A methodology for characterizing vegetal taxonomic groups using microextraction-assisted voltammetry of microparticles is described. It is based on recording the voltammetric response of microparticulate films of polyphenolic compounds of leaf extracts using different organic solvents. As a result, characteristic voltammetric profiles, tentatively defining an electrochemolomic response, are obtained. Bivariant and multivariant chemometric evaluation of the voltammetric responses of such films allows characterizing vegetal families. Analysis of voltammetric responses for a set of species of the Rosales order suggests that electrochemical data can be correlated with phylogenetic trees.

1IntroductionIntersection of electrochemistryw ith vegetal matterh as av ariety of aspects.A part from the electrochemical determinationo fb ioactivec ompounds [1],c ontaminants [2,3] and antioxidant capacities [4][5][6][7],r ecognizing growth conditions and type of plants [8] and varietal discrimination of fruits [9] and leaves [10] have been reported. Conversely,v egetal matter can be used for electrode modification [11],e lectrochemical sensing [12,13] and as as upport for electrode modification [ 14,15].Electrochemical methods have as ignificant place in biological and environmentala nalyses. Much of electroanalytical methodsa re devotedt ot he determination of selected natural products in biological samples.T hese approaches,b ased on solution-phase electrochemistry, involve different types of modifiede lectrodes in order to achieve the levelso fs ensitivity and selectivity demanded by the individual analytest ob ed etermined in the presence of complex biological matrices [16][17][18][19].Itispossible, however, aiming av ariety of analytical targets which are based on the recordo ft he global electrochemicalr esponse of biological systems without determination of individual analytes [20,21].I nt his context, we have recently described the application of the voltammetry of immobilized particles (VIMP),asolid state electrochemical technique developed by Scholz et al. whichp rovidesa nalytical data on sparingly soluble solids [22][23][24],f or acquiring phylogenetici nformationb ased on the record of the "electrochemical fingerprint"d ue to the electroactive compounds existing in plantl eaves [20][21].H ere,w e presenta ne xpansiono ft his electrochemolomic approach focused on two objectives:i )r ecognition of the presence of characteristic voltammetric fingerprints at different taxonomic levels (family,g enus,s pecies), and ii) testing the possibility of discriminating different genetic linesw ithin different species of the same genus,i nb oth cases using the voltammetric response of seed extracts. Them ain objective was to test the hypothesis that the chemical composition of seed extracts should be less sensitive to local environmental factors and hence much more representative of geneticd ifferences,t han that of leaf extractsp reviously studied [20,21],i no rder to apply electrochemical data in phylogenetic studies.Molecularp hylogenyp lays an essential role in contemporary botany.P hylogenetic trees,t raditionally basedo n morphological/functional features,a re mainly derived fromg enetica nalysis mostly based in the identificationo f nucleotide sequences of nuclear and chloroplast regions [25].I ns everalc ases,c himeric nucleotide sequences are obtained so that discrepancies between molecular and morphological/functional classifications appear [26][27][28][29].Abstract:Am ethodology for characterizing vegetal taxonomic groupsf rom the voltammetric fingerprintso fp olyphenolic components of seeds is described. It is based on recording the voltammetric response of microparticulate films depositedo ng lassy...

Agriculture is highly exposed to climate warming, and promoting traditional cultivars constitutes an adaptive farming mechanism from climate change impacts. This study compared seed traits and adaptability in the germinative process, through temperature and drought response, between a commercial cultivar and Mediterranean Phaseolus lunatus L. landraces. Genetic and phylogenetic analyses were conducted to characterize local cultivars. Optimal germination temperature, and water stress tolerance, with increasing polyethylene glycol (PEG) concentrations, were initially evaluated. Base temperature, thermal time, base potential and hydrotime were calculated to compare the thermal and hydric responses and competitiveness among cultivars. Eight molecular markers were analyzed to calculate polymorphism and divergence parameters, of which three, together with South American species accessions, were used to construct a Bayesian phylogeny. No major differences were found in seed traits, rather different bicolored patterns. A preference for high temperatures and fast germination were observed. The ‘Pintat’ landrace showed marked competitiveness compared to the commercial cultivar when faced with temperature and drought tolerance. No genetic differences were found among the Valencian landraces and the phylogeny confirmed their Andean origin. Promoting landraces for their greater resilience is a tool to help overcome the worldwide challenge deriving from climate change and loss of agrobiodiversity.

The cover picture shows an image of an Asparagus densiflorus (Kunth) Jessop from Botanical Garden of the University of Valencia, Spain. The image is based on the article titled “Access to Phylogeny from Voltammetric Fingerprints of Seeds: the Asparagus Case”, by A. Doménech‐Carbó et al. DOI: 10.1002/elan.201600588

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