Beyond Linear Sequence Comparisons: The use of genome-levelcharacters for phylogenetic reconstruction
Although the phylogenetic relationships of many organisms have been convincingly resolved by the comparisons of nucleotide or amino acid sequences, others have remained equivocal despite great effort. Now that large-scale genome sequencing projects are sampling many lineages, it is becoming feasible to compare large data sets of genome-level features and to develop this as a tool for phylogenetic reconstruction that has advantages over conventional sequence comparisons. Although it is unlikely that these will address a large number of evolutionary branch points across the broad tree of life due to the infeasibility of such sampling, they have great potential for convincingly resolving many critical, contested relationships for which no other data seems promising. However, it is important that we recognize potential pitfalls, establish reasonable standards for acceptance, and employ rigorous methodology to guard against a return to earlier days of scenario-driven evolutionary reconstructions.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Director, Office of Science. Office of Biological andEnvironmental Research; National Science Foundation (NSF)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC02-05CH11231; NSF:EAR-0342392, DEB-0120709,MCB-0242131, DEB-0089624, EF-0228729, DEB-0445047,EF-0328516
- OSTI ID:
- 888768
- Report Number(s):
- LBNL-58172; TREEEQ; R&D Project: Y00010; BnR: 600305000; TRN: US200622%%133
- Journal Information:
- Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Vol. 21, Issue 8; Related Information: Journal Publication Date: 2006; ISSN 0169-5347
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Lophotrochozoan mitochondrial genomes
Molecular phylogenetic analysis of the Paguristes tortugae Schmitt, 1933 complex and selected other Paguroidea (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura)