ABSTRACT Although knowledge about halophytic Solanaceae is scarce, it is known that several species within genus Lycium tolerate salinity. Lycium humile grows in highly saline soils in mudflats near saline Andean lakes. This study evaluated the germination responses of L. humile under different scarification methods, photoperiods, temperatures and saline conditions and, simultaneously, tested seedling survival under different iso-osmotic conditions. Dormancy and germination were found to be regulated by interactions with different factors, with the highest germination percentages being obtained by immersion in sulfuric acid, with a temperature of 25 °C and a temperature regime of 5/25 °C, under which seeds were neutrally photoblastic. As osmotic potential of saline solutions decreased, germination also decreased drastically but the seedling survival percentage was higher than 30 % at 600 mM NaCl. No seeds germinated in any of the polyethylene glycol (PEG) solutions and no seedling survival was observed from -1.2 MPa PEG solutions. More than 90 % of seeds incubated in NaCl were able to recover germination after being transferred to distilled water, independently of NaCl treatments. We concluded that the effects of extreme environmental conditions on germination responses and seed tolerance to salinity may determine the occurrence and restricted distribution of L. humile.

Prosopis strombulifera (Lam.) Benth. is a spiny shrub with the maximum tolerance limits reported for halophytic plants. This species is frequently found in the salinized areas in south-western of Córdoba and San Luis provinces, Argentina. Little is known about the genetic diversity within this species in a native population. Genetic diversity in 60 plants of P. strombulifera in south-western San Luis was investigated using AFLP analysis. Polymorphism was found among the samples tested. Four combinations of primers led to the identification of an average of 250 polymorphic bands and the data were used for cluster analysis. P. strombulifera genotypes are clearly separated in subclusters and reflect the diversity within the collection area. This study is a contribution to describe the intra-specific diversity in a natural population of P. strombulifera, and the polymorphism obtained is comparable with other populations of Prosopis species. Results demonstrate the importance of identifying different intra-population genotypes as components of a gene bank of P. strombulifera.

Diversidad genética en una población natural de la leguminosa halófita Prosopis strombulifera revelado por el análisis de AFLP. Prosopis strombulifera (Lam.) Benth. es un subarbusto espinoso con limites máximos de tolerancia informado para especies halófitas. P. strombulifera se encuentra en los suelos salinizados del Sur-Oeste de las provincias de Córdoba y San Luis, Argentina. El conocimiento sobre la diversidad genética en poblaciones nativas de esta especie es escaso. En este trabajo se investigó la diversidad genética en 60 plantas de P. strombulifera mediante el análisis por AFLP. Se observó polimorfismo entre las muestras analizadas, cuatro combinaciones de cebadores identificaron un promedio de 250 bandas polimorficas, las que fueron utilizadas para análisis de agrupamientos. Los genotipos de P. strombulifera fueron separados en subgrupos reflejando la diversidad dentro del área de muestreo. Este estudio contribuye a describir la diversidad intra-específica en una población natural de P. strombulifera, y el polimorfismo obtenido es comparable al observado en otras poblaciones en especies de Prosopis. Estos resultados demuestran la importancia de identificar diferentes genotipos dentro de la población como componentes de un banco de genes de P. strombulifera.