Seed Anatomy And Numerical Classification Of The Genus Silene And Its Relative Plants(Caryophyllaceae) In China

Caryophyllaceae is rich in resources.The main characteristics of its family include herbs,stem swollen at the nodes,opposite simple leaves,dichasial cyme,Caryophyllaceous corolla,free-central placentation and capsules.As the largest genus in Caryophyllaceae,Silene is widely distributed in temperate and warm temperate regions of the northern hemisphere.It has high medicinal,horticultural and ecological values.Scholars have differetn views on its identifying scope.This mainly focuses on whether the scope is to be treated narrowly or broadly.One group of scholars argues that it should be treated narrowly,that is,the Silene does not include Melandrium.But the other group of scholars supports the broad view,that is,the Silene should also include some of Melandrium,Lychnis,and Cucubalus.In this thesis,28 groups(including twenty-four species,two variants and two biovars)of the Silene and its kindred plants are taken as the research object for seed anatomy and numerical classification,the results show that:1.Seed Anatomy ResearchThe anatomical structure of the seed of Silene and its related plants are consistent,as follows: All species are dicotyledonous plants with endosperm,and the seed consists of three parts: the seed coat,perisperm and embryo;The seed has a well-developed embryo,which consists of radicle,germ,embryonic axis and cotyledon;It shows that Silene,Cucubalus,Lychnis and Melandrium have a closer relationship,and supports the classification of all the above species into Lychnideae.At the same time,Silene and its related species have various types of internal structure of seeds,which can be separated Lychnis and Cucubalus from different types according to different classification criteria.However,based on the anatomical morphology and structural characteristics of the seeds,no matter what classification conditions are used,it is impossible to completely separate Melandrium from Silene.This shows that there is a closer relationship between the two genuses,which supports the broad view.The above results show that the anatomical seed structure is of great significance to the classification and genetic identification of the species in Silene and its related species.2.Numerical Classification ResearchThe level of diversity or the abundance of variation reflects the ability of plants to adapt to habitat changes.Different degrees of correlation between phenotypic traits indicate the diversity of their evolutionary direction in the process of phylogenetic evolution.The clustering results show that Agrostemma,Lychnis,Silene,Melandrium and Cucubalus have common origins.These five genuses are closely related and can be included in Lychnideae.A.githago,L.wilfordii,L.cognata,and C.baccifer are separated,indicating that the relationship between Agrostemma,Lychnis,Cucubalus,Melandrium and Silene is getting closer.There was a trend of separation between Silene and Melandrium,and then intertwined with each other,indicating that the kinship between the two genus is very close,and they can be jointly included in the generalized Silene for treatment.Comprehensive results from both seed anatomy and numerical classification studies,It is believed that Agrostemma,Lychnis,Silene,Melandrium and Cucubalus can be collectively classified into Lychnideae in which Siline and Melandrium are more closely related and can be incorporated into the broad Silene.