Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of Macleaya cordata and its phylogenomic position within the subfamily Papaveroideae

Abstract

Macleaya cordata (Willd.) is a perennial herb with significant antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, we report the complete chloroplast genome sequence of M. cordata. The total genome size was 163,179 bp in length, containing two inverted repeated (IR) regions of 28,329 bp each, a large single copy (LSC) region of 87,933 bp and a small single copy (SSC) region of 18,588 bp. The genome contains 114 genes, including 79 protein genes, 4 rRNA genes, 28 tRNA genes and 3 pseudo genes. The overall GC content of M. cordata is 38.59%, with the highest GC content of 42.79% in IR region. A total of 49 simple sequence repeats are identified in the cp genome of M. cordata. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that M. cordata clustered together with M. microcarpa, further forming a monophyletic group with the genuses Hylomecon and Coreanomecon. This work provides basic genetic resources for developing robust markers and investigating the population genetics diversities for this famous medicinal species.

Keywords

• macleaya cordata
• complete chloroplast genome
• phylogenetic analysis
• papaveroideae