Characterization and delineation of two infraspecific taxa of Dioscorea esculenta (Lour.) Burkill: The leaf architecture approach

Abstract

Abstract. Antonio MA, Buot Jr. IE. 2021. Characterization and delineation of two infraspecific taxa of Dioscorea esculenta (Lour.) Burkill: The leaf architecture approach. Biodiversitas 22: 1783-1789. The current taxonomic treatment for the wild and cultivated species of Dioscorea esculenta Lour. (Burkill) presented them as two different varieties. However, there are confusions among botanists and farmers. So, leaf architecture analysis was done to investigate whether leaf architecture data would support their current taxonomic treatment. The varieties showed variability in several characteristics indicating their distinct identity from each other. Based on general leaf characters, they differ in all the parameters observed. But on venation characters, evident variation was seen only on the number of basal veins and secondary vein angle of divergence. Nevertheless, the two varieties resemble each other in a number of characters, i.e. campylodromous primary veins, brochidodromous secondary veins, presence of intermarginal and intersecondary veins, admedially ramified tertiary veins, and well-developed areolation. Dendrogram generated from cluster analysis agrees with and supports above leaf architectural examination, suggesting the two varieties to be recognized as separate taxa. But the current taxonomic treatment naming them as var. spinosa and var. fasciculata seemed to have dragged the cultivated plant into the classification system generally used for wild plants. Thus, the proposed name for the cultivated plant is D. esculenta ‘fasciculata’ while that of the wild plant remains as D. esculenta var. spinosa.

Comparative analysis of the leaf architectural characters of Saurauia bontocensis Merr. and Saurauia polysperma (Blanco) Merr. with the application of Digital Image Analysis Software

“…& L.M.Perry) observed by Viacruciz and Buot (2021) include the laminar size, apex shape, base shape, areolation, and FEVs. It was also mentioned by Antonio and Buot (2021) that variations can be observed in the number of basal veins and 2° vein angle of divergence of the two infraspecific taxa of Dioscorea esculenta (Lour.) Burkill.…”

“…Specifically, this paper compared the shape, size and organization of their leaves including their leaf venation patterns. Several studies in the country have effectively demonstrated the value of using leaf architecture as tools for identifying and classifying plants, as well as in addressing taxonomic confusions (Villareal and Buot 2015;Jumawan and Buot 2016;Torrefiel and Buot 2017;Baltazar and Buot 2019;Paguntalan and Buot 2019;Hernandez et al 2020;Antonio and Buot 2021;Viacruciz and Buot 2021), and this is among the most valuable morpho-anatomical tools for species delineation (Masungsong et al 2019).…”

Classifying fifty-seven Cucumis (Cucurbitaceae) accessions into six species using leaf architectural traits

“…longaculeatus. In some leaf architecture studies, blade class was also used in delineating species in a particular genus and infraspecific taxa (Baroga and Buot 2014;Kpadehyea and Buot 2014;Tan and Buot 2018;Antonio and Buot 2021). In other economically important crops, like Glycine max, blade class was used as a tool in the identification of all accession of this species.…”

Dioscorea esculenta (Lour.) Burkill: Uses and bioactivity

“…Dioscorea L. is the largest genus in the family Dioscoreaceae and accounts for more than 95% of the species in this family. It is estimated that the genus Dioscorea has about 600 species [11], which are distributed in Southeast Asia, Africa, Central America, South America, and other tropical or subtropical regions [9]. Although there are more than 600 species of Dioscorea, only a few are used as food, namely D. rotundata, D. cyaenensis, D. alata, D. dumetorum, and D. esculenta [10].…”

“…Description of D. esculenta which has a climbing herb habitus (Figure 2A). Left twisted stem, and petiole prickly leaves, heart-shaped leaves (Figure 2B) and pubescent, spiked inflorescence with flowers having six petals and six stamens, some tubers covered with roots all over the surface, and white tuber flesh (Figure 1B) uniform [11]. Propagated by vegetative bulbi [10].…”