scholarly journals Collaborative environmental DNA sampling from petal surfaces of flowering cherry Cerasus × yedoensis ‘Somei-yoshino’ across the Japanese archipelago

2018 ◽  
Vol 131 (4) ◽  
pp. 709-717
Author(s):  
Tazro Ohta ◽  
Takeshi Kawashima ◽  
Natsuko O. Shinozaki ◽  
Akito Dobashi ◽  
Satoshi Hiraoka ◽  
...  
2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tazro Ohta ◽  
Takeshi Kawashima ◽  
Natsuko O. Shinozaki ◽  
Akito Dobashi ◽  
Satoshi Hiraoka ◽  
...  

AbstractRecent studies have shown that environmental DNA is found almost everywhere. Flower petal surfaces are an attractive tissue to use for investigation of the dispersal of environmental DNA in nature as they are isolated from the external environment until the bud opens and only then can the petal surface accumulate environmental DNA. Here, we performed a crowdsourced experiment, the “Ohanami Project”, to obtain environmental DNA samples from petal surfaces of Cerasus × yedoensis ‘Somei-yoshino’ across the Japanese archipelago during spring 2015. C. × yedoensis is the most popular garden cherry species in Japan and clones of this cultivar bloom simultaneously every spring. Data collection spanned almost every prefecture and totaled 577 DNA samples from 149 collaborators. Preliminary amplicon-sequencing analysis showed the rapid attachment of environmental DNA onto the petal surfaces. Notably, we found DNA of other common plant species in samples obtained across a wide distribution; this DNA likely originated from pollen of the Japanese cedar. Our analysis supports our belief that petal surfaces after blossoming are a promising target to reveal the dynamics of environmental DNA in nature. The success of our experiment also shows that crowdsourced environmental DNA analyses have considerable value in ecological studies.


Impact ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (7) ◽  
pp. 56-58
Author(s):  
Naruya Saitou

The ebb and flow of human migration across the planet can nowadays be probed with advanced archaeology, linguistics, anthropology and genomics. Together, these can provide a convincing picture of the various divergences and convergences of different human populations across vast areas. It is now possible to better understand how, why and where a particular group or society arose. Professor Naruya Saitou of the Population Genetics Laboratory at the National Institute of Genetics in Mishima has dedicated his career to the synthesis of these disciplines. The current focus of his research is on understanding the origins and formation of the Yaponesian people. This broad term was coined by writer Toshio Shimao in 1960s to encompass the diverse peoples of the Japanese Archipelago over its many thousands of years of inhabitation. Saitou's research is helping to uncover Japan's ancient past.


2005 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 309-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dai Fukui ◽  
Kishio Maeda ◽  
David A. Hill ◽  
Sumiko Matsumura ◽  
Naoki Agetsuma

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judita Lihová ◽  
Hiroshi Kudoh ◽  
Karol Marhold

Polyploidy is an important evolutionary mechanism and speciation mode in plants; however, delimitation of species boundaries in polyploid complexes is often a difficult task. In the present paper, we explore morphological variation in a group of East Asian Cardamine polyploids that have long been shrouded in taxonomic and nomenclatural confusion. We relate the present morphometric data of 41 sampled populations with recently published ploidy-level data, and propose a revised taxonomic treatment, including the designation of several lectotypes. The following species are recognised in Japan: C. schinziana O.E.Schulz (2n = 6x, 8x), C. torrentis Nakai (2n = 8x), C. valida (Takeda) Nakai (2n = 4x) and C. yezoensis Maxim. (2n = 6x−12x). C. amariformis Nakai (2n = 4x) from Korea is also discussed, although it may be conspecific with C. valida, pending further studies. Distribution of these taxa in the Japanese Archipelago is characterised, including comments on their occurrence outside of Japan.


Author(s):  
Hitomi Hongo

Zooarchaeological and molecular biological studies indicate that all domestic animals found in Japan were introduced and local domestication of wild boar and wolf is unlikely. Timing of introduction and husbandry practice for dog, pig, horse, cattle, and chicken are discussed. These main domestic species were introduced from the Chinese continent in prehistoric times, probably via the Korean peninsula. Meat of domestic animals and dairy products were not a major part of the diet until the twentieth century ad, partly because of the Buddhist prohibition of the consumption of animal meat. Zooarchaeological data from the Yayoi and Kofun period sites as well as the historical era have been gradually accumulating, helping the interpretation of textual records as well as supplementing them.


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