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A DNA barcode reference of Asian ferns with expert-identified voucher specimens and DNA samples

Kuo LY 1 , Tang SK 2 , Huang YH 2 , Xie PJ 2 , Chen CW 3 , Chang ZX 4 Show all authors , Hsu TC 5 , Chang YH 5 , Chao YS 6 , Chen CW 5 , Fawcett S 7 , Nitta JH 8 , Sundue M 9 , Kao TT 10 , Luu HT 11 , Mustapeng AMA 12 , Coritico FP 13 , Amoroso VB 13 , Thai YK 14

Affiliations 

  • 1 Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu City, 30013, Taiwan. [email protected]
  • 2 Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu City, 30013, Taiwan
  • 3 Biodiversity Program, Taiwan International Graduate Program, Academia Sinica and National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, 115, Taiwan
  • 4 Fushan Research Center, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, Yilan, 264013, Taiwan
  • 5 Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, Taipei, 10066, Taiwan
  • 6 Department of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, 106, Taiwan
  • 7 National Tropical Botanical Garden, Kalaheo, Kauai, Hawaii, USA
  • 8 Graduate School of Global and Transdisciplinary Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Chiba University, Chiba, 263-8522, Japan
  • 9 The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 20a Inverleith Row, Edinburgh, UK
  • 10 Department of Biological Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, 804201, Taiwan
  • 11 Southern Institute of Ecology, Institute of Applied Materials Science, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • 12 Forest Research Centre, Sabah Forestry Department, 90715, Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia
  • 13 Plant Biology Division, Institute of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, Central Mindanao University, University Town, Musuan, Bukidnon, 8710, the Philippines
  • 14 Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Sci Data, 2024 Dec 02;11(1):1314.
PMID: 39622837 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-024-04161-8

Abstract

Ferns belong to species-rich group of land plants, encompassing more than 11,000 extant species, and are crucial for reflecting terrestrial ecosystem changes. However, our understanding of their biodiversity hotspots, particularly in Southeast Asia, remains limited due to scarce genetic data. Despite harboring around one-third of the world's fern species, less than 6% of Southeast Asian ferns have been DNA-sequenced. In this study, we addressed this gap by sequencing 1,496 voucher-referenced and expert-identified fern samples from (sub)tropical Asia, spanning Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam, to retrieve their rbcL and trnL-F sequences. This DNA barcode collection of Asian ferns encompasses 956 species across 152 genera and 34 families, filling major gaps in fern biodiversity understanding and advancing research in systematics, phylogenetics, ecology and conservation. This dataset significantly expands the Fern Tree of Life to over 6,000 species, serving as a pivotal and global reference for worldwide barcoding identification of ferns.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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