Characterization of the complete plastid genome and phylogenetic implication of Micranthes octopetala (Nakai) Y.I.Kim & Y.D.Kim (Saxifragaceae), endemic to Korea

Abstract

Micranthes octopetala (Nakai) Y.I.Kim & Y.D. Kim et al. 2015, which belongs to the family Saxifragaceae, is a perennial herb endemic to Korea. M. octopetala was originally treated as a synonym of M. manchuriensis. However, in 2015, molecular phylogenetic analysis confirmed that M. octopetala is an independent species. In this study, the plastid genome of M. octopetala was sequenced for the first time, and the taxonomic position of this species was identified. The complete plastid genome of M. octopetala has a total length of 149 751 bp (large single copy: 83 083 bp; small single copy: 17 196 bp; inverted repeat: 24 736 bp), containing 130 genes, including 79 CDS, 30 tRNAs, and 4 rRNAs. Moreover, the absence of intron in the rpl2 gene, which is a common feature of Saxifragaceae, was confirmed. Phylogenetic analysis based on 79 protein-coding genes from 21 species revealed that M. octopetala belongs to the genus Micranthes, being a sister to other Micranthes species. The plastid genome of M. octopetala obtained in this study provides fundamental information for future studies on the genus Micranthes.