Electrochemical fingerprint collection and taxonomic investigation of Michelia spp.

Michelia belongs to Magnoliaceae and has important timber, medicinal, oil and ornamental values. The wide morphological variation of this genus and the hybridization among some species make it difficult to classify. There are controversies about the systematic relationships and status of species within the genera. In this communication, we have made the first taxonomic survey of species of the genus Michelia using electrochemical fingerprinting. The molecules corresponding to the oxidation peaks in the electrochemical fingerprints were explored. The electrochemical fingerprints collected under different conditions were used to construct density pattern. Texture features and local binary pattern algorithms are used to the identification of different species. The results of the phylogenetic tree generated based on electrochemical fingerprinting differed significantly from those of traditional morphological taxonomy. However, these results are in good agreement with the phylogenetic trees generated by chloroplast sequencing.