Probing Biodiversity Through DNA Barcodes

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Taxonomy, ecology, and evolution are all disciplines that probe life's diversity. Taxonomists seek to characterize biodiversity, while evolutionists probe the forces responsible for its diversification at levels ranging from molecules to morphology. Ecologists view biodiversity from a different perspective; they seek to understand the kinetics of populations and the assembly rules of communities. All three disciplines confront an important barrier to their work; most species are unknown and the identification of known species is complex. My research is focused on empowering biodiversity science by creating a DNA-based identification system that resolves the taxonomic impediment. My work exploits the fact that sequence diversity in short, standardized regions of the genome is extremely effective in species discovery and identification. Termed DNA barcoding, this approach has gained global acceptance as transformative technology. My research team plays a critical role as we operate both the largest facility for barcode analysis and the informatics platform which stores barcode data. Access to this infrastructure allows my NSERC Discovery Grant to attack large-scale projects that would otherwise be impossible. Over the next five years, I will complete a barcode reference library for all animal species at a site in the Canadian arctic and develop DNA barcode libraries for the Lepidoptera on three continents - Australia, Europe and North America. These projects will not only aid taxonomic progress; they will provide comparative sequence data on an unprecedented scale, making it possible to probe important issues such as species ages, evolutionary trajectories in morphological traits and the modulators of mitochondrial genome evolution. My final area of research activity focuses on simplifying the protocols employed for species description and showing the powerful contribution that DNA-based approaches can make to bio-surveillance projects. My overall research program has important practical applications; it promises better protection of forestry and agriculture, earlier interception of invasive species, an enhanced capacity of ecosystem monitoring and an aid to conservation programs.