Molecular taxonomy ofCamellia(Theaceae) inferred from nrITS sequences

Camellia , comprising more than 200 species, is the type genus of the family Theaceae. Currently, the interspecies relationship of the economically important genus is still a matter of great debate and controversy. In an attempt to help settle this dispute using molecular phylogeny, we analyzed ITS sequences of 112 species of Camellia . The maximum parsimony and Bayesian trees grouped these species into eight major clades and four isolates. The current study supported the monophyly of sections Thea and Furfuracea , a merged section of Theopsis and Eriandra and the formation of section Oleifera by H, ‐t. Chang ( Flora of Reipulicae Popularis Sinicae . Tomus 49 (3), Science Press, China). The study suggested the polyphyletic nature of the sections Camellia, Paracamellia, Pseudocamellia , and Tuberculata and the paraphyletic nature of the section Chrysantha but did not support the sectional status of the three small sections, Archecamellia, Piquetia , and Sterocarpus . We also discuss the results in terms of morphology, geographic distribution and the results from an earlier molecular phylogeny analysis.