Silene

{{Short description|Genus of flowering plants}} {{Other uses}} {{Automatic taxobox |image=Silene dioica Crozon 060416w.jpg |image_caption=''Silene dioica'' (red campion) |taxon=Silene |authority=L. |subdivision_ranks=Species |subdivision=See list of ''Silene'' species |synonyms={{collapsible list | *''Acubalus'' Neck. *''Alifiola'' Raf. *''Anotites'' Greene *''Behen'' Moench *''Behenantha'' Schur *''Carpophora'' Klotzsch *''Charesia'' E.A.Busch *''Cheiropetalum'' Fr. ex Urb. *''Coccyganthe'' (Rchb.) Rchb. *''Conosilene'' Fourr. *× ''Coromelandrium'' Graebn. *× ''Coromelandrum'' Graebn. *''Coronaria'' Guett. *''Corone'' Hoffmanns. ex Steud. *''Cucubalus'' L. *''Diplogama'' Opiz *''Ebraxis'' Raf. *''Elisanthe'' Rchb. *''Evactoma'' Raf. *''Exemix'' Raf. *''Floscuculi'' Opiz *''Flox'' Adans. *''Gastrocalyx'' Schischk. *''Gastrolychnis'' (Fenzl) Rchb. *''Hedona'' Lour. *''Kaleria'' Adans. *''Leptosilene'' Fourr. *''Lychnanthos'' S.G.Gmel. *''Lychnidia'' Pomel *''Lychnis'' L. *× ''Lychnisilene'' Cif. & Giacom. *''Melandrium'' Röhl. *''Muscipula'' Ruppius ex Fourr. *''Neoussuria'' Tzvelev *''Oberna'' Adans. *''Oncerum'' Dulac *''Otites'' Adans. *''Peschkovia'' (Tzvelev) Tzvelev *''Petrocoma'' Rupr. *''Petrosilene'' Fourr. *''Physocarpon'' Neck. ex Raf. *''Physolychnis'' Rupr. *''Pleconax'' Raf. *''Polyschemone'' Schott, Nyman & Kotschy *''Schischkiniella'' Steenis *''Scribaea'' Borkh. *''Silenanthe'' Griseb. & Schenk *''Sofianthe'' Tzvelev *''Uebelinia'' Hochst. *''Ussuria'' Tzvelev *''Viscago'' Zinn *''Wahlbergella'' Fr. *''Xamilenis'' Raf. }} |synonyms_ref={{r|powo}} }}

'''''Silene''''' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae. Containing between 500{{r|wfo}} and 900 species,{{r|powo}} it is the largest genus in the family.<ref name="fna" /> Common names include '''campion''' and '''catchfly'''. Many ''Silene'' species are widely distributed, particularly in the northern hemisphere.<ref name="fna" />

==Scientific history== {{Further|Sex determination in Silene}} Members of this genus have been the subject of research by preeminent plant ecologists, evolutionary biologists, and geneticists, including Charles Darwin, Gregor Mendel, Carl Correns, Herbert G. Baker, and Janis Antonovics. Many ''Silene'' species continue to be widely used to study systems, particularly in the fields of ecology and evolutionary biology.<ref name="Bernasconi-2009">Bernasconi et al. 2009. Silene as a model system in ecology and evolution. Heredity. 103:5-14. PMID [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19367316 19367316]</ref> The genus has been used as a model for understanding the genetics of sex determination for over a century. ''Silene'' species commonly contain a mixture of hermaphroditic and female (or male-sterile) individuals (gynodioecy), and early studies by Correns showed that male sterility could be maternally inherited,<ref>Correns C. 1906. Die vererbung der Geshlechstsformen bei den gynodiocischen Pflanzen. Ber. Dtsch Bot. Ges. 24: 459–474.</ref><ref>Correns C. 1908. Die rolle der mannlichen Keimzellen bei der Geschlechtsbestimmung der gynodioecishen Pflanzen. Ber. Dtsch Bot. Ges. 26A: 626–701.</ref> an example of what is now known as cytoplasmic male sterility. Two independent groups of species in ''Silene'' have evolved separate male and female sexes (dioecy) with chromosomal sex determination that is analogous to the system found in humans and other mammals.<ref>Evolution of Sex Chromosomes: The Case of the White Campion. PLoS Biol 3(1): e28. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0030028</ref><ref>Mrackova M. et al. 2008. Independent origin of sex chromosomes in two species of the genus ''Silene''. 179(2): 1129–1133. PMID [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18558658 18558658]</ref>

''Silene'' flowers are frequently visited by flies, such as ''Rhingia campestris''.<ref>{{Cite journal | doi=10.1111/plb.12328| pmid=25754608| title=Competition for pollinators and intra-communal spectral dissimilarity of flowers| journal=Plant Biology| volume=18| issue=1| pages=56–62| year=2015| last1=Van Der Kooi | first1=C. J.| last2=Pen | first2=I.| last3=Staal | first3=M.| last4=Stavenga | first4=D. G.| last5=Elzenga | first5=J. T. M.| url=https://research.rug.nl/files/78585910/Competition_for_pollinators_and_intra_communal_spectral_dissimilarity_of_flowers.pdf}}</ref> ''Silene'' species have also been used to study speciation, host-pathogen interactions, biological species invasions, adaptation to heavy-metal-contaminated soils, metapopulation genetics, and organelle genome evolution.<ref name="Bernasconi-2009" /> Notably, some members of the genus ''Silene'' hold the distinction of harboring the largest mitochondrial genomes ever identified.<ref>Sloan DB et al. 2012. Rapid Evolution of Multichromosomal Genomes in Flowering Plant Mitochondria with Exceptionally High Mutation Rates. PLoS Biol. 10: e1001241. [http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.1001241 doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001241]</ref>

==Taxonomy== ''Silene'' was originally described by Linnaeus.{{r|powo}} Divisions of the genus into subgenera or sections before 2003 do not seem to be well-supported by molecular evidence.{{r|fna}}

The genus ''Lychnis'' is closely related to (and sometimes included in) ''Silene''.{{r|felychnis}}{{r|foclychnis}} When treated as a distinct genus, it can often be differentiated by the number of flower styles (five in ''Lychnis' and three in ''Silene''), the number of teeth of the seed capsule (five in ''Lychnis' and six in ''Silene''), and by the sticky stems of ''Lychnis''.

=== Sexual systems === Sexual systems vary across species. Most ''Silene'' species are hermaphroditic representing 58.2% of ''Silene'' species, 14.3% are dioecious, 13.3% gynodioecious, and 12.2% are both gynodioecious and gynomonoecious. Trioecy, andromonoecy, and gynomonoecy have also been reported but are extremely rare.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Casimiro-Soriguer|first1=Inés|last2=Buide|first2=Maria L.|last3=Narbona|first3=Eduardo|date=2015-01-01|title=Diversity of sexual systems within different lineages of the genus Silene|journal=AoB Plants|volume=7|article-number=plv037|doi=10.1093/aobpla/plv037|pmid=25862920|issn=2041-2851|pmc=4433491}}</ref>

=== Etymology === ''Silene'' is the feminine form of Silenus, an Ancient Greek woodland deity who was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus.<ref>Quattrocchi, U. ''CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names''. 1999. '''4''': 2482. {{ISBN|0-8493-2678-8}}</ref>

== Species == {{Main|List of Silene species{{!}}List of ''Silene'' species}}

==Ecology== Lychnis is also the common name of ''Hadena bicruris'', a species of noctuid moth. The larva of this moth feeds on ''Silene'' (formerly ''Lychnis'') species, as do some other Lepidoptera including cabbage moths (recorded on ''Silene chalcedonica''), grey chi and case-bearers of the genus ''Coleophora'' including ''C. albella'' (feeds exclusively on ''Silene flos-cuculi'').

==Uses== Many species of ''Silene'' are in cultivation for perennial gardens.{{r|bhg}} Some have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit, including ''Silene flos-jovis'' and ''Silene schafta''.{{r|rhsagm}}

''Silene undulata'' (syn. ''S. capensis'') is known as ''iindlela zimhlophe'' ("white paths") by the Xhosa of South Africa. A Xhosa diviner identifies and collects the plant from the wild. The roots are ground, mixed with water, and beaten to a froth, which is consumed by novice diviners during the full moon to influence their dreams. They also take it to prepare for various rituals. The root has such a strong, musky essence that the diviners who consume it exude the scent in their sweat.<ref name=xhosa>Hirst, M. (2005). [http://www.ajol.info/index.php/ipjp/article/view/65600 Dreams and medicines: The perspective of Xhosa diviners and novices in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.] ''Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology'' 5(2) 1-22.</ref>

''Silene vulgaris'', or bladder campion, is eaten in some Mediterranean countries. Young leaves may be eaten raw, and mature leaves are boiled, fried, stewed or mixed into dishes such as risotto.

==Fossil record== Fossil ''Silene microsperma'' seeds from the Chattian stage of the Oligocene have been found in the Oberleichtersbach Formation in the Rhön Mountains of central Germany.<ref>The floral change in the tertiary of the Rhön mountains (Germany) by Dieter Hans Mai - Acta Paleobotanica 47(1): 135-143, 2007.</ref>

==References== {{Reflist|refs= <ref name=bhg>{{cite web |title=Silene |url=https://www.bhg.com/gardening/plant-dictionary/perennial/silene/ |website=Better Homes & Gardens |access-date=4 August 2020 |language=EN}}</ref> <ref name=felychnis>[http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/cgi-bin/nph-readbtree.pl/feout?FAMILY_XREF=&GENUS_XREF=Lychnis&SPECIES_XREF=&TAXON_NAME_XREF=&RANK=Flora Europaea: ''Lychnis'']</ref> <ref name=fna>{{cite web | url=http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=130349 | title=36. ''Silene'' Linnaeus | work=Flora of North America }}</ref> <ref name=foclychnis>[http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=119133 Flora of China: ''Lychnis'']</ref> <ref name=powo>{{cite web |title=''Silene'' L. |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:331962-2 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=1 May 2026}}</ref> <ref name=wfo>{{cite web |title=Silene L. |url=https://wfoplantlist.org/taxon/wfo-4000035363-2025-12 |website=World Flora Online |access-date=1 May 2026}}</ref> <ref name=rhsagm>{{cite web |title=Results > Search for AGM plants / RHS Gardening |url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/agm/Award2.asp?User2=Hrb&crit=silene |website=apps.rhs.org.uk |access-date=4 August 2020}}</ref> }}

Category:Silene Category:Caryophyllaceae genera Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus