Allelic shift in cis-elements of the transcription factor RAP2.12 underlies adaptation associated with humidity in Arabidopsis thaliana

Populations of widespread species are usually geographically distributed through contrasting stresses, but underlying genetic mechanisms controlling this adaptation remain largely unknown. Here, we show that in Arabidopsis thaliana, allelic changes in the cis-regulatory elements, WT box and W box, in the promoter of a key transcription factor associated with oxygen sensing, RELATED TO AP 2.12 (RAP2.12), are responsible for differentially regulating tolerance to drought and flooding. These two cis-elements are regulated by different transcription factors that downstream of RAP2.12 results in differential accumulation of hypoxia-responsive transcripts. The evolution from one cis-element haplotype to the other is associated with the colonization of humid environments from arid habitats. This gene thus promotes both drought and flooding adaptation via an adaptive mechanism that diversifies its regulation through noncoding alleles

The complete chloroplast genome of Toona sinensis, an important economic and medicinal plant endemic in China

Toona sinensis is an economic and medicinal plant endemic in China. In this study, the complete chloroplast genome of T. sinensis was assembled using the second-generation high-throughput sequencing data. The genome consists of 138 genes in total, including 89 protein-coding genes, 7 ribosomal RNA genes, 40 transfer RNA genes and 2 pseudogenes. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that T. sinensis has a close relationship with the Toona ciliata with strong support. The chloroplast genome presented here provides a valuable resource to conserve this valuable species

The complete plastome of Nannoglottis ravida, an extremely endangered species in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Nannoglottis ravida is an extremely endangered species in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Based on the second-generation high-throughput genome sequencing, we assembled the plastome of this species. The length of the total plastome is 152,324 bp with a typical quadripartite structure including a large single-copy region of 83,708 bp, a small single-copy region of 29,882 bp and two reverse repeat regions of 19,367 bp respectively. A total of 131 genes were annotated including 85 protein-coding genes (PCG), 36 tRNA genes, 8 rRNA genes and 2 pseudogenes. The constructed phylogenetic tree with other species of two tribes Senecioneae and Astereae based on plastomes suggests that N. ravida has a close relationship with the Astereae, but diverged early from this tribe

The complete chloroplast genome of Torreya parvifolia, a species with extremely small population in China

Torreya parvifolia (Torreya, Taxaceae) is endemic in Sichuan, China. It consisted of an extremely small population with less than 100 wild individuals. In this study, the complete chloroplast genome of T. parvifolia was assembled using the Illumina data. The complete chloroplast genome of T. parvifolia is 137,106 bp in length. The genome consists of 119 genes in total, including 82 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 4 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and 33 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that T. parvifolia was closely related to T. fargesii, T. nucifera, and T. fargesii var. yunnanensis with strong support