Characterizing glandular trichome morphology and secondary chemistry in alpine Mimulus

Secretory and glandular trichomes (leaf hairs) play a critical role in plant protection against various environmental stresses. Two evolutionarily-distant complexes in the genus Mimulus, Mimulus lewisii and Mimulus tilingii, each contain an alpine species that is characterized with glandular trichomes, unlike their close relatives. However, nothing is known about whether the trichomes of these two species show similar morphology or secretion chemistry in response to similar environmental conditions. As a part of ongoing cross- disciplinary work, this project focused on determining trichome structure, analyzing glandular function, and isolating and identifying the organic compounds that comprise the glandular secretions in order to understand their possible adaptive role in the two species. To date, a shared glandular trichome feature was found in both of the species, and chemical analysis identified aliphatic carbons as well as amine and alcohol functional groups in glandular secretions of M. lewisii. Further work includes efforts to collect larger volumes of glandular secretions and to fully characterize the chemical composition of the secretions