STEELE, K.P.*, E. TIZON, R.C. EVANS, C.S. CAMPBELL, AND M.F. WOJCIECHOWSKI. Department of Biology, California State University, Hayward, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, and Section of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis. - Sister group relationships of Fabaceae and Rosaceae: phylogenetic relationships of Eurosids I.
Sister group relationships of the large, important flowering plant
families Fabaeae and Rosaceae are uncertain. Recent studies (e.g.
Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85:531-553;
Soltis et al., 1999, Nature 402:402-404) find strong support for
including Fabales and Rosales within the Eurosid I group, which also
includes Cucurbitales and Fagales. Fabales consists of four families,
with the Polygalaceae, Surianaceae, Quillajaceae each suggested as the
sister group to the Fabaceae. Rosaceae are currently seen as the
sister group to the remainder of the Rosales. Nucleotide sequence
data from the chloroplast matKgene are used for phylogenetic
analyses of representatives of most families of Eurosid I with the
primary aim of resolving the sister group relationships of Fabaceae
and Rosaceae. Preliminary results indicate strong support for Eurosid
I and less support for relationships among its four orders.
matKsequence data do, however, appear to provide sufficient
characters to help resolve relationships within Rosales and Fabales.
Key words: eurosids I, Fabaceae, phylogeny, Rosaceae