Chloroplast DNA evolves slowly in the palm family (Arecaceae).
A survey of cpDNA restriction-site variation for 22 species representing five of the six subfamilies of the palm family was conducted. Phylogenetic reconstructions based on the restriction-site data are in general agreement with conventional analyses based on morphological characters. Base-substitution estimates, derived from the restriction-site data, indicate a potential 5-13-fold decrease in substitution rates within the palms relative to rate estimates for annual plant taxa. Approximately 1,000 bp of the rbcL gene (ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase, large subunit) were sequenced from species representing two subfamilies of the palms. The complete DNA sequence data are in accord with the restriction-site data and indicate a total rate of nucleotide substitution that is about eightfold lower than that observed for annual plants.
Wilson
M A
MA
Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, University of California, Riverside 92521.
Gaut
B
B
Clegg
M T
MT
D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002736:Chloroplasts / Q000378:metabolism*; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics*; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics*; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
D004247:DNA