• Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.189-195
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• 2017

Aruncus L. is a small genus which is distributed in the circumpolar regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including Europe, Asia, and North America. In Korea, there are two taxa, A. dioicus var. kamtschaticus and A. aethusifolius. Aruncus aethusifolius is a species endemic to Korea, occurring only on Jeju Island. An important characteristic of Aruncus is dioecy. However, there is some controversy regarding the sexuality of this genus, and little is known about A. aethusifolius. To characterize the sexuality of A. aethusifolius and to provide insight into the evolution of its sexual system, we investigated natural populations and herbarium specimens of A. aethusifolius. The results indicate that the species has carpellate, staminate, and bisexual flowers. Carpellate flowers are always borne on separate individuals, and staminate flowers are borne either on separate individuals or mixed with bisexual flowers on the same individuals. The sexuality of A. aethusifolius is defined as polygamo-dioecious. The polygamo-dioecious type is also found in A. dioicus var. dioicus and A. dioicus var. kamtschaticus and thus may be a general condition in Aruncus.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.320-331
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• 2019

Background: Dioecious plant species having both male and female plants have been investigated regarding sex-related characteristics such as sex ratio, sex-differential resource requirements, and spatial segregation of the sexes. Habitat loss and fragmentation are major threats to the survival of plant populations, but dioecious species are particularly more prone to such habitat degradation than non-dioecious species because of their dimorphic sexual system. We examined the sex-related demographics of two Ilex cornuta populations being different regarding land use history. Methods: During 2016-2017, we examined I. cornuta trees with a basal diameter ${\geq}1.5cm$ in the Yongsu-ri population (YS population) and the Gotjawal Provincial Park population (GP population). Plant sex (male, female, or unsexed) was identified. The tree size (basal diameter and height of the main stem), clonal production (the ramet numbers per genet), and vitality for each clone were measured. The associations between population, sex, tree size, clonal production, and vitality were examined using ANOVAs and contingency table analyses. Finally, point pattern analyses using O-ring statistics were conducted to assess spatial patterns. Results: Upon excluding unsexed trees, the YS population with 74 trees was significantly male-biased (0.66), while the GP population with only 26 trees had a 1:1 sex ratio. In both populations, males and females did not differ in tree size. Although the mean number of ramets differed significantly between populations, females tended to produce more ramets than males. The proportion of weak trees was significantly higher in the YS than in the GP population. Neither population showed evidence of spatial segregation of the sexes. Conclusions: The two populations of dioecious I. cornuta are characterized by the small number of trees and relatively high frequencies of non-reproductive trees. Both indicate that these populations are quite susceptible to environmental and genetic stochasticity. On the other hand, the differences between populations in sex ratio, clonal production, and vitality suggest that conservation efforts for I. cornuta need to be population-specific. In order to help recover and enable this vulnerable species to persist, it is necessary to find ways to enhance their sexual reproduction and simultaneously reduce habitat disturbances due to anthropogenic activities.

• Korean Journal of Plant Tissue Culture
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.309-313
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• 1998

RAPD (Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA) analysis was conducted to Schisandra nigra plants in order to select the specific markers for monoecious and dioecious individuals. RAPD results using eighty random 10-mer primers revealed that S. nigra had a different banding pattern from S. chinensis and Kadsura japonica. When DNA isolated from leaves of monoecious and dioecious plants were used as PCR template, only five primers, OPA-17, OPA-19, OPB-03, OPB-09 and OFB-16, showed polymorphic band patterns. No variation in banding profiles within male or female individuals was observed when these five primers were used whereas three monoecious plants (No 1, No 2 and No 3) showed different banding patterns one another, A 750 bp segment was amplified by primer OPB-3 from male individuals. On the other hand, two segments, 950 bp and 1690 bp, with OPA-19 and 700 bp of segment with OPB-3 were amplified in female individuals. These result indicate that the specific buds of male and female S. nigra could be used as genetic markers for the early discrimination of male and female individuals.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.113-119
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• 2016

The long lived iteroparous conifers produce male and female gametophyte for hundreds of years once they reach the reproductive stage, however, the production of seed is not frequent. This phenomenon of infrequent seed production in conifers is yet to be understood. An attempt to study this change in cone production in Cedrus deodara of Western Himalayas -a species reported to be mainly monoecious and rarely dioecious has been made. The observations recorded on selected trees of flowering/fruiting stage for four years at four different locations have shown the species to be dioecious with higher percentage of female trees during good seed year but with no definite or predictable pattern of reproduction in the trees. A decline in production of female trees was witnessed at all but one location immediately year after reaching the maximum (good seed year). The phenomenon of seed production has been observed to be cyclic and site specific. A change in the sexual behavior of the trees from male to female or vice-versa, male or female turning monoecious or vegetative and vegetative coming to reproductive was unpredictable.

• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.239-243
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• 2008

Simmondsia chinensis (Link) Schneider, a multipurpose and monogeneric dioecious shrub from arid zones, has emerged as a cash crop all over the globe. Its seed propagation poses severe problems due to its male-biased population: the male:female ratio is 5:1. Investigations have been carried out to generate a sex-specific Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) marker for the early detection of male and female plants. Of the 42 primers analysed with a bulk sample of pooled male DNA and a bulk sample of pooled female DNA, only one primer, UBC-807, produced a unique ~1,200 base-pair fragment in the male DNA. To validate this observation, this primer was re-tested with individual male and female samples from eight cultivars. A similar unique ~1,200 bp fragment was present in the male individuals of all eight cultivars and completely absent in the female individuals tested. This is the first report of the use of ISSR markers to ascertain sex in physiologically mature S. chinensis plants.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.41 no.8
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• pp.223-234
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• 2017

Background: Spatial structure of plants in a population reflects complex interactions of ecological and evolutionary processes. For dioecious plants, differences in reproduction cost between sexes and sizes might affect their spatial distribution. Abiotic heterogeneity may also affect adaptation activities, and result in a unique spatial structure of the population. Thus, we examined sex- and size-related spatial distributions of old-growth forest of dioecious tree Torreya nucifera in extremely heterogeneous Gotjawal terrain of Jeju Island, South Korea. Methods: We generated a database of location, sex, and size (DBH) of T. nucifera trees for each quadrat ($160{\times}300m$) in each of the three sites previously defined (quadrat A, B, C in Site I, II, and III, respectively). T. nucifera trees were categorized into eight groups based on sex (males vs. females), size (small vs. large trees), and sex by size (small vs. large males, and small vs. large females) for spatial point pattern analysis. Univariate and bivariate spatial analyses were conducted. Results: Univariate spatial analysis showed that spatial patterns of T. nucifera trees differed among the three quadrats. In quadrat A, individual trees showed random distribution at all scales regardless of sex and size groups. When assessing univariate patterns for sex by size groups in quadrat B, small males and small females were distributed randomly at all scales whereas large males and large females were clumped. All groups in quadrat C were clustered at short distances but the pattern changed as distance was increased. Bivariate spatial analyses testing the association between sex and size groups showed that spatial segregation occurred only in quadrat C. Males and females were spatially independent at all scales. However, after controlling for size, males and females were spatially separated. Conclusions: Diverse spatial patterns of T. nucifera trees across the three sites within the Torreya Forest imply that adaptive explanations are not sufficient for understanding spatial structure in this old-growth forest. If so, the role of Gotjawal terrain in terms of creating extremely diverse microhabitats and subsequently stochastic processes of survival and mortality of trees, both of which ultimately determine spatial patterns, needs to be further examined.

• Proceedings of the Zoological Society Korea Conference
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• 1998.10b
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• pp.334.2-334
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• 1998

No Abstract, See Full Text

• Proceedings of the Zoological Society Korea Conference
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• 2003.08a
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• pp.188.3-188
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• 2003

No Abstract, See Full Text

• Proceedings of the Zoological Society Korea Conference
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• 1999.10b
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• pp.272.2-272
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• 1999

No Abstract, See Full Text

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.55-60
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• 2003

The genetic variation of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) patterns of genomic DNAs was investigated in dioecious plant Rumex acetosa L., which carries different sex chromosome complements in female (2n=12A+XX) and male (2n=12A+XY$_1$Y$_2$). One hundred and twenty random primers consisted of 10-mer were used for PCR amplification. Polymorphic bands were found in 24 primers. Specific bands for female and male were 16 and 18, respectively. Especially, a band of 1,440 bp from the OPC-10 primer was male specific. These sex specific RAPD markers are used to understanding the sex determination mechanism in plants.