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Wild ginseng, Panax ginsengMeyer, is an endangered species of medicinal plants. In the present study, we analyzed variations within the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) cluster to gain insight into the genetic diversity of the Oriental ginseng, P. ginseng, at artificial plant cultivation.

Apodemus peninsulaeis a field mouse that inhabits the broad-leafed forests of temperate Eurasia. We examined the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene in 57 individuals of A. peninsulaefrom northeastern Asia, including Siberia, Primorye, Magadan region, Sakhalin, Hokkaido, and the Korean Peninsula. The genealogy of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in A. peninsulaewas shown to have substantial geographic affinity, suggesting geographic architecture of northeastern Asia, including the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido, played important roles on the cladogenesis. Taking into account the presence of region-specific anciently divergent mtDNA types, three parts of the regions of Primorye, Siberia, and the Korean Peninsula can be denoted as refugia for A. peninsulaeduring the substantial period of the Quaternary glacial ages. Among the geographic regions examined, Primorye is likely to be the most influential one, from which the mtDNA is thought to have migrated to the neighboring regions of Sakhalin, Hokkaido, the Magadan region, and Siberia during the evolution of this species.