Karyology of Prunella grandiflora and Prunella vulgaris from Turkey

Prunella L. species are distributed in very different habitats since they can adapt to variable ecological conditions. These conditions cause variations in morphological characters. It is very important to support morphological and taxonomic characters with genetic data. So far, various diploid numbers have been reported in the chromosomal records of Turkish Prunella species. The situation is particularly complex in P. vulgaris L. and P. grandiflora (L.) Turra species. The aim of this study is to eliminate the complexity by presenting karyological data of these species. The chromosome number and chromosome lengths of P. grandiflora and P. vulgaris were reported for the first time from Turkey. The diploid and basic numbers were detected as 2n = 28 and x =7 by ploidy levels of 4x in P. grandiflora and P. vulgaris. As a result, the karyology of the genus Prunella was evaluated by comparing previous and present results. The listed data provided important contributions to the cytotaxonomy of the genus Prunella: (i) the basic number was x = 7, (ii) the most common diploid number was 2n = 28, and (iii) high polyploidy rates. The polyploidy probably played an important role in the speciation of the genus.