Molecular Systematics of the Lamiales

薄荷，唇形科，是一个大的，经济和 植物学上重要的科。 他们被认为是一个 “自然”的家庭，并已被承认，因为之前Linneaus。 然而，最近的花粉形态和 花和果实形态表明，各种成员的 一个家族可能是独立于家族中的祖先进化而来的 马鞭草科和唇形科是多系的。 如果是这样的话，那么唇形科代表了一个无与伦比的 趋同进化的例子。 使用形态学来 解释进化关系是有问题的。 同样的 这一现象被认为可能是 薄荷科的错误界限，趋同进化， 也可能导致对关系的错误结论。 通过对2000 - 2001年期间的 来自两个家族的叶绿体DNA的分子结构， 唇形科和马鞭草科，将进行评估，以解释 它们成员之间的进化关系模式。 分子数据不太容易受到以下因素的误导： 收敛进化，并已被证明是有效的， 在这个层面上重建进化关系， 植物在最近的几项研究中。 将采用两种方法： 1)限制性位点作图将用于检查大量的 （大约。140)2）直接测序三个基因编码 蛋白质在功能上与物种有很大的不同 代表着两个家族的主要血统 一 预计从这项研究中获得的大型数据集将是 使用最近开发的计算机程序进行分析， 从分子数据重建进化史。 这 研究将有利于植物分类学领域， 为修订家庭分类提供依据 唇形科和马鞭草科，进化生物学，通过 对趋同进化的一个杰出例子的严谨研究。

The mints, family Lamiaceae, are a large, economically and floristically important family. They have been conceived to be a "natural" family and have been recognized since before Linneaus. However, recent evidence from studies of pollen morphology and floral and fruit morphology suggest that various members of the family may have evolved independently from ancestors in the family Verbenaceae and, therefore, the Lamiaceae would be polyphyletic. If this is the case, then the Lamiaceae represents an unparalleled example of convergent evolution. The use of morphology to interpret evolutionary relationships is problematic. The very same phenomenon that has been suggested to account for the possibly erroneous circumscription of the mint family, convergent evolution, could also result in erroneous conclusions about relationship. New sources of data derived from the comparative analysis of the molecular structure of the chloroplast DNA from both families, Lamiaceae and Verbenaceae, will be assessed to interpret the pattern of evolutionary relationship among their members. Molecular data is much less prone to the misleading effects of convergent evolution and has been shown to be effective for the reconstruction of evolutionary relationships at this level in plants in several recent studies. Two methods will be employed: 1) restriction site mapping will be used to examine a large number (ca. 140) of species and 2) direct sequencing of three genes coding for proteins differing greatly in function from species representing the major lineages within the two families. The very large data set expected to be derived from this research will be analyzed using recently developed computer programs designed to reconstruct evolutionary history from molecular data. This research will benefit both the fields of plant taxonomy, by providing the basis for a revised classification of the families Lamiaceae and Verbenaceae, and evolutionary biology, through the rigorous study of an outstanding example of convergent evolution.