The Phylogenetic Position of Eastern Asian Sedoideae (Crassulaceae) Inferred from Chloroplast and Nuclear DNA Sequences

The phylogenetic position of 74 taxa of Asian Sedoideae (Crassulaceae) was estimated based on analyses of the trnL-trnF intergenic spacer sequence of cpDNA and the ITS region, including the 5.8S rDNA sequence, of nDNA. Our analyses suggest that the subfamily Sedoideae is not monophyletic and the genus Sedum especially is highly paraphyletic. Recent studies based on cpDNA restriction-site variation and the matK region recognized seven clades of ''major importance.'' In our analyses, four major clades were recovered: Kalanchoe, Sempervivum, Aeonium, and Acre. All Asian Sedum (s.s.) tested are included in the Acre clade, and all other eastern Asian genera are in groups corresponding to the Telephium clade. The Telephium clade is split into four strongly supported subclades, Rhodiola, Hylotelephium, Phedimus, and Umbilicus, and is determined to be polyphyletic. All eastern Asian genera that were segregated from Sedum are separated in a lineage distinct from Sedum (s.s.). Hylotelephium, Orostachys, Meterostachys, and Sinocrassula are closely related, and Hylotelephium and Orostachys are polyphyletic. The infrageneric taxa within Hylotelephium and Rhodiola are indicated to be polyphyletic.