Molecular Analysis of Evolution and Origins of Cultivated Hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) and Related Species in China

Abstract

Hawthorn is of high economic value owing to its medicinal properties and health benefits. Crataegus is a member of the Rosaceae family; the genus has a complicated taxonomic history, and several theories on its origin have been proposed. In this study, 53 accessions from seven Crataegus taxa native to China and accessions of exotic Crataegus species (two from Europe and one from North America) were analyzed by specific locus amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq). In total, 933,450 single-nucleotide polymorphisms were identified after filtering and used to investigate the species’ genomic evolution. Phylogenetic trees derived from nuclear simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and SLAF-seq data showed the same topology, in which Crataegus maximowiczii and Crataegus sanguineae formed a closely related cluster that was clearly separated from the cluster composed of Crataegus hupehensis , Crataegus pinnatifida , Crataegus pinnatifida var. major , Crataegus bretschneideri and Crataegus scabrifolia . Phylogenetic and structure analysis indicated that the seven Chinese Crataegus taxa had two separate speciation events. Plants that evolved the southwestern route shared the genepool with the European species, whereas plants along the northeastern route shared the genepool with the North American species. TreeMix genetic analysis revealed that C. bretschneideri may have a hybrid origin. This study provides valuable information on the origins of Chinese Crataegus and suggests an evolutionary model for the main Crataegus species that native to China.

Molecular Analysis of the Genetic Relationship and the Attribution of Some Unsubstantiated Resources of Hawthorn (Crataegus)

“…In the present study, the results of associative molecular analysis based on chloroplast and ITS gene fragments were different from those based on the morphological feature classification system. Combined molecular analysis based on chloroplast gene fragments showed that ZWSLH and GSSZ were closely related and clustered as a single branch of the Sanguineae group and were closely related to C. maximowiczii, consistent with the findings of Du et al [25]. The two taxa showed higher similarity to C. maximowiczii and C. sanguinea in the nSSR dendrogram and the two taxa clustered into a branch of northern China hawthorn species.…”

Recent Large-Scale Genotyping and Phenotyping of Plant Genetic Resources of Vegetatively Propagated Crops

“…The high genetic diversity may derive from transfer of material between locations. High diversity was observed also in a study of Crataegus ; 55 accessions of 7 Crataegus species grown in China together with European and American reference samples were analyzed with 20 SSR loci selected from hawthorn transcriptional data [ 78 ]. Two groups were identified in the Chinese material: one related to European species, and another related to American species.…”

The complete chloroplast genome of Crataegus hupehensis Sarg. (Rosaceae), a medicinal and edible plant in China

“… 1990 ; Du et al. 2019 ). The genus Crataegus L., commonly known as hawthorn, are one of the most economically important plant groups in China, owing to their nutrient-rich fruit and significant medicinal values (Xu et al.…”

“…Crataegus hupehensis Sarg. (family: Rosaceae) is a medicinal and edible plant belonging to Crataegus species which are widely distributed in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere in Europe, Asia, and North America (Phipps et al 1990;Du et al 2019). The genus Crataegus L., commonly known as hawthorn, are one of the most economically important plant groups in China, owing to their nutrient-rich fruit and significant medicinal values (Xu et al 2016).…”

“…Among these taxa, C. hupehensis, C. pinnatifida var. major, C. bretschneideri, and C. scabrifolia are cultivated (Du et al 2019;Ma et al 2019). However, the interspecies relations and origins, and evolution of the four cultivated Crataegus species remain unknown.…”