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The figwort genus <i>Scrophularia</i> L. (Scrophulariaceae) comprises 200-300 species and is widespread throughout the temperate Northern Hemisphere. Due to reticulate evolution resulting from hybridization and polyploidization, the taxonomy and phylogeny of <i>Scrophularia</i> is notoriously challenging. Here we report the complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequences of <i>S. henryi</i> Hemsl. and <i>S. dentata</i> Royle ex Benth. and compare them with those of <i>S. takesimensis</i> Nakai and <i>S. buergeriana</i> Miq. The <i>Scrophularia</i> cp genomes ranged from 152 425 to 153 631 bp in length. Each cp genome contained 113 unigenes, consisting of 78 protein-coding genes, 31 transfer RNA genes, and 4 ribosomal RNA genes. Gene order, gene content, AT content and IR/SC boundary structure were nearly identical among them. Nine cpDNA markers (<i>trnH-psbA</i>, <i>rps15</i>, <i>rps18-rpl20</i>, <i>rpl32-trnL</i>, <i>trnS-trnG</i>, <i>ycf15-trnL</i>, <i>rps4-trnT</i>, <i>ndhF-rpl32</i>, and <i>rps16-trnQ</i>) with more than 2% variable sites were identified. Our phylogenetic analyses including 55 genera from Lamiales strongly supported a sister relationship between ((Bignoniaceae + Verbenaceae) + Pedaliaceae) and (Acanthaceae + Lentibulariaceae). Within Scrophulariaceae, a topology of (<i>S. dentata</i> + (<i>S. takesimensis</i> + (<i>S. buergeriana</i> + <i>S. henryi</i>))) was strongly supported. The crown age of Lamiales was estimated to be 85.1 Ma (95% highest posterior density, 70.6-99.8 Ma). The higher core Lamiales originated at 65.6 Ma (95% highest posterior density, 51.4-79.4 Ma), with a subsequent radiation that occurred in the Paleocene (between 55.4 and 62.3 Ma) and gave birth to the diversified families. Our study provides a robust phylogeny and a temporal framework for further investigation of the evolution of Lamiales.
Objectives: Meconopsis integrifolia (M. integrifolia) is one of the most popular members in Traditional Tibetan Medicine. This study aimed to investigate the anticancer effect of M. integrifolia and to detect the underlying mechanisms of these effects. Methods: 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and trypan blue assay were used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of M. integrifolia. Changes in cell nuclear morphology and reactive oxygen species (ROS) level were observed by fluorescent microscopy. Apoptosis ratio, DNA damage and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) loss were analyzed by flow cytometry. Western blotting assay was adopted to detect the proteins related to apoptosis. Immunofluorescence was used to observe the release of cytochrome C. Results: The obtained data revealed that M. integrifolia could significantly inhibit K562 cell viability, mainly by targeting apoptosis induction and cell cycle arrest in G2/M phase. Collapse in cell morphology, chromatin condensation, DNA damage and ROS accumulation were observed. Further mechanism detection revealed that mitochondrion might be a key factor in M. integrifolia-induced apoptosis. Conclusions: M. integrifolia could induce mitochondria mediated apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in G2/M phase with little damage to normal cells, suggesting that M. integrifolia might be a potential and efficient anticancer agent that deserves further investigation.