# Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of the rare medicinal plant: Mandragora caulescens (Solanaceae)

## TL;DR

This study fully sequenced the chloroplast genome of Mandragora caulescens, a rare medicinal plant, and analyzed its structure and evolutionary relationships within the Solanaceae family.

## Contribution

The paper provides the first complete chloroplast genome of Mandragora caulescens and reveals its phylogenetic position within the Solanaceae.

## Key findings

- The chloroplast genome has a typical quadripartite structure with 141 complete genes and 38.0% GC content.
- Phylogenetic analysis grouped M. caulescens closely with Nicandra physalodes.
- The genome provides a foundation for future genetic and genomic studies in the Solanaceae family.

## Abstract

In this study, we assembled high-quality chloroplast genomes of Mandragora caulescens through a reference-guided approach using high-throughput Illumina sequencing reads. The resulting chloroplast genome assembly displayed a typical quadripartite structural organization, comprising a large single-copy (LSC) region of 85,233 bp, two inverted repeat (IR) regions of 25,685 bp each, and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,207 bp. The chloroplast genome harbored 141 complete genes, and its overall GC content was 38.0%. In maximum-likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI) trees, the 19 Solanaceae species formed a monophyletic group, dividing into two main clades. M. caulescens and Nicandra physalodes formed a monophyletic group, suggesting a close relationship between the two species. The M. caulescens cp genome presented in this study lays a good foundation for further genetic and genomic studies of the Solanaceae.