Molecular Structure and Phylogenetic Analyses of Complete Chloroplast Genomes of Two Aristolochia Medicinal Species.

Jianguo Zhou,Jingyuan Song,Yu Wang,Yonghua Li,Wei Sun,Xinlian Chen,Hui Yao,Yingxian Cui

doi:10.3390/ijms18091839

Abstract

The family Aristolochiaceae, comprising about 600 species of eight genera, is a unique plant family containing aristolochic acids (AAs). The complete chloroplast genome sequences of Aristolochia debilis and Aristolochia contorta are reported here. The results show that the complete chloroplast genomes of A. debilis and A. contorta comprise circular 159,793 and 160,576 bp-long molecules, respectively and have typical quadripartite structures. The GC contents of both species were 38.3% each. A total of 131 genes were identified in each genome including 85 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, eight rRNA genes and one pseudogene (ycf1). The simple-sequence repeat sequences mainly comprise A/T mononucletide repeats. Phylogenetic analyses using maximum parsimony (MP) revealed that A. debilis and A. contorta had a close phylogenetic relationship with species of the family Piperaceae, as well as Laurales and Magnoliales. The data obtained in this study will be beneficial for further investigations on A. debilis and A. contorta from the aspect of evolution, and chloroplast genetic engineering.

Highlights

The traditional Chinese medicine plants, Aristolochia debilis and Aristolochia contorta, are herbaceous climbers in the family Aristolochiaceae
The complete chloroplast genome of A. debilis is a circular molecule of 159,793 bp in length comprising a large single-copy (LSC) region of 89,609 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 19,834 bp separated by a pair of inverted repeats (IRs), each 25,175 bp in length (Figure 1, Table 1)
The complete chloroplast genome of A. contorta is 160,576 bp in length, which is divided into one LSC (89,781 bp), one SSC (19,877 bp) and two IRs, each 25,459 bp in length (Figure 2, Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

The traditional Chinese medicine plants, Aristolochia debilis and Aristolochia contorta, are herbaceous climbers in the family Aristolochiaceae. Aristolochiae fructus originates from the mellow fruit of the two species, while Aristolochiae herba originates from their dried aerial parts. Aristolochiae fructus and Aristolochiae herba have been recorded as traditional herbal medicines which can clear lung-heat to stop coughing and activate meridians to stop pain, respectively [1]. Modern pharmacology studies have shown that the primary chemical constituents of the two species are aristolochic acid analogues including aristolochic acids (AAs) and aristolactams (ALs) [2,3]. AAs and ALs have been found among species from the family Aristolochiaceae [4]. There are different degrees of restrictions on the sale and use of AAs-containing herbal preparations in many countries

Methods

Results

Conclusion