The evolution of the Aristolochia pallida complex (Aristolochiaceae) challenges traditional taxonomy and reflects large-scale glacial refugia in the Mediterranean.

The taxonomy of the Mediterranean Aristolochia pallida complex has been under debate since several decades with the following species currently recognized: A. pallida, A. lutea, A. nardiana, A. microstoma, A. merxmuelleri, A. croatica, and A. castellana. These taxa are distributed from Iberia to Turkey. To reconstruct phylogenetic and biogeographic patterns, we employed cpDNA sequence variation using both noncoding (intron and spacer) and protein-coding regions (i.e., trnK intron, matK gene, and trnK-psbA spacer). Our results show that the morphology-based traditional taxonomy was not corroborated by our phylogenetic analyses. Aristolochia pallida, A. lutea, A. nardiana, and A. microstoma were not monophyletic. Instead, strong geographic signals were detected. Two major clades, one exclusively occurring in Greece and a second one of pan-Mediterranean distribution, were found. Several subclades distributed in Greece, NW Turkey, Italy, as well as amphi-Adriatic subclades, and a subgroup of southern France and Spain, were revealed. The distribution areas of these groups are in close vicinity to hypothesized glacial refugia areas in the Mediterranean. According to molecular clock analyses the diversification of this complex started around 3-3.3 my, before the onset of glaciation cycles, and the further evolution of and within major lineages falls into the Pleistocene. Based on these data, we conclude that the Aristolochia pallida alliance survived in different Mediterranean refugia rarely with low, but often with a high potential for range extension, and a high degree of morphological diversity.

Antioxidant Activity and Chemical Composition of Essential Oils of some Aromatic and Medicinal Plants from Albania.

The chemical compositions have been investigated of the volatile oils of nine populations of six species from Albania, namely Artemisia absinthium, Calamintha nepeta, Hypericum perforatum, Sideritis raeseri subsp. raeseri, Origanum vulgare subsp. hirtum from two wild .populations, and Salvia officinalis (sage) from two wild and one cultivated population,. The essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation and their analyses were performed by GC-MS. The major constituents were: A. absinthium: neryl isovalerate (19.5%), geranyl isobutanoate (16.4%) and carvacrol (8.8%); C. nepeta: pulegone (31.7%), spathulenol (20.0%) and isomenthone (12.7%); H. perforatum: caryophyllene oxide (31.0%), δ-selinene (10.5%) and carvacrol (10.4%); O. vulgare: carvacrol (81.0, 78.6%), y-terpinene (5.5, 7.1%) and p-cymene (4.9, 4.1%) for 0. vulgare originating from Tepelena. and.Vlora, respectively; S. raeseri: carvacrol (36.7%), caryophyllene oxide (17.8%), p-caryphyllene (8.7%), spathulenol (7.7%) and myrtenol (6.4%); S. officinalis: camphor (40.2, 47.8, 45.9%), c-thujone .(19.2, 22.2, 13.7%), eucalyptol (5.4, 2.6, 6.0%), camphene (5.8, 6.1, 3.9, %), borneol (2.1, 2.9, 5.7%) and bornyl acetate (3.3, 1.4, 5.6%) for samples originating from Tepelena, Tirana and Vlora, respectively. The essential oils were also tested for their free radical scavenging activity using the following in vitro assays: i) interaction with the free stable radical of DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl), and ii) inhibition of linoleic acid-peroxidation with 2,2'-azobis- 2-methyl-propanimidamide, dihydrochloride (AAPH). Finally, their inhibitory activity toward soybean lipoxygenase was evaluated, using linoleic acid as substrate.The essential oil of 0. vulgare (OV-VL) presented the highest interaction with the stable radical DPPH (76.5%), followed by that of A. absinthium (54.7%). O. vulgare (OV-TP) and A. absinthium showed high anti-lipid peroxidation activity, 97.5% and 96.5%, respectively, higher than that of the reference compound trolox (73.0%). Only the tested sample of O. vulgare (OV-VL) significantly inhibited soybean lipoxygenase (54.2%).

Albanian violets of the section Melanium, their morphological variability, genetic similarity and their adaptations to serpentine or chalk soils.

Violets of the section Melanium from Albanian serpentine and chalk soils were examined for their taxonomic affiliations, their ability to accumulate heavy metals and their colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). The sequence analysis of the ITS1-5.8S rDNA-ITS2 region showed that all the sampled six Albanian violets grouped between Viola lutea and Viola arvensis, but not with Viola tricolor. The fine resolution of the ITS sequences was not sufficient for a further delimitation of the Albanian violets within the V. lutea-V. arvensis clade. Therefore, the Albanian violets were classified by a set of morphological characters. Viola albanica, Viola dukadjinica and Viola raunsiensis from serpentine soils as well as Viola aetolica from a chalk meadow were unambiguously identified, whereas the samples of Viola macedonica showed high morphological variability. All the violets, in both roots and shoots contained less than or similar levels of heavy metals as their harboring soils, indicating that they were heavy metal excluders. All the violets were strongly colonized by AMF with the remarkable exception of V. albanica. This violet lived as a scree creeper in shallow serpentine soil where the concentration of heavy metals was high but those of P, K and N were scarce.

New records for Albania based on taxa from the Prespa National Park.

Twelve taxa are enumerated as new and three taxa confirmed for the flora of Albania. They were collected between 2007 and 2012 in the Prespa National Park of Albania which is part of the Prespa International Park, a biological protected area at the borders with F.Y.R. Macedonia and Greece. Four taxa, viz., Centaureagalicicae, Festucagalicicae, Laserpitiumochridanum and Micromeriacristatasubsp.kosaninii are restricted to Dry and Galicica Mountains. Centaureadecora, a recently described species, is treated as a synonym of Centaureasoskae thus extending the known localities of the latter to the southeast. Detailed information on distribution, occurrence and habitats in Albania are provided for each taxon.