The Chilean hazelnut (Gevuina avellana Mol., Proteaceae) is a native tree of Chile and Argentina of edible fruit-type nut. We applied two approaches to contribute to the development of strategies for mitigation of the effects of climate change and anthropic activities in G. avellana. It corresponds to the first report where both tools are integrated, the MaxEnt model to predict the current and future potential distribution coupled with High-Resolution Melting Analysis (HRM) to assess its genetic diversity and understand how the species would respond to these changes. Two global climate models: CNRM-CM6-1 and MIROC-ES2L for four Shared Socioeconomic Pathways: 126, 245, 370, and 585 (2021–2040; 2061–2080) were evaluated. The annual mean temperature (43.7%) and water steam (23.4%) were the key factors for the distribution current of G. avellana (AUC = 0.953). The future prediction model shows to the year 2040 those habitat range decreases at 50% (AUC = 0.918). The genetic structure was investigated in seven natural populations using eight EST-SSR markers, showing a percentage of polymorphic loci between 18.69 and 55.14% and low genetic differentiation between populations (Fst = 0.052; p < 0.001). According to the discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) we identified 10 genetic populations. We conclude that high-priority areas for protection correspond to Los Avellanos and Punta de Águila populations due to their greater genetic diversity and allelic richness.

The present study investigates the cryopreservation of embryonic axes from the peanut genotype ECU-12466, demonstrating a successful protocol involving a 1 h desiccation on silica gel followed by a 1 h cryoprotection with Plant Vitrificatin Solution 2 (PVS2). The average dimensions of the excised embryonic axes were 5.6 mm in length and 3.5 mm in width, with plumule lengths averaging 2.2 mm. Notably, germination rates for cryopreserved axes ranged from 71.4% to 85.7%, showing resilience to varying desiccation and PVS2 treatment times, particularly at 1 h. Shoot length was significantly enhanced by a 1 h PVS2 exposure, while longer durations resulted in phytotoxic effects. Rooting rates were higher for samples treated with shorter desiccation periods, with 54% rooting achieved at 1 h of PVS2 exposure, contrasting sharply with just 16% at 2 h. The moisture content of the embryonic axes remained stable between 9.3% and 9.5%, indicating no detrimental impact from the applied treatments. To evaluate the protocol’s broader applicability, five additional peanut genotypes (ECU-11401, ECU-11418, ECU-11448, ECU-11469, and ECU-11494) were tested. While cryopreserved samples demonstrated high germination rates of up to 95.4% after 15 days, the rooting success was significantly lower (25.2%) compared to the control group’s 90.9%. Following transplantation, the growth performance varied among genotypes, with a success rate of 93% for ECU-11494. Overall, this study elucidates the critical parameters for optimizing cryopreservation protocols in peanut embryonic axes, contributing to more effective long-term conservation strategies.

The study of functional morphological traits enables us to know fundamental aspects of the dynamics of plant communities in local and global habitats. Regenerative morphological traits play an important role in defining plant history and ecological behavior. Seed and fruit characteristics determine to a large extent the patterns for dispersal, germination, establishment and seedling recruitment a given species exhibits on its natural habitat. Despite their prominent role, seed and fruit traits have been poorly studied at the community level of woody plant species in neo-tropical dry forests. In the present study we aimed at i) evaluate the functional role of morphological traits of seeds, fruits and embryo in woody plant species; ii) determine which are the morphological patterns present in seeds collected from the community of woody species that occur in neo-tropical dry forests; and iii) compare woody plant species seed mass values comparatively between neo-tropical dry and tropical forests. To do so, mature seeds were collected from 79 plant species that occur in the Tumbesian forest of Southwest Ecuador. The studied species included the 42 and 37 most representative tree and shrubbery species of the Tumbesian forest respectively. A total of 18 morphological traits (seven quantitative and 11 qualitative) were measured and evaluated in the seeds, fruits and embryos of the selected species, and we compared the seeds mass with other forest types. Our results showed a huge heterogeneity among traits values in the studied species. Seed mass, volume and number were the traits that vary the most at the community level, i.e. seed length ranged from 1.3 to 39 mm, and seed width from 0.6 to 25 mm. Only six embryo types were found among the 79 plant species. In 40 % of the cases, fully developed inverted embryos with large and thick cotyledons to store considerable amount of nutrients were recorded. We concluded that highly variable and functionally complementary morphological traits occur among the studied woody plants of the dry Tumbesian forest. The latter favors a plethora of behavioral mechanisms to coexist among woody species of the dry forest in response to the environmental stress that is typical of arid areas.

The effects of artificial aging and cryopreservation methods on the germination of seeds and embryonic axes of Phaseolus vulgaris and Arachis hypogaea , were studied. Aging and cryopreservation treatments in bean seeds not affect the germination percentage, reaching values not significantly different from control. Germination percentage was higher when isolated embryonic axes were studied. Aging treatments gave rise to larger bean seedlings than the controls and cryopreservation treatments affected the size depending on the explant used. In groundnut seeds, aging treatments and cryopreservation positively affected germination and vigor of seedlings, but embryonic axes from not rehydrated aging seeds not germinate. Undried groundnut seeds not survive cryopreservation, while the dried ones showed a germination behavior superior to the control. Embryonic axes tolerate immersion in liquid nitrogen but when droplet-vitrification was used, formed callus instead of seedlings. Electrolyte leakage was always higher in embryonic axes than in seeds, both in beans and groundnut, and not to have a significant effect, under the conditions studied, on germination and vigor of seedlings. The present study evidences the possibility of cryopreserving, by simple procedures, germplasm of beans and groundnut, and to verify the aging tolerance of the seeds and embryonic axes of these important species.

Con la finalidad de mejorar la propagación de la especie forestal Cinchona officinalis L, se caracterizaron árboles semilleros de calidad, como material de partida para cultivo in vitro. La descripción de rasgos morfológicos de árboles, frutos y semillas de C. officinalis, se realizó según caracteres cualitativos, parámetros dasométricos (altura, DAP), estado fitosanitario y potencial productivo de los árboles semilleros (número de frutos/rama, frutos/árbol y número de semillas/árbol). Los árboles semilleros de C. officinalis L presentaron alturas entre 3.4 a 5.9 m, DAP entre 5.0 a 12.4 cm y un estado fitosanitario bueno; el potencial de producción alcanzó en promedio entre 318.92 a 1054.36 frutos/árbol y entre 464.88 a 1837.00 semillas/árbol. Los árboles provenientes de El Naque presentaron las mejores características dasométricas, fitosanitarias y buen potencial productivo para cultivo in vitro. En conclusion, se caracterizó árboles semilleros de C. officinalis L, con el objetivo de obtener semillas de calidad para ser utilizadas como material de partida en cultivo in vitro, con el fines de aportar a la conservación y restauración de la especie.