Molecular Phylogenetics of Sapindales
Summary
Sapindales, a diverse angiosperm order encompassing nine families and over 6 000 species, has long presented challenges for reconstructing evolutionary relationships due to ancient rapid radiations and complex genomic histories. Recent advances in high‐throughput sequencing and analytical methods have transformed this field. Genome‐scale datasets, derived from nuclear target capture and complete plastome sequencing, now allow densely sampled phylogenies that resolve deep divergences among families and clarify subfamily and tribal relationships. These studies reveal two principal clades within Sapindales: one uniting Burseraceae, Anacardiaceae and Kirkiaceae, and another comprising Rutaceae, Meliaceae and Simaroubaceae, with Sapindaceae, Biebersteiniaceae and Nitrariaceae forming a sister group. Time‐calibrated analyses link diversification bursts to Mid‐Cretaceous climatic upheavals. Patterns of ancient gene duplication, hybridisation and polyploidy, especially in Meliaceae and Rutaceae, are increasingly recognised as drivers of lineage diversification and sources of phylogenetic conflict. Improved frameworks underpin biogeographic reconstructions, ecological diversification studies and the development of genetic markers for taxonomy, conservation and resource utilisation across this economically and ecologically vital order.
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Molecular Phylogenetics of Sapindales publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in molecular phylogenetics of sapindales across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Monophyletic: Referring to a group of organisms that includes an ancestor and all its descendants.
Plastome: The complete genome of a plastid, most often the chloroplast.
Target capture: A sequencing approach that enriches specific genomic regions using designed probes.
Paralogous loci: Gene copies within a genome arising from duplication events.
Time‐calibration: The process of assigning absolute ages to nodes in a phylogenetic tree using fossil or molecular rate information.
References
- Phylogenomic analyses of Sapindales support new family relationships, rapid Mid-Cretaceous Hothouse diversification, and heterogeneous histories of gene duplication. Frontiers in Plant Science (2023).
- Complete Chloroplast Genome Sequences of Four Meliaceae Species and Comparative Analyses. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2018).
- A new subfamily classification of the Citrus family (Rutaceae) based on six nuclear and plastid markers. Taxon (2021).
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