Background: Geoffroea decorticans is a vulnerable native species inhabiting the Atacama Desert. Here, we describe the structure, gene composition and phylogeny of the complete chloroplast genome of this legume species.

Results: The chloroplast genome consisted of 158,399 bp, with typical quadripartite structures: a large single copy (88,081 bp), a small single copy (18,976 bp), and two inverted repeats (25,671 bp). Geoffroea decorticans chloroplast genome was similar in size and gene number to that of G. spinosa, but it was slightly different in structure. Complete chloroplast analysis of G. decorticans revealed 129 genes, including 83 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, 8 rRNA genes and 1 pseudogene (rpl22). In G. decorticans, the rps16 gene showed a deletion, which led to a premature stop codon, probably causing loss of functionality. Phylogenetic analysis of 20 complete chloroplast genomes confirmed the placement to G. decorticans within the Pterocarpus clade.

Conclusions: In this study, we report the complete chloroplast genome of Geoffroea decorticans for the first time, which can be used for phylogenetic studies and reconstruction of the biogeography history of the genus Geoffroea in South America.