Wang Caihui, Yang Yutian, Yang Lu, Ling Xue, Ma Zhikun, Zou Tongqian, Ma Jian, Zhang Ming
School of Cultural Heritage, Northwest University, Xi'an, China.
China-Central Asia "the Belt and Road" Joint Laboratory on Human and Environment Research, School of Cultural Heritage, Northwest University, Xi'an, China.
Front Plant Sci. 2025 Aug 28;16:1592308. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1592308. eCollection 2025.
The mulberry ( spp.), an economically important crop along the ancient Silk Road, is widely distributed in Central Asia, yet its origins and dispersal history in the region remain unclear. Chloroplast genomes are extensively used for species identification, evolutionary analyses, and phylogenetics. We resequenced and assembled 25 chloroplast genomes from Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Our results reveal that they predominantly comprise two species: white mulberry (), originating from East Asia, particularly China; and black mulberry (), native to the Caucasus and Western Asia. Strong genetic links to both eastern and western source populations indicate that bidirectional Silk Road exchanges shaped the region's mulberry population. These findings provide new insights into the geographic distribution and dispersal history of mulberries. This study enhances our understanding of the ecological and historical dynamics that shaped the spread of economically significant plants.
桑树（桑属）是古代丝绸之路沿线一种具有重要经济价值的作物，广泛分布于中亚地区，但其在该地区的起源和传播历史仍不清楚。叶绿体基因组被广泛用于物种鉴定、进化分析和系统发育研究。我们对来自乌兹别克斯坦撒马尔罕的25个叶绿体基因组进行了重测序和组装。我们的结果表明，它们主要包括两个物种：源自东亚尤其是中国的白桑；原产于高加索和西亚的黑桑。与东西方源种群的紧密遗传联系表明，丝绸之路的双向交流塑造了该地区的桑树种群。这些发现为桑树的地理分布和传播历史提供了新的见解。这项研究增进了我们对塑造具有重要经济意义植物传播的生态和历史动态的理解。
