Abstract
The liverwort Pellia borealis is a diploid, monoecious, allopolypliod species (n=18) that as it was postulated, originated after hybridization and duplication of chromosome sets of two cryptic species: Pellia epiphylta-species N (n=9) and Pellia epiphylla-species 5 (n=9). Our recent results have supported the allopolyploid origin of P.borealis. We have shown that the nuclear genome of P.borealis consists of two nuclear genomes: one derived from P.epiphylla-species N and the other from P.epiphylla-species 5. In this paper we show the origin of chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes in an allopolyploid species P.borealis. To our knowledge there is no information concerning the way of mitochondria and chloroplast inheritance in Brophyta. Using an allopolyploid species of p. borealis as a model species we have decided to look into chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes of P.borealis, P.epiphylla-species N and P.epiphylla-species S for nucleotide sequences that would allow us to differentiate between both cryptic species and to identify the origin of organelle genomes in the alloploid species. We have amplified and sequenced a chloroplast $tRNA^{Leu}$ gene (anticodon UAA) containing an intron that has shown to be highly variable in a nucleotide sequence and used for plant population genetics. Unfortunately these sequences were identical in all three liverwort species tested. The analysis of the nucleotide sequence of chloroplast, an intron containing $tRNA^{Gly}$ (anticodon UCC) genes, gave expected results: the intron nucleotide sequence was identical in the case of both P.borealis and P.epiphyllaspecies N, while the sequence obtained from P.epiphyllasperies S was different in several nucleotide positions. These results were confirmed by the nucleotide sequence of another chloroplast molecular marker the chloroplast, an intron-contaning $tRNA^{Lys}$ gene (anticodon UUU). We have also sequenced mitochondrial, an intron-containing $tRNA^{Ser}$ gene (anticodon GCU) in all three liverwort species. In this case we found that, as in the case of the chloroplast genome, P.borealis mitochondrial genome was inherited from P.epiphylla-species N. On the basis of our results we claim that both organelle genomes of P.borealis derived from P.epiphylla-species N.