The Morphological, Micromorphological and Palynological Study of the Genus Daphne L. (Thymelaeacea) in Iran

Abstract Daphne L. belongs to Thymelaeaceae family which has about 70 species in the world and 4 species in Iran. The species of this genus have compounds such as flavon, Betulin, Simarin and etc. that have anticancer, anti-flammation, antigout and antimicrobial effects. In this study, the pollen of 11 different accessions of D. mucronata, D. oleoides, D. pontica, D. mezerum were studied using stereo microscope, light microscope and scanning electron microscope for identifying and recognizing useful characteristic of these species. The results were analyzed utilizing NTSYS pc v 2.02 e software and dendrogram constructed using UPGMA method. The results have shown that pollen grains are spheroid to elliptic shape, tricolporat and polyforat in the studied species and there are differences on exine surface that create Crotonoid and Semicrotonoid patters. Characteristics such as shape and pollen grains diagonal, revealing and hiding of reticular muri exine diameter are effective in taxonomic segregation of species. In this study, three types of seed surface ornamentation from cell-like, mosaic, and wavy were observed and characteristics such as leaf shape and the presence and density of trichomes, perianth color, lobe form, presence of trichome in ovule,seed color, seed shape, having billed and seed ornamentation of surface are different (variable) between species.