Metabarcoding of soil environmental DNA to estimate plant diversity globally.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Traditional approaches to collecting large-scale biodiversity data pose huge logistical and technical challenges. We aimed to assess how a comparatively simple method based on sequencing environmental DNA (eDNA) characterises global variation in plant diversity and community composition compared with data derived from traditional plant inventory methods.

Methods

We sequenced a short fragment (P6 loop) of the chloroplast trnL intron from from 325 globally distributed soil samples and compared estimates of diversity and composition with those derived from traditional sources based on empirical (GBIF) or extrapolated plant distribution and diversity data.

Results

Large-scale plant diversity and community composition patterns revealed by sequencing eDNA were

SUBMITTER: Vasar M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10151745 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature