Genomics, bioinformatics, and plant systematics

Genomics and bioinformatics are emerging disciplines that have the potential to fundamentally alter current approaches to molecular systematics. The sequencing of eukaryotic genomes has demonstrated the ability to obtain and interpret nucleotide sequences at a scale and efficiency that was unimaginable just a few years ago. The immense amount of sequence information generated by genome projects has spurred the development of new analytical and data management tools. How can plant systematists take full advantage of these advances? Comparison of plant nuclear genomes will allow the identification of conserved nonrecombining and single copy loci that can serve as robust phylogenetic markers. The growth of molecular phylogenetic studies is dramatically altering organismal classification. The successful integration of these changes will require innovations in the communication of taxonomic information. Reductions in the cost of obtaining and analyzing nucleotide sequences should result in more time and resources being directed to the essential activities of systematists—the documentation and organization of biological diversity, and the interpretation of this diversity in the context of organismal evolution.