title: A DNA barcode for land plants.
abstract: DNA barcoding involves sequencing a standard region of DNA as a tool for species identification. However, there has been no agreement on which region(s) should be used for barcoding land plants. To provide a community recommendation on a standard plant barcode, we have compared the performance of 7 leading candidate plastid DNA regions (atpF-atpH spacer, matK gene, rbcL gene, rpoB gene, rpoC1 gene, psbK-psbI spacer, and trnH-psbA spacer). Based on assessments of recoverability, sequence quality, and levels of species discrimination, we recommend the 2-locus combination of rbcL+matK as the plant barcode. This core 2-locus barcode will provide a universal framework for the routine use of DNA sequence data to identify specimens and contribute toward the discovery of overlooked species of land plants.
authors: Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH3 5LR, United Kingdom.
mesh_terms: D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000737:chemistry*; D001330:Electronic Data Processing; D010944:Plants / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D018744:DNA, Plant; C101625:RbcL protein, plastid; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase