Molecular Systematics of the Asteridae
{'Code': '08010207', 'Directorate': {'Abbreviation': 'BIO', 'LongName': 'Direct For Biological Sciences'}, 'Division': {'Abbreviation': 'DEB', 'LongName': 'Division Of Environmental Biology'}}
{'SignBlockName': 'James E. Rodman', 'PO_EMAI': None, 'PO_PHON': None}
Dr. Jeffrey Palmer and colleagues at the University of                  Michigan are studying evolutionary relationships among flowering                plants at two distinct taxonomic levels. At one level, they plan                to investigate relationships among the 50 or so families that                   comprise the subclass Asteridae, the second largest subclass of                 dicots. Although Asteridae are generally considered to be the                   most highly advanced and recently evolved of dicots subclasses,                 outstanding questions and controversies remain concerning the                   relative placement and relationships of most of the families in                 this group. In addition, there are fundamental doubts about                     whether the group as a whole is a natural, monophyletic one or an               assemblage of parallel derivatives. Palmer will address this                    controversy by constructing a detailed phylogeny for the subclass               using recently developed techniques of molecular systematic                     analysis. He will examine the distribution within this group and                determine the phylogenetic significance of a number of defined                  chloroplast DNA rearrangements. He will also examine sequence                   variation in the chloroplast gene encoding the large protein                    subunit of the key photosynthetic enzyme, ribulose bisphosphate                 carboxylase.                                                                            The second set of studies involves construction of a                    detailed molecular phylogeny for genera and tribes of the family                Solanaceae of subclass Asteridae. This will greatly aid our                     understanding of evolutionary trends and relationships in this,                 the economically most important family in the subclass and also                 one of its largest. Despite the wide range of studies conducted                 on the biology and systematics of this important group of plants,               which includes such vital crops as potatoes, tomatoes, and chili                peppers, fundamental disagreements still exist regarding                        taxonomic relationships in the family. Palmer's approach here                   will involve comparative mapping of chloroplast DNA restriction                 site mutations and computer-assisted construction of phylogenetic               trees based on these chloroplast DNA mutations.
{'FirstName': 'Jeffrey', 'LastName': 'Palmer', 'PI_MID_INIT': 'D', 'PI_SUFX_NAME': None, 'PI_FULL_NAME': 'Jeffrey D Palmer', 'EmailAddress': 'jpalmer@bio.indiana.edu', 'NSF_ID': '000234434', 'StartDate': '01/15/1988', 'EndDate': None, 'RoleCode': 'Principal Investigator'}
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{'Code': '1127', 'Text': 'Evolutionary Processes'}
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