Diverse Host Spectrum and the Parasitic Process in the Pantropical Hemiparasite Cassytha filiformis L. (Lauraceae) in China

Many hemiparasites attach to a range of different host species, resulting in complex parasite–host interactions. Comprehensive molecular phylogenies allow the investigation of evolutionary relationships between these host plants. We surveyed the hosts of the laurel dodder (Cassytha filiformis, Laura...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Diversity (Basel) 2023-04, Vol.15 (4), p.492
Main Authors: Liu, Zhi-Fang, Ci, Xiu-Qin, Zhang, Shi-Fang, Zhang, Xiao-Yan, Zhang, Xue, Dong, Li-Na, Conran, John G., Li, Jie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agriculture
Biodiversity
Biology
Cassytha
Cassytha filiformis
Conifers
Divergence
Ecosystem biology
Ferns
Flowering
Flowering plants
Haustoria
hemiparasite–host species
Host plants
Lauraceae
Parasites
Parasitic plants
phylogenetic
Phylogenetics
Phylogeny
Plants (botany)
Seeds
Shrubs
woody plants
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Summary:Many hemiparasites attach to a range of different host species, resulting in complex parasite–host interactions. Comprehensive molecular phylogenies allow the investigation of evolutionary relationships between these host plants. We surveyed the hosts of the laurel dodder (Cassytha filiformis, Lauraceae) in China, representing 184 species from 146 genera, 67 families, and spanning flowering plants, conifers, and ferns, using host phylogenetic relationships to investigate the susceptibility to attack by this hemiparasitic plant among the vascular plants. The process of produced well-formed haustoria by C. filiformis was also observed in detail for six different hosts. Our results show that C. filiformis grows mainly on trees and shrubs from phylogenetically divergent members of the rosid and asterid eudicot clades, often attacking multiple adjacent hosts simultaneously, and forming extensive colonies. However, whether and to what extent transitions between C. filiformis and host plants occur remain unclear. Physiological evidence for the complex parasite–host species interactions need to be studied in the future.
ISSN:1424-2818
1424-2818
DOI:10.3390/d15040492