from attendees both into the current reporting process, and into how both the reporting and monitoring processes can be developed in future. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2017.01.199
In vitro micropropagation and the production of secondary metabolites in Agathosma betulina (Berg.): An important aromatic ethnomedicinal plant H. Witbooia, L. Kambizia, N.P. Makungab a Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town Campus, PO Box 1906, Bellville 7535, Cape Town, South Africa b Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, South Africa E-mail address: [email protected] (L. Kambizi) The global demand for medicinal plant products has let to overexploitation and sometimes extinction of indigenous medicinal