The Geography of Phytochemical Races

66 2 Examples Within Continents
understanding the relationships among these chemotypes were the high quality of
the chemical analytical studies of this plant complemented by a thorough survey of
this organism throughout its range in Japan.
2.5.5 Biebersteinia (Geraniaceae)
This next example involves a small genus native to central and western Asia, with
one species disjunct in the eastern Mediterranean Basin, where it occurs in Greece
and Anatolian Turkey. Traditionally, Biebersteinia has been allied with Geraniaceae
(e.g., Cronquist, 1981), despite earlier chemotaxonomic investigations by
Bate-Smith (1968, 1973), which had revealed patterns of polyphenolic compounds
in B. multifi da DC. and B. odora Stephan that differed signifi cantly from patterns
seen in members of Geraniaceae. Omurkamizinova et al. (1991) reported luteolin
7-O-glucoside [146] (see Fig. 2.41 for structures 146–159) and 7-O- rutinoside
[147] from B. multifi da, while Zhang et al. (1995) identifi ed the rare fl avone
5,7,3′- trihydroxy-8,4′,5′-trimethoxyfl avone (8-hydroxytricetin 8,4′,5′-trimethyl
Fig. 2.41 Compounds 146–159, fl avonoids and a coumarin, from Biebersteinia