Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of Cephalotaxus sinensis (Cephalotaxaceae), an endangered species endemic to China

Cephalotaxus sinensis, is an endangered species endemic to China. Here, the complete chloroplast genome (plastome) of C. sinensis was obtained by using Illumina pair-end sequencing. The total genome size is 134,621 bp in length, and encodes 114 genes, including 82 protein-coding genes, 28 transfer RNA genes and four ribosomal RNA genes. The nucleotide composition is asymmetric (32.5% A, 17.7% C, 17.5% G and 32.9% T) with an overall G+C content of 35.2%. Unexpectedly, we observed the plastome lacks typical inverted repeat regions, which is consistent with C. oliveri plastome in the genus Cephalotaxus. Furthermore, a total of 38 simple sequences repeats were identified in the plastome of C. sinensis. The phylogenetic analysis based on 14 plastomes revealed that C. sinensis is closely related to C. oliveri.