Genetic diversity and geographic distribution patterns of Cinnamomum camphora under climate change in China

Cinnamomum camphora is a representative species of subtropical forests in eastern Asia, and an important raw material for essential oil production with high economic value around the world. However, with human activities, the living environment of wild C. camphora is experiencing serious damage. In this study, based on the SNP markers developed by transcriptome sequencing, the genetic diversity and genetic structure of 186 representative samples from 17 populations were evaluated. Furthermore, the potential distribution was predicted according to 10 environmental variables using MaxEnt modeling. The results showed that the genetic variation of C. camphora was moderate (Ho = 0.428 and He = 0.409), and the degree of differentiation between populations was low (FST = 0.069). The populations of C. camphora were divided into two groups based on genetic structure. The species distribution model showed that C. camphora is widely distributed in the southern region of China. In the future, with the increase in precipitation and temperature, the suitable area for C. camphora will expand northward. We believe that C. camphora will have wider application prospects in the future due to the expansion of suitable habitat areas. The research results in this study provide new perspectives for the management of C. camphora resources