Tiny Plants, Big Science: How DNA is Helping Us Get to Know Mosses Better

Mosses are tiny but mighty. They are some of the oldest plants on land and play a big role in nature. They also have uses in gardening and medicine. But studying them is tough. There aren't many experts who can tell one type of moss from another. That's where DNA barcoding comes in. It's a tool that helps scientists identify different species using their DNA. But the markers used for this often come from studies of flowering plants. Mosses are different, so they need their own special markers. A recent study took a close look at the DNA of mosses. They used data from 61 complete chloroplast genomes. These genomes come from 14 orders, 23 families, and 60 species of mosses. The study built the first reliable family-level family tree for mosses using whole chloroplast genomes. This helps scientists accurately identify most moss samples. The study also found 12 highly variable regions in the moss DNA. These regions could be used as DNA barcodes for mosses. Tests showed that these barcodes work well for identifying different types of mosses. The study used DNA from 103 samples representing 21 families and 48 genera. This confirmed that the barcodes are reliable. But the study also found a problem. The chloroplast genome structures of mosses in public databases are not consistent. This makes it hard for scientists to use this data for further research. The study suggests that researchers should upload their data with a reference genome in the future. This research is a big step forward in moss identification. It shows how DNA barcoding can help us understand and use these tiny plants better. But there's still more to learn. The inconsistencies in the data show that there's room for improvement.