ATOL: Collaborative Research - Assembling the Liverwort Tree of Life: A Window into the Evolution and Diversification of Early Land Plants.

这个项目旨在解决苔类植物的生命之树问题。越来越多的证据表明，在大约50亿年前，地衣（Marchantiophyta门）是第一批在陆地上多样化的绿色植物，因此它们是现存最古老的陆生生物谱系。这种种类丰富的小型绿色植物在结构上具有显著的多样性，包括极其古老的宗教谱系以及最近的密切相关物种的辐射。在所有分类水平上，苔类的古老和丰富的生物多样性为研究早期陆地植物多样化提供了一个无与伦比的窗口。这项合作工作汇集了来自世界各地的专家，采用多学科、高度集成的方法，将解剖学和发育特征与DNA序列和基因组结构特征相结合，以解决整个苔类多样性的系统发育关系。将编制三种一般类型的数据：1)保守的形态学和基因组特征，以解决深层的“骨干”关系；2)解剖学/发育数据，以解决中等深度的谱系；3)形态学和DNA序列特征，以解决代表所有属的800个分类群样本之间的关系。该项目的第二个主要目标是将该项目与其他正在进行的nsf支持的项目（包括几个资助的ATOL项目）之间的系统发育推断和生物构象研究结合起来。这些整合活动包括对陆地植物基因组结构和进化研究的贡献，新信息工具的扩展，使方法、结果和含义广泛可及，以及DNA序列实用工具的持续发展，这将使从事不同生物研究的广泛科学家受益。该项目依靠以解决绿色植物生命之树为重点的研究项目之间的合作和整合。综合活动是实质性的和重要的，包括系统发育数据库的扩展和解决生命之树问题的方法/概念方面的工作。该项目将支持至少六名博士后助理和同样多的研究生，本科生也将大量参与。将通过路易斯·斯托克斯少数民族参与联盟和麦克奈尔学者计划等现有的联邦项目，努力吸引和留住来自代表性不足群体的个人。将在每个研究团队中建立坚实的指导基础设施，以提供支持和专业经验，确保所有参与者的生产力和成功。推广工作包括为各级教育工作者提供有关苔类形态和鉴定的网络报告，开发基于网络的材料和针对中学教师的研讨会，以及通过周末实地考察提高公众意识。

This project aims to resolve the liverwort Tree Of Life. There is mounting evidence that liverworts (Phylum Marchantiophyta) were the first green plants to diversify on land some 500,000 million years ago and as such they are the oldest living lineage of terrestrial organisms. This species-rich group of small green plants is remarkably diverse in structure, and includes extremely ancient relictual lineages as well as more recent radiations of closely related species. The antiquity of liverworts and the rich biodiversity at all taxonomic levels provide an unparalleled window into early land plant diversification. This collaborative effort brings together experts from around the world for a multidisciplinary, highly integrated approach that combines anatomical and developmental features with DNA sequence and genome structural characters to resolve phylogenetic relationships across the entire spectrum of liverwort diversity. Three general types of data will be compiled: 1) conservative morphological and genome characters to resolve deep "backbone" relationships, 2) anatomical/developmental data to resolve intermediate-depth lineages, and 3) morphological and DNA sequence characters to resolve relationships among a sample of 800 taxa representing all genera of liverworts. A second major goal of the project is to integrate phylogenetic inferences and bionformatic efforts between this and other on-going NSF-supported projects, including several funded ATOL programs. These integrative activities include contributions to studies of genome structure and evolution across land plants, expansions of novel informatic tools to make methods, results, and implications widely accessible, and continued development of DNA sequence utilities that will benefit a broad range of scientists working on diverse organisms. This project relies on the cooperation with and integration among research programs focused on resolving the green plant Tree Of Life. Integrative activities are substantive and consequential, and include expansions to phylogenetic databases and methodological/conceptual aspects of work toward resolving the Tree Of Life. At least six post-doctoral associates and as many graduate students will be supported by the project, with substantial involvement of undergraduates as well. An effort to involve and retain individuals from underrepresented groups will be orchestrated through established federal programs that focus on such initiatives, including the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation and the McNair Scholars Program. A solid mentoring infrastructure will be developed within each research team to provide support and professional experiences that ensure productivity and success of all participants. Outreach efforts include web presentations on the morphology and identification of liverworts for educators at all levels, development of web-based materials and a workshop targeting secondary school teachers, and increasing public awareness through weekend field excursions.