The complete chloroplast genome of a rare and endangered elm (Ulmus chenmoui) endemic to East China

Abstract

Ulmus chenmoui Cheng, only located in a rather restricted ecological zone in China, is an important plant with high economic and phylogenetic values. In recent years, the number of individuals of U. chenmoui has declined dramatically. It is classified as one of the Class III State-Protected Endangered Plant Species of China and is included in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list of threatened species. In this study, the complete chloroplast (cp) genome of U. chenmoui was characterized by Illumina paired-end sequencing technology. The whole cp genome was 159,777 bp in length, consisting of a pair of inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,072 bp, one large single copy (LSC) region of 88,581 bp and one small single copy (SSC) region of 19,052 bp. The genome encoded 121 genes, including 30 tRNA genes, 8 rRNA genes and 79 protein-coding genes. The overall GC content of U. chenmoui cp genome was 35.5%, while the corresponding values of the IR, LSC and SSC regions were 42.5, 33.0 and 28.2%, respectively. A Maximum Likelihood phylogenetic analysis using 18 cp genomes demonstrated that the all Ulmaceae species formed a monophyletic clade.