Discipline: Ecology Environmental and Earth Sciences
Subcategory: Plant Research
Session: 3
Paige Hodges - Howard University
Co-Author(s): Hamid Khamar, University of Rabat, Rabat, Morocco; Janelle Burke, Howard University, Washington, D.C.
Artemisia L. are angiosperms belonging to the Asteraceae family. This genus of plants is native to Central Asia, but it can also be found in cold and temperate climates in North America, Europe, and Africa. While Artemisia L. has economic and medicinal importance around the world, as it is used in medicine, consumption, and soil stabilizers, there is still a large amount of uncertainty in this genus since there is no global system for species classification and phylogeny. Despite the uncertainty, there are five recognized subgenera within the genus: Absinthium DC., Artemisia L., Dracunculus Besser, Seriphidium Besser, and Tridantatae (Rydb.) McArthur. Twelve different species of Artemisia L. currently grow in Morocco; however, not all twelve of these species have been classified into subgenera. The objective of this research project was to classify each of the twelve Moroccan species of Artemisia L. into subgenera. We obtained samples from all twelve species, as well as several varieties, of Artemisia L. growing in Morocco, and we performed DNA extractions on 26 collected samples. We then amplified the nuclear ETS and ITS regions, as well as the chloroplast rcbL region, using polymerase chain reactions. Our sequences were then compared to sequences, which were gathered from GenBank, of over five hundred species of Artemisia L. around the world in all five recognized subgenera. We were then able to determine to which subgenus each of the Moroccan species belong. We will continue our investigation into Moroccan Artemisia L. speciation.
Funder Acknowledgement(s): This project was supported by NSF award HRD #1601031 and an HU ADVANCE Mini-Grant to J. Burke.
Faculty Advisor: Janelle Burke, janellemburke@gmail.com
Role: - Performed DNA extractions - Performed all polymerase chain reactions amplifying the ETS, ITS, and rbcL gene regions - Performed gel electrophoresis upon all samples from polymerase chain reactions - Obtained sequences of over 500 species of Artemisia