Malpighiales phylogenetics: Gaining ground on one of the most recalcitrant clades in the angiosperm tree of life

TLDR

Malpighiales, a eudicot order of about 16,000 species, remains the most poorly resolved large rosid clade. The study aims to clarify phylogenetic relationships within Malpighiales. The authors analyzed 13 gene regions totaling 15,604 bp from 190 taxa using maximum likelihood, Bayesian, and parsimony methods, sampling all Malpighiales families. The results provide strong support for recent family additions, resolve sister relationships among families, confirm Rafflesiaceae’s placement within a paraphyletic Euphorbiaceae, and prompt taxonomic revisions such as moving Bhesa to Centroplacaceae and Huaceae to Oxalidales.

Abstract

The eudicot order Malpighiales contains ∼16000 species and is the most poorly resolved large rosid clade. To clarify phylogenetic relationships in the order, we used maximum likelihood, Bayesian, and parsimony analyses of DNA sequence data from 13 gene regions, totaling 15604 bp, and representing all three genomic compartments (i.e., plastid: atpB, matK, ndhF, and rbcL; mitochondrial: ccmB, cob, matR, nad1B-C, nad6, and rps3; and nuclear: 18S rDNA, PHYC, and newly developed low-copy EMB2765). Our sampling of 190 taxa includes representatives from all families of Malpighiales. These data provide greatly increased support for the recent additions of Aneulophus, Bhesa, Centroplacus, Ploiarium, and Rafflesiaceae to Malpighiales; sister relations of Phyllanthaceae + Picrodendraceae, monophyly of Hypericaceae, and polyphyly of Clusiaceae. Oxalidales + Huaceae, followed by Celastrales are successive sisters to Malpighiales. Parasitic Rafflesiaceae, which produce the world's largest flowers, are confirmed as embedded within a paraphyletic Euphorbiaceae. Novel findings show a well-supported placement of Ctenolophonaceae with Erythroxylaceae + Rhizophoraceae, sister-group relationships of Bhesa + Centroplacus, and the exclusion of Medusandra from Malpighiales. New taxonomic circumscriptions include the addition of Bhesa to Centroplacaceae, Medusandra to Peridiscaceae (Saxifragales), Calophyllaceae applied to Clusiaceae subfamily Kielmeyeroideae, Peraceae applied to Euphorbiaceae subfamily Peroideae, and Huaceae included in Oxalidales.