SG: A revised classification of the flowering plant family Cleomaceae as a tool to understand drivers of diversification

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This project creates a reorganized classification of the flowering plant family Cleomaceae based on new genomic data and a new assessment of physical characteristics of the plants. The classification and associated hypotheses of relationships among lineages will provide a critical and foundational framework for studies of physiology, development, and genome structure in the family. It will also contribute to the evaluation of fossil seeds that are thought to belong to this plant group, enabling improved estimates of the ages of lineages in the family. The advancement of knowledge inherent to this project particularly contributes to society by providing a standardized classification for organizing our understanding of these plants. This is foundational knowledge for horticultural use, identification manuals, conservation studies, and many other applications by scientists and the general public. It will also provide training for one graduate student researcher at Washington State University.This project uses DNA sequence data and morphology to create revised hypotheses of the major lineages in the family and will complete the ongoing revision of the classification of these lineages. One specific goal of this project is to create a robust phylogenetic hypothesis of the relationships among major lineages of Cleomaceae. The goal of the project is to use near-complete species-level sampling and new genomic data to place all or nearly all species in currently recognized or newly identified lineages. Researchers will sequence about 290 species, or ~90% of the taxonomic diversity of the family. The second major goal of the project is to use the phylogeny to revise the classification of Cleomaceae. Once lineages are resolved, it will be necessary to identify structural characteristics that can be used to define these lineages and assign valid names to the groups. New micromorphological characters from seeds and pollen will be investigated, and these as well as additional macromorphological characters will be evaluated for potential to define lineages. The goal is to create a classification of Cleomaceae that is predictive, practical, and robust. This revised classification will provide an invaluable framework for comparative studies of physiology, floral development, and genome structure.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.