Data from: Brassicales phylogeny inferred from 72 plastid genes: a reanalysis of the phylogenetic localization of two paleopolyploid events and origin of novel chemical defenses

PREMISE OF THE STUDY - Previous phylogenetic studies employing molecular
markers have yielded various insights into the evolutionary history across
Brassicales, but many relationships between families remain poorly
supported or unresolved. A recent phylotranscriptomic approach utilizing
1155 nuclear markers obtained robust estimates for relationships among 14
of 17 families. Here we report a complete family‐level phylogeny estimated
using the plastid genome. METHODS - We conducted phylogenetic analyses on
a concatenated data set comprising 44,926 bp from 72 plastid genes for
species distributed across all 17 families. Our analysis includes three
additional families, Tovariaceae, Salvadoraceae, and Setchellanthaceae,
that were omitted in the previous phylotranscriptomic study. KEY RESULTS -
Our phylogenetic analyses obtained fully resolved and strongly supported
estimates for all nodes across Brassicales. Importantly, these findings
are congruent with the topology reported in the phylotranscriptomic study.
This consistency suggests that future studies could utilize plastid
genomes as markers for resolving relationships within some notoriously
difficult clades across Brassicales. We used this new phylogenetic
framework to verify the placement of the At‐α event near the origin of
Brassicaceae, with median date estimates of 31.8 to 42.8 million years ago
and restrict the At‐β event to one of two nodes with median date estimates
between 85 to 92.2 million years ago. These events ultimately gave rise to
novel chemical defenses and are associated with subsequent shifts in net
diversification rates. CONCLUSIONS - We anticipate that these findings
will aid future comparative evolutionary studies across Brassicales,
including selecting candidates for whole‐genome sequencing projects.