Genetic pollutin of Rumex species indigenous to Japan by alien invaders

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24310168
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Resource conservation science
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: Maki Masayuki 東北大学, 学術資源研究公開センター, 教授 (60263985)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): SHINJI FUJII 人間環境大学, 人間環境学部, 准教授 (40228945) ; FUMIKO ISHIHAMA 国立環境研究所, 生物・生態系環境研究センター, 主任研究員 (80414358) ; SATOKI SAKAI 東北大学, 大学院生命科学研究科, 准教授 (90272004)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 在来種保全

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Recent human activity enabled wild plants to move from their indigenous places to other areas in which they are not distributed naturally. Such alien species may hybridize with native congeners, resulting in genetic pollution in gene pools of the latter species. In this study, I investigated natural hybridization between Rumex species native to Japan and their congeneric alien species using flow cytometry and genetic markers.
Based on previous morphological observations, it is known that Rumex longifolius, native species in Japan, often hybridized with the alien species R. obtusifolius and R. crispus. I certified the natural hybridization between R. longifolius and the two alien species by FCM and population genetic analyses. The data suggested that, in addition to F1 hybridization, back-crossings and F2 or later hybridization may have occurred between the native and the alien species. It is very concerned that genetic pollution of the native Rumex by the alien congeners occurs.

Free Research Field

植物進化学