bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/224790; this version posted November 29, 2017. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. 1 Title: Time calibrated tree of Dioscorea (Dioscoreaceae) indicate four origins of yams in 2 the Neotropics since the Eocene 3 4 Ricardo S. Couto1,5, Aline C. Martins2, Mônica Bolson2, Rosana C. Lopes3, Eric C. Smidt2 & 5 João M. A. Braga4 6 1. Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Quinta da Boa Vista s.n., São 7 Cristovão, 20940-040, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. 8 2. Department of Botany, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba-PR, Brazil 9 3. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Rua Prof. Rodolfo Paulo Rocco, 21941-490, Rio de 10 Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. 11 4. Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Rua Pacheco Leão 915, 22460-030, 12 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. 13 5. Current adress: Universidade Iguaçu, Faculdade de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Nova 14 Iguaçu, RJ, Brazil. 15 Correspondence author:
[email protected] 16 17 Running head: Origins of yams in the Neotropics 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 1 bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/224790; this version posted November 29, 2017. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. 28 ABSTRACT 29 30 The yam genus Dioscorea comprises circa 650 species of tropical vines with starch rich tubers, 31 usefull as an energy source and often containing secondary metabolites.