Characterization of the complete plastid genome of Butia eriospatha (Arecaceae)

Abstract

Butia eriospatha is an endemic palm species from the Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil, a biodiversity hotspot. This species is currently listed in the IUCN red list as vulnerable and lacks specific plastid markers for population genetics studies. In addition, the evolutionary relationship within the genus Butia is not yet well resolved. Here, we sequenced and characterized the complete plastid genome (plastome) sequence of B. eriospatha. The complete plastome sequence is 154,048 bp in length, with the typical quadripartite structure. This plastome length and genes content is consistent with other six species from tribe Cocoseae. However, the Inverted Repeat (IR) borders show some variation among the analyzed species from this tribe. Species from the Bactridinae (Astrocaryum and Acrocomia) and Elaeidinae (Elaeis) subtribes present the rps19 gene completely duplicated in the IR region. In contrast, all plastomes sequenced from the subtribe Attaleinae (Butia, Cocos, Syagrus) present one complete CDS of rps19 and one partial copy of rps19. The difference in the IR/LSC junctions between Attaleinae and the sister clades Bactridinae + Elaeidinae might be considered an evolutionary signal and the plastome sequence of B. eriopatha may be used in future studies of population genetics and phylogeny.

The plastome sequence of Bactris gasipaes and evolutionary analysis in tribe Cocoseae (Arecaceae)

“…Also, the variability among Attaleinae, Bactridinae, and Elaeidinae in the LSC/IR junctions, mainly involving the rps19 gene, was previously described in Acrocomia aculeata [ 38 ] and Butia eriosphata [ 40 ], as well as in Phoenix dactylifera [ 44 , 49 ]. Similarly, the ndhF gene overlapping with ycf1 in ~25 bp is commonly observed in palms [ 38 , 40 , 44 , 49 ].…”

“…Also, the variability among Attaleinae, Bactridinae, and Elaeidinae in the LSC/IR junctions, mainly involving the rps19 gene, was previously described in Acrocomia aculeata [ 38 ] and Butia eriosphata [ 40 ], as well as in Phoenix dactylifera [ 44 , 49 ]. Similarly, the ndhF gene overlapping with ycf1 in ~25 bp is commonly observed in palms [ 38 , 40 , 44 , 49 ]. Despite the differences in the IR junction, the IR structure and gene content is conserved among palms, corroborating the hypothesis that the IR regions offer an isolation mechanism that stabilizes the structure of the genome [ 50 ].…”

“…The plastome of Bactris gasipaes has the typical quadripartite structure and gene content of other described Cocoseae species [ 5 , 36 – 40 ]. The IRs are identical, which probably occurs due to mechanisms of replication and repair through recombination-dependent replication (RDR), as previously reported in plant plastomes [ 41 ].…”

“…The gene content is conserved among species of Bactridinae (e.g., Acrocomia aculeata, Astrocaryum murumuru, Astrocaryum aculeatum, and Bactris gasipaes) and Elaeidinae (Elaeis guineensis) [36,38,39]. Attaleinae species present one pseudogenized rps19, and thus, one less CDS [40].…”

Plastome structure, phylogenomic analyses and molecular dating of Arecaceae

“…Numerous species have been widely cultivated as ornamentals and are indispensable species to courtyards and road landscapes ( Wang et al., 2014 ; Tang et al., 2018 ). There are also some edible and medicinal plants, such as Cocos nucifera in Arecoideae, which have important medicinal value such as a therapeutic effect on diabetes ( Joseph et al., 2019 ), while Butia eriospatha is not only used for ornamental purposes but also has edible fruits ( de Souza Magnabosco et al., 2020 ). Plants of Arecaceae also have great anthropogenic uses, such as leaves, fruits, seeds, and fibers serving as a basic public resource for traditional communities and which have even been exploited commercially on a large scale ( Johnson, 2010 ; Kissling et al., 2019 ).…”