What is it about?
The Vietnamese banana species Musa viridis and Musa splendida have a very similar appearance. The main difference is the color of the leaves close to the male flowers, which is pink in Musa viridis and (pinkish)-red in Musa splendida. The high similarity between individuals from Musa viridis and Musa splendida questions their status as separate species. We retrieved DNA data of individuals from both species and demonstrated that their DNA is too similar to justify their status as separate species. In conclusion, we proposed to consider Musa viridis and Musa splendida from Viet Nam as one species, namely Musa splendida.
Featured Image
Photo by Monika Guzikowska on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Wild banana species are important relatives of cultivated bananas. Correct information about the diversity within wild banana species can be useful to create new banana varieties.
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: A splendid banana enigma: Phylogenomic assessment of Vietnamese Musa splendida and Musa viridis populations shows that they are conspecific, PLOS One, February 2025, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0318252.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
