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Uncovering morphological and physiological markers to distinguish Azolla strains

  • Systematics, Phylogeny & Floristics - Original Article
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Abstract

Taxonomy of Azolla was extensively studied, but still its identification based on morphological, physiological, and reproductive structure remains unclear. Hence, an attempt was made to differentiate Azolla strains based on morphological and physiological traits, keeping six known Azolla (Azolla microphylla, Azolla caroliniana, Azolla mexicana, Azolla rubra, Azolla filiculoides, and Azolla pinnata) as reference for this study. The results showed that out of 96, 21 strains were sporulated during December, 2017 to February 2018 along with two known species, i.e., A. microphylla and A. pinnata. All sporulating strains (except GSMI 1) showed morphological-resemblance with A. pinnata, whereas GSMI 1 was resembled with A. microphylla. Biplot principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) based on physiological data revealed that GSMI 1 was significantly resembled with A. microphylla. Moreover, the presence of rounded dorsal leaf lobe in A. caroliniana has made it unique in Euzolla sub-section and hence, differentiated from other four species (A. microphylla, A. mexicana, A. rubra, and A. filiculoides). WinRHIZO-based root-imaging technique showed the presence of thick root hairs in A. pinnata as compared to other Azolla strains, whereas efficiency of photosystem II (Fv /Fm, a chlorophyll fluorescence-imaging derived value) and relative growth rate were found higher in CRRI 4. In conclusion, the present study generated a presumptive classification key of 102 strains of Azolla for the first time, which indicates clearly that taxonomy in Azolla should be reviewed. Validation of these characters through molecular markers will give further insight about their classification.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all the erstwhile researchers associated with Azolla germplasm maintenance work at the ICAR-National Rice Research Institute (NRRI), Cuttack. Director, NRRI is highly acknowledged for providing the necessary facilities to carry out this research. Partial financial support from projects EAP 200 & EAP 275 are also acknowledged.

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  1. Upendra Kumar and Snehasini Rout have contributed equally to this work

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  1. ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Odisha, 753006, India

    Upendra Kumar, Snehasini Rout, Megha Kaviraj, P. Swain & A. K. Nayak

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  1. Upendra Kumar
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UK and SR conceived of, generated the data, analyzed, interpreted the data and drafted the paper. MK and PS generated the partial data. MK also analyzed and interpreted the data. UK and AKN critically revised it for important intellectual content.

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Correspondence to Upendra Kumar.

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Kumar, U., Rout, S., Kaviraj, M. et al. Uncovering morphological and physiological markers to distinguish Azolla strains. Braz. J. Bot 44, 697–713 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-021-00725-9

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