REVSYS: Phylogeny and Revision of Artocarpus (Moraceae) with a Focus on Understanding the Origins and Diversity of Cultivated Members of the Genus

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案(公法111-5)资助的。该项目将研究东南太平洋地区一组具有重要经济意义的植物的分布和进化。Artocarpus是包含无花果和桑树(桑科)的植物科的第三大属。最多的物种来自东南亚，分布在太平洋的各个岛屿上。Artocarpus包含许多经济上重要的物种，这些物种在其原生地区种植用于木材或水果。菠萝蜜和面包果这两个物种在整个热带地区都有种植，它们面临着基因侵蚀的威胁，这可能会使它们更容易受到疾病或干旱等环境压力的影响。菠萝蜜和面包果种间的亲缘关系以及菠萝蜜和面包果品种间的遗传多样性还不完全清楚。这些信息对于解释该属的进化和分布以及识别栽培物种的最接近的野生近亲是必要的。然后，野生近亲和遗传多样性的品种可以作为目标，在农场和种质收藏中进行保护。由这笔赠款资助的研究将结合田野调查、形态评估和遗传研究，制作一份Artocarpus的全面修订本(可在硬拷贝和在线上获得)，描述其生态、进化和分布，并包括关于菠萝蜜和面包果的起源和遗传多样性的鉴定关键和信息。这些结果将影响到广泛的受众，并将对了解在热带和亚热带大片地区具有经济和生存价值的一个重要属的进化做出重大贡献。这项工作将涉及与国际科学家的合作，并将加强美国和海外本科生和研究生的培训。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).This project will study the distribution and evolution of an economically important group of plants in the southeast Pacific region. Artocarpus is the third largest genus in the plant family that contains figs and mulberries (Moraceae). The greatest number of species are distributed from Southeast Asia throughout islands in the Pacific Ocean. Artocarpus contains numerous economically important species that are grown in their native region for timber or fruit. Two species, jackfruit and breadfruit, are cultivated throughout the tropics and are under threat of genetic erosion that can leave them more susceptible to environmental stresses such as disease or droughts. The relationships among Artocarpus species and the genetic diversity within jackfruit and breadfruit cultivars are incompletely understood. Such information is necessary for explaining the evolution and distribution of the genus and identifying the closest wild relatives of cultivated species. Wild relatives as well as genetically diverse cultivars can then be targeted for conservation on-farm and in germplasm collections. The research funded by this grant will combine fieldwork, morphological assessments, and genetic studies to produce a comprehensive revision (available in hard copy and online) of Artocarpus, describing its ecology, evolution and distribution, and including identification keys and information about the origins and genetic diversity of jackfruit and breadfruit. The results will reach a broad audience and be a significant contribution to the understanding of the evolution of an important genus with economic and subsistence value throughout large parts of the tropics and subtropics. The work will involve collaboration with international scientists and will enhance the training of undergraduate and graduate students in the US and abroad.