The complete chloroplast genome of Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. and comparative analysis of six Mentha taxa (Lamiaceae)

Abstract Apple mint ( Mentha suaveolens Ehrh.) is a plant of the genus Mentha in the family Lamiaceae, commonly known by pineapple mint, woolly mint, and/or round leaf mint. Similar to many aromatic plants, it is valued for its aroma, essential oil content, flavor, and/or other secondary metabolites associated with pharmaceutical properties. M. suaveolens , a sweet-scented aromatic herb, is well-known for flavoring candies, medicines, teas, and toothpaste, as well as being used in many other products. It usually found along streams and humid places in western and southern Europe, as well as the Mediterranean region. In the current study, the chloroplast genome of M. suaveolens was assembled characterized, and compared with other seven Mentha spp. chloroplast genomes, including three natural hybrids. The M. suaveolens circular genome length is 152,053 bp, and there are 134 genes, including 88 protein-coding genes, 37 transfer RNA genes, and 8 ribosomal RNA genes (rRNA), with a total GC content of 37.9%. A chloroplast genome feature comparison between M. suaveolens and six Mentha species was conducted, revealing genomic variability among the studied accessions. Variation among the LSC-IR-SSC boundaries was observed, as well as the RSCU varied according to the region, while the protein-coding regions were more conservative than the intergenic spacers in number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Based on the phyloplastomic, two clades were identified beside M. canadensis . In addition to being informative for any plastomic and/or evolutionary studies of the genus Mentha and family Lamiaceae, the provided information report the maternal source of the Mentha hybrid species.