rbcL and legume phylogeny, with particular reference to Phaseoleae, Millettieae, and allies

A parsimony analysis was conducted on 319 rbcL sequences, comprising 242 fr om 194 genera of Leguminosae and 77 from other families. Results support ea rlier conclusions from rbcL and other molecular data that a monophyletic Le guminosae is part of a Fabales that includes Polygalaceae, Surianaceae, and the anomalous rosid genus Quillaja, Within legumes, results of previous an alyses were also supported, such as the paraphyletic nature of Caesalpinioi deae and monophyly of Mimosoideae and Papilionoideae. Most new data (74 seq uences) were from Papilionoideae, particularly Phaseoleae, Millettieae, and allies. Although the overall topology for Papilionoideae was largely unres olved, several large clades were well-supported. The analysis contained a l arge sample of Phaseoleae and Millettieae, and not surprisingly showed both tribes to be polyphyletic, though with all taxa except Wisteria and allied Millettieae belonging to a single well supported clade. Within this clade was a strongly supported group that included Phaseoleae subtribes Erythrini nae, Glycininae, Phaseolinae, Kennediinae, and Cajaninae, with only the las t two being monophyletic. Desmodieae and Psoraleeae were also part of this clade. The monophyletic Phaseoleae subtribes Ophrestiinae and Diocleinae gr ouped with most Millettieae in a clade that included a group similar to the core Millettieae identified in other studies. All but one of the remaining Millettieae sampled formed an additional clade within the overall milietti oid/phaseoloid group.