Hi JBS memebers, Here is our son's view of field bar code identification--he just received his Phd in plant genetics! Maybe he will see it used some day. Kevin Kane >From: Nolan Kane <[log in to unmask]> >To: kevinjudy <[log in to unmask]> >CC: Ailene Kane <[log in to unmask]>, Subject: Re: Fw: >(JBS-L) Re: General Comments - article in Natural History >Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:48:24 -0800 > >Hi Mom and Dad, >Well, I also have my doubts about DNA bar coding for plants. In animals, >it turns out to be practical to sequence just a single, short gene, and >that gene provides enough information do identify most species (although it >can't always distinguish between very closely related species, and usually >not varieties of the same species). In plants, though, the technique would >have to rely on several different genes, because nobody has found a single >gene that would work by itself - genes either evolve to rapidly or too >slowly. Nevertheless, people are indeed making progress by sequencing >multiple genes. One problem that isn't being dealt with at all by the bar >coding people is that hybridization is very common in many plant groups. >All the current efforts involve only chloroplast DNA sequence. Chloroplast >DNA is easy to sequence, but it can't be used to identify hybrids, which >could be an important limitation. For instance, Loren has found some >populations of /Helianthus petiolaris/ that appear to be purely /H. >petiolaris/ in their nuclear DNA, but have a chloroplast from /H. annuus/. >These populations would be mis-identified by bar-coding using chloroplasts, >of course. Still, the approach is interesting. For the near future, there >is little hope of anyone using anything like a bar-code scanner - instead, >people will have to sequence a gene or genes in a lab, and look for >identical or highly similar sequences to find out which species it came >from. Of course, that in itself will be a useful advance for many of the >applications described in the article. It just won't be very useful for >immediately identifying something in the field. However, once we have all >of the sequence data for enough species, a device that could identify >species in the field is at least theoretically possible - it would just be >very expensive, cumbersome, slow and technically challenging to operate. >Kind of like a key, only much worse. So, I wouldn't throw out those keys >yet... >Love, >Nolan > >kevinjudy wrote: >>Hi Botanists, you probably saw this article in Natural History--I am >>skeptical about bar coding accurately in my lifetime!! Ailene--I forgot >>to say many people asked about you at the Chenopodium meeting (Barbara, >>Charlie, Matt, Arthur, Eric, Don Lacey)----- we all miss you. love kk >> >>-------------------------------------------------- >>From: "Kathy Bilton" <[log in to unmask]> >>Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 12:13 PM >>To: <[log in to unmask]> >>Subject: (JBS-L) Re: General Comments - article in Natural History >> >>>FYI - I see that that article happens to be online: >>>http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/0307/0307_feature.html >>> >>>http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/index_archive.html >>> >>>Today, at about 11:28, Garret VanWart averred: >>>:Second- The March issue of Natural History has an interesting article >>>"Bar Coding for Botany" The jist is that in the future plants, even their >>>fragments, will be identified by species using DNA bar coding. WOW! Does >>>this mean no more pesky keys and field guides? No longer would just a few >>>professionals and amateurs have the knowledge of a plant's name. A simple >>>test in the field may be used for IDing. This leads me to inquire if we >>>might consider having a work shop or perhaps a guest speaker at JBS this >>>summer regarding this subject. I, for one, would like to learn more about >>>using DNA testing. This has, of course, has been readily available for >>>the human geome project, and now the All Birds Barcoding Initiative is >>>under way with a goal of 10,000 known species by 2010. >>>:I'd be interested in any thoughts you all may have, and do check out >>>Natural History March 2007 >>>:Garry VanWart >>>:[log in to unmask] >>>: >>> >