Abstract
Seed extract/homogenates of T. alexandrinum cv. miskawi, T. arvense var. arvense, T. pratense var, maritimum, T. rubens, T. medium subsp. medium, T. pignantii and T. pannonicum subsp. elongatum (sect. Trifolium), T. glomeratum T. pallescens, T. repens var. repens, and T. alpinum (sect. Lotoidea), T. spumosum (sect. Mistyllus), T. fragiferum var. modestum and T. tomentosum var. tomentosum (sect. Vesicaria) were electrophoretically analyzed on SDS-PAGE, The electrophoretic data were statistically analyzed using matrix of similarity coefficients (Cs), cluster analysis and principal coordinate analysis. This showed that the taxa of section Vesicaria are highly homogeneous, and the delimitation of the sections Vesicaria and Mistyllus agreed with a previous one based on morphological and chromosomal characters. They also showed that the taxa of section Lotoidea a-e highly heterogeneous. The heterogeneity encountered in this section was attributed to the primitive nature of its members. The data showed that the taxa of section Trifolium were divided into two groups; the first included T. rubens, T. arvense var. arvense, T. pratense var. maritimum, T. alexandrinum cv. miskawi, and the second contained T. medium subsp, medium T. pignantii and T. pannonicum subsp. elongatum. The failure of the hybridization between T. pratense var. maritimum from the first group and T. medium subsp. medium from the second suggests the separation of the studied tara into two subsections. The successful hybridization between T. repens var. repens (sect. Trifolium) and T. pallescens (sect. Lotoidea) in combination with the cluster analysis data suggest the possible hybridization between taxa of sections Trifolium and Lotoidea.