Article
Ecology
Elijah Mbandi Mkala, Matthias Jost, Xiang Dong, Geoffrey Mwachala, Paul Mutuku Musili, Stefan Wanke, Guang-Wan Hu, Qing-Feng Wang
Summary: To date, most of the plastome diversity in holoparasitic angiosperms remains unexplored, with only a few genera and species having complete plastid genome sequences available. The first plastomes of Kenyan Hydnora abyssinica accessions were reported in this study, revealing hidden diversity within the species in Africa. Efforts to sample more widespread holoparasitic species for their plastid genomes are proposed to fully investigate their diversity and evolutionary patterns.
BMC ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Biology
Yanxiang Lin, Pan Li, Yuchan Zhang, Delara Akhter, Ronghui Pan, Zhixi Fu, Mingqing Huang, Xiaobo Li, Yanlei Feng
Summary: Our study assembled and analyzed 22 new mitogenomes and 12 new plastomes in the Convolvulaceae family. We found variations in both the plastid and mitochondrial genomes of these plants that were rarely observed in other angiosperms. Dodders, in particular, showed gene and intron losses, duplications, structural variations, and insertions of foreign DNAs. The phylogeny reconstructed by plastid protein coding sequences confirmed the previous relationships of the tribes. The mitogenome in Cuscuta japonica was significantly larger and integrated massive DNAs from other species, while other dodders maintained small-sized mitogenomes, revealing diverse evolutionary strategies. Mutations unique to plants were found in the mitochondrial gene ccmFc, which has undergone gene fission and splicing shift. Our findings provide valuable insights into the evolution of Convolvulaceae and plant parasitism.
Article
Plant Sciences
Matthias Jost, Marie-Stephanie Samain, Isabel Marques, Sean W. Graham, Stefan Wanke
Summary: The phylogenetic relationships within the magnoliid order Piperales have been extensively studied, yet the relationships of the monotypic family Lactoridaceae and the holoparasitic Hydnoraceae within the order remain unclear. Extensive phylogenomic reconstructions based on subcellular genomes have led to the proposal of excluding Hydnoraceae and Lactoridaceae from the broad circumscription of Aristolochiaceae, instead recognizing four distinct families within Piperales.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Matthias Jost, Julia Naumann, Jay F. Bolin, Carlos Martel, Nicolas Rocamundi, Andrea A. Cocucci, Darach Lupton, Christoph Neinhuis, Stefan Wanke
Summary: Plastome condensation during adaptation to a heterotrophic lifestyle is well understood, but studying the evolutionary trajectories of older heterotrophic lineages is crucial. This study focused on Hydnoraceae, one of the oldest and least studied parasitic angiosperm lineages. Comparative genomics revealed structural similarities and shared gene content in Hydnora and Prosopanche, but also significant differences in repeat content. Multiple independent evolutionary events likely contributed to the variations in inverted repeat content and positions, with a direct repeat gain in Prosopanche. Three distinct models were proposed to explain the Hydnoraceae plastome states, based on a resolved species-level phylogenetic hypothesis. Plastid genomes for two closely related autotrophic genera, Lactoris and Thottea, were also reported for comparative purposes.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Ting Yang, Sunil Kumar Sahu, Lingxiao Yang, Yang Liu, Weixue Mu, Xin Liu, Mikael Lenz Strube, Huan Liu, Bojian Zhong
Summary: The plastid organelle is essential for many vital cellular processes and the growth and development of plants. This study comprehensively analyzed plastid genomes to understand their evolution and phylogenetic relationships among plants. The analysis revealed gene blocks and genomic organizations in plastid genomes, as well as well-supported relationships of green plants, contributing to plant phylogeny.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Bin J. W. Chen, Jing Xu, Xinyu Wang
Summary: The research found that the transfer pattern of cadmium in parasitic systems is influenced by the cadmium treatment levels, with parasitic plants having lower cadmium concentration and accumulation.
Article
Plant Sciences
Arjan Banerjee, Sasa Stefanovic
Summary: Most species in Cuscuta subgenus Grammica retain photosynthesis-related plastid genes, but some holoparasitic species in section Subulatae may have lost their plastid genomes entirely.
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Yujing Miao, Xinke Zhang, Jin Pei, Chang Liu, Linfang Huang
Summary: This study compared the root and rhizosphere microbiota of parasitic and host plants, finding that the microbiota of the root was less diverse but more similar to the host. Infection had localized and systemic effects on the host's microbiota. The results support the idea of "parasitic equilibrium" and provide evidence for the complex interaction between parasitic plants and their hosts.
INDUSTRIAL CROPS AND PRODUCTS
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Vasily V. Ashapkin, Lyudmila I. Kutueva, Nadezhda I. Aleksandrushkina, Boris F. Vanyushin, Denitsa R. Teofanova, Lyuben I. Zagorchev
Summary: Parasitic plants extract nutrients from other plants to complete their life cycle and reproduction. The control of parasitic weeds is difficult due to their close physical association and biological relationship with their hosts. Recent progress in genome-wide analyses has revealed many new molecular details of the interactions between parasitic plants and their host plants, suggesting the involvement of both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Runxian Yu, Xudong Chen, Lingjie Long, Matthias Jost, Ran Zhao, Lumei Liu, Jeffrey P. Mower, Claude W. dePamphilis, Stefan Wanke, Yuannian Jiao
Summary: In this study, the mitochondrial genome of Liriodendron tulipifera was found to have many ancestral angiosperm features and a slow evolutionary rate. The mitochondrial genomes of other magnoliids, however, have not been fully characterized. By assembling and comparing mitochondrial genomes from different plant families, we found that perianth-bearing Piperales have conserved repertories of protein-coding genes and rRNAs but variable copy numbers of tRNA genes.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Review
Plant Sciences
Min-Yao Jhu, Neelima R. Sinha
Summary: Parasitic plants use specialized intrusive organs to parasitize other plants, and investigating the mechanisms involved in their development can help understand their evolution and control the agricultural damage they cause. This review summarizes the current understanding of haustorium development in the stem holoparasitic plant genus Cuscuta, as well as its unique parasitizing behaviors.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Mengting Wang, Wenhui Yu, Jiapeng Yang, Zhenyu Hou, Chao Li, Zhitao Niu, Benhou Zhang, Qingyun Xue, Wei Liu, Xiaoyu Ding
Summary: Our study focuses on the Dendrobium orchids, which have large morphological divergence and difficulties in species taxonomy. We assembled the complete mitogenomes of two Dendrobium species and compared them with other orchids. The results reveal extensive variations in repetitive and chloroplast-derived sequences in Dendrobium mitogenomes, and the intergenic content has undergone expansion during evolution. We also sequenced the mitogenomes of 26 Dendrobium species and reconstructed their phylogenetic relationships based on mitochondrial and plastid data. The mitochondrial phylogeny shows partial characteristics of the plastid phylogeny and provides new insights into the phylogenetic relationships of Dendrobium species.
Article
Ecology
Elijah Mbandi Mkala, Matthias Jost, Stefan Wanke, Boniface K. Ngarega, Alice Hughes, Elizabeth Syowai Mutinda, Emmanuel Nyongesa Waswa, Virginia Mutheu Mwanzia, Milicent Akinyi Oulo, Vincent Okelo Wanga, Veronica Mutele Ngumbau, Geoffrey Mwachala, Guang-Wan Hu, Qing-Feng Wang
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the effects of climate change on parasitic plants and their hosts. The results show that suitable habitats will contract in the future, but H. africana is less affected by climate change. Parasitic plants may be more vulnerable to climate change due to their dependence on hosts. The predicted distribution ranges of host plants will be less affected and only partially overlap with the distribution of the parasites.
ECOLOGICAL INFORMATICS
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Jacob D. Bibik, Sarathi M. Weraduwage, Aparajita Banerjee, Ka'shawn Robertson, Roberto Espinoza-Corral, Thomas D. Sharkey, Peter K. Lundquist, Bjorn R. Hamberger
Summary: This study establishes a platform for sustainable production of squalene in plants, which significantly improves the yield compared to previous methods and lays the foundation for the production of higher-value triterpenoids.
ACS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xi Gu, Ing-Gin Chen, Chung-Jui Tsai
Summary: Phylloquinone biosynthesis is retained in nonphotosynthetic holoparasitic plants, potentially enabling them to sense changes in the redox environment during host interactions through plasma membrane phylloquinone. This suggests an ancient origin of distinct phylloquinone pathways predating the evolution of parasitic plants in the Orobanchaceae.
PLANT SIGNALING & BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Conny Traenkner, Joerg Krueger, Stefan Wanke, Julia Naumann, Torsten Wenke, Frauke Engel
Article
Plant Sciences
Carolina Granados Mendoza, Matthias Jost, Eric Hagsater, Susana Magallon, Cassio van den Berg, Emily Moriarty Lemmon, Alan R. Lemmon, Gerardo A. Salazar, Stefan Wanke
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2020)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Remi Allio, Benoit Nabholz, Stefan Wanke, Guillaume Chomicki, Oscar A. Perez-Escobar, Adam M. Cotton, Anne-Laure Clamens, Gael J. Kergoat, Felix A. H. Sperling, Fabien L. Condamine
Summary: The antagonistic interaction between swallowtail butterflies and toxic birthworts, along with multiple host-plant shifts, has led to an increase in global diversity, driven by genome-wide adaptive molecular evolution and repeated bursts of speciation rates.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Matthias Jost, Marie-Stephanie Samain, Isabel Marques, Sean W. Graham, Stefan Wanke
Summary: The phylogenetic relationships within the magnoliid order Piperales have been extensively studied, yet the relationships of the monotypic family Lactoridaceae and the holoparasitic Hydnoraceae within the order remain unclear. Extensive phylogenomic reconstructions based on subcellular genomes have led to the proposal of excluding Hydnoraceae and Lactoridaceae from the broad circumscription of Aristolochiaceae, instead recognizing four distinct families within Piperales.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Long Ke Phan, Stefan Wanke, Christoph Neinhuis, Truong Van
Summary: Aristolochia luudamcui, a new species from Vietnam, is described and illustrated in this study. It is most similar to A. pseudoutriformis and A. utriformis but can be distinguished by its deeply 3-lobed limb and glabrous, yellow inner surface of limb lobes. Detailed description, ecological information, distribution, and conservation status assessment are also provided.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Matthias Jost, Julia Naumann, Jay F. Bolin, Carlos Martel, Nicolas Rocamundi, Andrea A. Cocucci, Darach Lupton, Christoph Neinhuis, Stefan Wanke
Summary: Plastome condensation during adaptation to a heterotrophic lifestyle is well understood, but studying the evolutionary trajectories of older heterotrophic lineages is crucial. This study focused on Hydnoraceae, one of the oldest and least studied parasitic angiosperm lineages. Comparative genomics revealed structural similarities and shared gene content in Hydnora and Prosopanche, but also significant differences in repeat content. Multiple independent evolutionary events likely contributed to the variations in inverted repeat content and positions, with a direct repeat gain in Prosopanche. Three distinct models were proposed to explain the Hydnoraceae plastome states, based on a resolved species-level phylogenetic hypothesis. Plastid genomes for two closely related autotrophic genera, Lactoris and Thottea, were also reported for comparative purposes.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Elijah Mbandi Mkala, Matthias Jost, Stefan Wanke, Boniface K. Ngarega, Alice Hughes, Elizabeth Syowai Mutinda, Emmanuel Nyongesa Waswa, Virginia Mutheu Mwanzia, Milicent Akinyi Oulo, Vincent Okelo Wanga, Veronica Mutele Ngumbau, Geoffrey Mwachala, Guang-Wan Hu, Qing-Feng Wang
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the effects of climate change on parasitic plants and their hosts. The results show that suitable habitats will contract in the future, but H. africana is less affected by climate change. Parasitic plants may be more vulnerable to climate change due to their dependence on hosts. The predicted distribution ranges of host plants will be less affected and only partially overlap with the distribution of the parasites.
ECOLOGICAL INFORMATICS
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Sandra I. Vera-Paz, Daniel D. Diaz Contreras D. Diaz, Matthias Jost, Stefan Wanke, Andres J. Rossado, Rebeca Hernandez-Gutierrez, Gerardo A. Salazar, Susana Magallon, Eric J. Gouda, Ivon M. Ramirez-Morillo, Sabina Donadio, Carolina Granados Mendoza
Summary: In this study, we investigated the phylogeny and evolution of Tillandsioideae using comparative analysis of plastid DNA sequences. We found that plastid markers provided strong support for phylogenetic relationships and identified additional markers for future studies. Furthermore, we discovered plastome rearrangements and shifts in evolutionary trait rates associated with taxonomic changes in Tillandsioideae.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Runxian Yu, Xudong Chen, Lingjie Long, Matthias Jost, Ran Zhao, Lumei Liu, Jeffrey P. Mower, Claude W. dePamphilis, Stefan Wanke, Yuannian Jiao
Summary: In this study, the mitochondrial genome of Liriodendron tulipifera was found to have many ancestral angiosperm features and a slow evolutionary rate. The mitochondrial genomes of other magnoliids, however, have not been fully characterized. By assembling and comparing mitochondrial genomes from different plant families, we found that perianth-bearing Piperales have conserved repertories of protein-coding genes and rRNAs but variable copy numbers of tRNA genes.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Truong Van Do, Thao Thi Hoang, Fang Wen, Stefan Wanke, Malcolm Forbes, Phetlasy Souladeth
Summary: This article describes and illustrates a new species, Aristolochia laotica, from Northeastern Laos. The morphological characteristics of the species are described in detail and compared with other similar species. Remarks on ecology and conservation status are provided, along with a comparison with other species reported in Laos.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jun-jie Wang, Kai Schwedtmann, Kun Liu, Stephen Schulz, Jan Haberstroh, Gerrit Schaper, Anja Wenke, Julia Naumann, Torsten Wenke, Stefan Wanke, Jan J. Weigand
Summary: Photoredox catalysis using the plant genus Hypericum as a catalyst has been shown to be an efficient method for synthesizing complex organic molecules. The active species in the photoreduction reaction has been identified as the radical dianion of hypericin. This strategy offers a sustainable and user-friendly alternative for various visible light induced photocatalytic reactions.