biostudies-literatureO Elansary HFaculty of Agriculture, Alexandria UniversityGovernment of Canada through Genome Canada and the Ontario Genomics Institution in support of the International Barcode of Life Project.King Saud Universitye0172170https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC5310869biostudies-literatureUnknown12(2)DNA barcoding relies on short and standardized gene regions to identify species. The agricultural and horticultural applications of barcoding such as for marketplace regulation and copyright protection remain poorly explored. This study examines the effectiveness of the standard plant barcode markers (matK and rbcL) for the identification of plant species in private and public nurseries in northern Egypt. These two markers were sequenced from 225 specimens of 161 species and 62 plant families of horticultural importance. The sequence recovery was similar for rbcL (96.4%) and matK (84%), but the number of specimens assigned correctly to the respective genera and species was lower for rbcL (75% and 29%) than matK (85% and 40%). The combination of rbcL and matK brought the number of correct gPloS oneThe first initiative of DNA barcoding of ornamental plants from Egypt and potential applications in horticulture industry.PMC5310869Hos2016Ashfaq MYessoufou KO Elansary HAli HMfalseThe first initiative of DNA barcoding of ornamental plants from Egypt and potential applications in horticulture industry.DNA barcoding relies on short and standardized gene regions to identify species. The agricultural and horticultural applications of barcoding such as for marketplace regulation and copyright protection remain poorly explored. This study examines the effectiveness of the standard plant barcode markers (matK and rbcL) for the identification of plant species in private and public nurseries in northern Egypt. These two markers were sequenced from 225 specimens of 161 species and 62 plant families of horticultural importance. The sequence recovery was similar for rbcL (96.4%) and matK (84%), but the number of specimens assigned correctly to the respective genera and species was lower for rbcL (75% and 29%) than matK (85% and 40%). The combination of rbcL and matK brought the number of correct g2017-01-01T00:00:00Z20172026-04-07T14:43:41.344Z2019-03-26T22:52:54ZS-EPMC53108692819937810.1371/journal.pone.0172170