Rumex acetosa, known as sheep’s sorrel, red sorrel, sour weed, and field sorrel, is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family Polygonaceae. In this study, the complete chloroplast (cp) genome of R. acetosa (Rumiceae) was determined through Illumina sequencing method. The complete chloroplast genome of R. acetosa was 160,269 bp in length and contained a pair of IR regions (30,503 bp) separated by a small single copy region (13,128 bp) and a large single copy region (86,135 bp). This cp genome is encoded with 129 genes including 83 protein-coding genes, 36 tRNA genes, and 8 ribosomal RNA genes. The overall GC content of R. acetosa cp genome is 37.2%. By phylogenetic analysis using Bayesian method, R. acetosa showed the closest relationship with other 2 Rumiceae species, Rheum palmatum and Oxyria sinensis.

Plantago major (Plantaginaceae) is a medicinal plant in Chinese folk culture, known for its famous medicinal components such as plantagomain. In this study, we conducted genome sequencing of P. major using Illumina sequencing technology. The assembled complete chloroplast genome had a length of 165,044 bp, comprising a large single-copy regions (82,963 bp), a small single-copy regions (4,633 bp), and a pair of inverted repeat regions (38,724 bp). A total of 140 genes were detected, including 94 CDS, 38 tRNA, and 8 rRNA. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close genetic relationship between P. major and P. rigida. These findings provide valuable data for a comprehensive understanding of the biological characteristics of P. major.

As an early-diverging angiosperm lineage, Chloranthaceae produces specialized coumarins with documented antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities, which contribute to its ecological success. Isofraxidin, the most representative dihydroxycoumarin in this clade, exhibits significant pharmaceutical potential. However, its biosynthetic basis remains uncharacterized. Here, we assembled a high-quality triploid genome of Chloranthus erectus (8.57 Gb, contig N50=8.76 Mb) to explore the evolution of defensive metabolism. Genomic analysis revealed an ancient WGD event and expanded gene families associated with pathogen resistance. Metabolomic analysis identified at least 49 coumarin compounds in Chloranthus plants, significantly exceeding previous records. Integrated omics revealed 267 candidate biosynthetic genes across 9 enzyme families governing isofraxidin biosynthesis. PAL-4CL established the phenylpropanoid backbone, amplified COSY genes correlated with umbelliferone accumulation, and CYP71/OMT catalyzed terminal modifications. This study deciphers the chemical defense evolution in early angiosperms and enables engineering of plant-derived antimicrobials.