Structural alterations of the chloroplast genome found in grasses are not common in monocots.

The distribution of structural rearrangements of the chloroplast genome found in grass cpDNA in comparison to that of tobacco was systematically checked in the cpDNAs of representative monocots. The physical map of lily cpDNA, which shares a key position in the diversity of monocotyledonous plants, was constructed to assess whether three inversions found in grass cpDNA are common in monocots. Specific probes for the detection of (1) intron loss in the rpoC1 gene, (2) insertional sequence gain in rpoC2, (3) deletion of ORF2280 in the inverted repeats, (4) non-reciprocal translocation of rpl23, and (5) rearrangements of ORF512, were hybridized to cpDNAs of lily, onion, spiderwort, two turf grasses, and wheat. The existence of intervening sequences in the rpoC1 and rpoC2 genes was also confirmed by PCR analysis. All markers used in the study revealed that structural rearrangements of the chloroplast genome were restricted to grasses, indicating that drastic structural alterations of the chloroplast genome had occurred in the ancestor(s) of grasses. These results also suggest that structural analysis of the chloroplast genome is applicable to the phylogenetic reconstruction of related plants.