The untapped potential of macrofossils in ancient plant DNA research.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_811F4ADEDB78
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Title
The untapped potential of macrofossils in ancient plant DNA research.
Journal
The New phytologist
Author(s)
Schwörer C., Leunda M., Alvarez N., Gugerli F., Sperisen C.
ISSN
1469-8137 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
0028-646X
Publication state
Published
Issued date
07/2022
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
235
Number
2
Pages
391-401
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Publication Status: ppublish
Abstract
The rapid development of ancient DNA analysis in the last decades has induced a paradigm shift in ecology and evolution. Driven by a combination of breakthroughs in DNA isolation techniques, high-throughput sequencing, and bioinformatics, ancient genome-scale data for a rapidly growing variety of taxa are now available, allowing researchers to directly observe demographic and evolutionary processes over time. However, the vast majority of paleogenomic studies still focus on human or animal remains. In this article, we make the case for a vast untapped resource of ancient plant material that is ideally suited for paleogenomic analyses: plant remains, such as needles, leaves, wood, seeds, or fruits, that are deposited in natural archives, such as lake sediments, permafrost, or even ice caves. Such plant remains are commonly found in large numbers and in stratigraphic sequence through time and have so far been used primarily to reconstruct past local species presences and abundances. However, they are also unique repositories of genetic information with the potential to revolutionize the fields of ecology and evolution by directly studying microevolutionary processes over time. Here, we give an overview of the current state-of-the-art, address important challenges, and highlight new research avenues to inspire future research.
Keywords
Animals, DNA, Ancient, DNA, Plant/genetics, Lakes, Permafrost, Plants/genetics, Holocene, genetic diversity, lake sediment, paleoecology, paleogenomics, range shifts
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
12/01/2024 12:32
Last modification date
13/01/2024 7:11
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