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Cucurbitaceae research projects Systematics of Zehneria (Cucurbitaceae) Dr. Hugh Cross - NHN Leiden Zehneria is a genus of over 30 species distributed
from tropical Africa to Australia and the Pacific. It is distinguished from
related genera in the tribe Melothrieae by the number of thecae on its anthers
(two thecae on each of three anthers, whereas other genera, including
Melothria and Kedrostis, have one theca on one of the three anthers).
The taxonomy of these genera has not been satifactorily worked out, and current
morphological work proposes two-three distinct, additional genera within the
Zehneria complex. The objectives of this project are to determine the
evolutionary relationships of species in Zehneria and related genera in
the Cucurbitaceae using molecular systematic and morphological data. Molecular
systematic data in combination with ongoing taxonomic work should help resolve
the relationships and provide insight into useful morphological characters to
define these groups.
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