The aim of this study was to investigate variation in mating system among three Brazilian Amazon populations of the tree Bertholletia excelsa with different levels of anthropogenic interventions. We collected open-pollinated seeds from one natural population, remnant trees dispersed in a pasture, and trees from a plantation. Outcrossing rate not varied among the populations and indicates that all seeds were originated from outcrossing (tm=1.0). Mating among relatives was significant higher in the plantation than forest and pasture populations, probably due the fact that many trees are related in the plantation. Correlated mating was significantly higher in pasture (rp=0.47) and plantation (rp=0.51) than in the natural population (rp=0.22), suggesting that trees in natural population are pollinated by a higher number of pollen donors. The paternity correlation was significantly higher within (rp(w)=0.41) than among fruits (rp(a)=0.18), showing a higher probability to find full-sibs within than among fruits. The fixation index was generally lower in seed trees than in their seedlings, suggesting selection for heterozygous individuals from seedling to adult stages. Progeny arrays collected from the natural population had a lower proportion of pairwise full-sibs than in pasture and plantation and higher variance effective size (2.75) than trees in pasture (2.15) and plantations (2.22). Results highlight that seed collections for conservation, breeding and reforestation programs preferentially should be carried out in natural populations due low proportion highest variance effective size within progeny.

ABSTRACT. Due to the nutritional content and commercial value of its seeds, Bertholletia excelsa is one of the most important species exploited in the Amazon region. The species is hermaphroditic, insect pollinated, and its seeds are dispersed by barochory and animals. Because the fruit set is dependent on natural pollinator activity, gene flow plays a key role in fruit production. However, to date, there have been no studies on pollen and seed flow in natural populations of B. excelsa. Herein, we used microsatellite loci and parentage analysis to investigate the spatial genetic structure (SGS), realized pollen and seed dispersal, and effective pollen dispersal for two B. excelsa populations in the Brazilian Amazon forest. Two plots were established in natural forests from which adults, juveniles, and seeds were sampled. Realized and effective pollen flow was greater than realized seed flow. The distance of realized pollen dispersal ranged from 36 to 2060 m, and the distance of realized seed dispersal ranged from 30 to 1742 m. Both pollen and seeds showed a dispersal pattern of isolation by distance, indicating a high frequency of mating among near-neighbor trees and seed dispersal near to mother trees. Both populations present SGS up to 175 m, which can be explained by isolation by distance pollen and seed dispersal patterns. Our results suggested that fragmentation of these forest populations may result in a significant decrease in gene flow, due to the isolation by distance pollen and seed dispersal patterns.

ABSTRACT. In this study, we analyzed the genetic diversity and structure of remnants of mangaba populations in states of northeastern Brazil by applying 9 microsatellite markers previously developed to establish conservation strategies for germplasm and species preservation. Six to 20 individuals per population were analyzed, with a total of 94 individuals and 6 populations from the states of Ceará, Pernambuco, and Sergipe, Brazil. The intra-population positive fixation index (f) in all populations indicated inbreeding resulting from the lack of random mating. The mean genetic diversity index values G ST , F ST , and R ST estimated for divergence among the 6 populations were 0.14 (P < 0.05), revealing moderate genetic differentiation. The smallest F ST value (P ≥ 0.05) was observed between the Jacarecoara and Tapera populations (0.005) and the highest between the Barra dos Coqueiros and Jacarecoara populations (0.287). The Jacarecoara population was the most divergent among the populations analyzed. According to analysis of molecular variance results, the largest variation percentage resulted from variability within populations (83.18%). Bayesian clustering analysis showed the formation of 2 sets (K = 2). Our results are important for developing strategies for in situ conservation of the species, seed collection, and ex situ conservation. For both methods, conservation of the greatest possible genetic variability of the species is essential.

Background and Aims Psidium is the 4th largest genus of Myrtaceae in the Neotropics. Psidium guajava is widely cultivated in the tropics for its edible fruit. It is commercially under threat due to the disease guava decline. P. cattleyanum is one of the 100 most invasive organisms in the world. Knowledge of the phylogenetic relationships within Psidium is poor. We aim to provide a review of the biology, morphology and ecology of Psidium, a phylogenetic tree, an infra-generic classification and a list of species. Methods Morphological and geographic data were obtained by studying Psidium in herbaria and in the field between 1988 and 2020. Forty-six herbaria were visited personally. A database of c. 6,000 specimens was constructed, and the literature was reviewed. Thirty species (c. 1/3 of the species in the genus) were sampled for molecular phylogenetic inference. Two chloroplast (psbA-trnH and ndhF) and two nuclear (ETS and ITS) regions were targeted. Phylogenetic trees were constructed using Maximum Likelihood (ML; RaxML) and Bayesian Inference (BI; MrBayes). Key Results Psidium is a monophyletic genus with four major clades recognized as sections. Section Psidium (ten species), to which P. guajava belongs, is sister to the rest of the genus; it is widespread across the Neotropics. Section Obversifolia (six species; restricted to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest), which includes P. cattleyanum, is sister to the innermost clade composed of sister sections Apertiflora (31 species; widespread but most diverse in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest) + Mitranthes (26 species; widespread in dry forests and probably diverse in the Caribbean). Characters associated to diversification within Psidium are discussed. Conclusions Research on prefoliation, colleters, leaf anatomy, leaf physiology, staminal development, placentation, and germination associated to the anatomy of the opercular plug is desirable. Studies are biased towards sections Psidium and Obversifolia, with other sections poorly known.

Plants of the genus principally, and are used in Brazilian folk medicine to treat kidney stones as well as other ailments, where the latter two species are listed in the Brazilian Pharmacopeia as (). However, only has been shown to be effective in a clinical setting. Nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS1 - 5.8S rRNA-ITS2), internal transcribed spacer 2, and chloroplastsL, K,A-H, L, andL-F were screened for their potential as DNA barcodes for the identification of 48 taxa in Brazilian medicinal plant germplasm banks and in "living pharmacies". The markers were also tested for their ability to validate four commercial herbal teas labelled as. Using the criterion of high clade posterior probability in Bayesian phylogenetic analysis, the internal transcribed spacer, internal transcribed spacer 2, and chloroplast K,A-H, L, andL-F markers all reliably differentiated the four species, with the internal transcribed spacer andK possessing the additional advantage that the genus is well represented for these markers in the Genbank database. However, in the case of L, posterior probability for some clades was low and while and formed monophyletic groups, and accessions could not be reliably distinguished with this marker. Packaged dried herb from three Brazilian commercial suppliers comprised , but one sample was also found to be mixed with alfalfa (). An herb marketed as from a fourth supplier was found to be composed of a mixture of and .