الفهرس 
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Abstract
The present study was carried out in the Taxonomic Unit Lab (TUL) of Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University in addition to Microbial Molecular Biology Department Lab, Agricultural Genetic Engineering Research Institute (AGERI).
In the present study, the fruit, and seed macromorphology, surface scan and seed coat anatomy were carried out on 49 species of Malvaceae s.l. (including: Malvaceae s.s., Bombacaceae, Sterculiaceae and Tiliaceae divided into nine sub-families) as well as Elaeocarpus angustifolius as outgroup using stereomicroscope and scanning electron microscope. Tranaverse sections in the seed was performed and examined by stereomicroscope. Photos were taken using Nikon coolpix p600 (60x) Digital Camera and presented in cumulative plates. Also, seed storage protein was performed by SDS-Poly Acrylamide Gel Electrophoresis Technique.
The materials studied represent 34 egyptian species were collected as fresh or herbarium materials from different localities in Egypt as well as 16 imported species from different foreign countries. The studied species represent 34 genera, some of them wild while the majourty are cultivated.
The aim of this work is to reveal the most useful fruit and seed morphological, seed anatomical characters and seed storage protein profile which contribute in the taxonomic disposition of 50 different species of Malvaceae s.l. in the right position and to analyzing the obtained data cladistically using upgraded WinClada and TNT cladistic programes to construct a cladogram clarifing the phylogenetic relationships between the studied species.
The fruit and seed morphological characters along with the seed coat anatomical characters are collected in cumulative tables with seed storage protein results, then analyzed. Photos were taken and presented in cumulative plates.
The most important conclusions are:
I. Fruit and Seed Morphological characters:
Many of the recorded fruit and seed morphological characters were found to be diagnostic at both generic and specific level and used for species delimitation and evaluating the phylogenetic relationships between the studied species.
The most important characters are:
1) The variability in fruit characters is useful to separate closely related species in family Malvaceae s.l.
• The fruit types in our study are mostly loculicidal dehiscent or indehiscent capsule, schizocarpic, nut-like, aggregate of follicles, drupe and rarely berry.
• Fruit colour varied widly from brown shades, dark red, scarlet red, marble blue, to black.
• Also, fruit size varied from very large (more than 10 cm) as in Adansonia, Bombox, Ceiba and other species while very small (0.5-1 cm) in Hermannia. There are many species in between medium and small.
• Winged mericarps appear in some species by expansion of mericarps lateral walls. This wing has been adaptive to the dispersal of mericarp occur in aquatic or open habitats.
• Outer fruit surface texture varied greatly from tomentose, stellate hairy, hispid, wrinkled, and spiny.
2) Seed shape, colour, size and seed coat sculpture pattern varied greatly in the studied families.
• Seed shape varied greatly from globose, ovoid, ellipsoid, fusiform, angular, boat-shape to reniform in all Malvaceae except Gossypium, Thespesia, Lagunaria and Sida is almost oval.
• Seed colour from different degree of brown, red to black.
• Seed coat sculpture pattern with wide variations: verrucate, foveate, reticulate and another 13 sub-types.
3) Trichomes present in 14 species only belonging to sub-family Malvoideae while absent in the remaining studied sub-families.
4) Strophiole present only in all members of sub-family Malvoideae while absent in the remaining studied sub-families.
5) In all the studied species of sub-family Malvoideae and in Hermannia the hilum shape is slit-like except Gossypium, Thespesia, and Sida. In the remaining studied sub-families, the hilum shape is rounded except Firmiana is elliptic.
6) Stomata in Malvaceae found near hilum only while in Bombacaeae present all over the seed coat, varied in Sterculiaceae and Tiliaceae.
II. Anatomical Seed Coat characters:
The most characteristic features are:
1) Presence of a heavy covering of long epidermal hairs regarded as advanced characters. The hair types are of taxonomic importance in distinguishing between the studied taxa, they are either unicellular, T-shape or glandular. It well defined in Abutilon, Alcea, Gossypium, Hibiscus spp., Thespesia and Urena.
2) Inner epidermal layer with thick wall and radially elongated shape are common in almost Malvaceae taxa, except Bombax, Ochroma, Hermannia and Tilia with thin wall.
3) Presence of palisade tissue in all species studied except Elaeocarpus and Malvaviscus.
4) Both Thespesia and Gossypium are characterized by the presence of crystals in specialized colourless layer. This regarded as advanced character.
5) Absence of resin ducts was recorded in most of Malvaceae taxa.
6) In Malvaviscus, Thespesia and Gossypium the endosperm is scanty and the embryo highly organized. Both characters are commonly regarded as advanced while in all the studied taxa the endosperm is copious.
7) Embryo is curved and highly organized with folded cotyledons in all Malvaceae except Lagunaria has straight embryo with flat cotyledons. So, Lagunaria considered as primitive.
III. Seed Storage Protein characters (Molecular Criteria):
Our data show the usefulness of the seed storage protein for taxonomic and evolutionary purposes. The most characteristic features are bands with molecular weight (116, 101, 54, 38, 15).
IV. Cladistic Analysis:
Finally, our cladistic analysis provide additional criteria for the phylogenetic ralationships between the four traditional families (seven sub-families) with regared to the outgroup. Our obtained data from fruit, seed morphology, seed anatomy, and seed storage protein of 214 characters and 490 character states were performed using WinClada and TNT programs yield six cladograms. We choose the most parsimoniceous tree. The obtained cladogram revealed that:
• There is a graduation of the species under study among sub-familial level in relation to the outgroup (root of the tree); from the most primitive Sterculioideae followed by Byttnerioideae, Dombeyoideae, Bombacoideae, Grewioideae, Tilioideae, ending by the most advanced Malvoideae faraway from the root of the tree (more advanced ancestor).
• This work supports the para- polyphyly of family Sterculiaceae and the other two families Bombacaceae and Tiliaceae, except Malvaceae s.s. is monophyletic.
• The results of this study congregating for some extent (weakly supported boot strapping values) with APG IV (2016) system, in transferring Elaeocarpaceae (outgroup) to other order instead of Malvales due to the absence of most characters characteristic to this order as APG IV (2016) transfer it to order Oxalidales while sustaining the other four families included in family Malvaceae s.l. Hinsley (2006).
The present study adds additional taxonomic criteria for the phylogenetic relationships between the four traditional families Malvaceae s.s., Bombacaceae, Sterculiaceae and Tiliaceae, with regards to the outgroup, it cannot support well enough to resolve the problem of some genera viz, Dombeya, Sterculia, Guazuma, Hermannia, Thespesia and Gossypium. So, still more studies on a large number of taxa are needed in future.