Evolution of mustard (Brassica juncea Coss) subspecies in China: evidence from the chalcone synthase gene

To explore the phylogenetic relationship, genome donor, and evolutionary history of the polyploid mustard (Brassica juncea) from China, eighty-one sequences of the chalcone synthase gene (Chs) were analyzed in 43 individuals, including 34 B. juncea, 2 B. rapa, 1 B. nigra, 2 B. oleracea, 1 B. napus, 1 B. carinata, and 2 Raphanus sativus. A maximum likelihood analysis showed that sequences from B. juncea were separated into two well-supported groups in accordance with the A and B genomes, whereas the traditional phenotypic classification of B. juncea was not wholly supported by the molecular results. The SplitsTree analysis recognized four distinct groups of Brassicaceae, and the median-joining network analysis recognized four distinct haplotypes of Chs. The estimates of Tajima's D, Fu and Li's D, and Fu and Li's F statistic for the Chs gene in the B genome were negative, while those in the A genome were significant. The results indicated that 1) the Chs sequences revealed a high level of sequence variation in Chinese mustard, 2) both tree and reticulate evolutions existed, and artificial selection played an important role in the evolution of Chinese mustard, 3) the original parental species of Chinese mustard are B. rapa var. sinapis arvensis and B. nigra (derived from China), 4) nucleotide variation in the B genome was higher than that in the A genome, and 5) cultivated mustard evolved from wild mustard, and China is one of the primary origins of B. juncea.