On April 19, Shenzhen BGI Life Sciences Research Institute (abbreviation: BGI) said that BGI has cooperated with a number of scientific research units to complete the genome analysis of cycads and released the complete genome map of cycads.
"Nature Plants" (Nature Plants) published the research results as a cover article on the 18th, which means that the last piece of the puzzle in the study of the genome evolution of seed plants has been successfully completed.
As a "living fossil" plant, cycads are the oldest extant seed plants on earth. They originated about 300 million years ago and reached their peak in the Jurassic era. They once dominated the earth with dinosaurs.
At present, cycads are listed as critically endangered species on the IUCN Red List, and are China's first-class national key protected plants.
The cycad phylogenetic tree supports that the extant cycads are the result of radiation evolution.
Photo courtesy of Huada
Release time: 2022-04-20 07:33:15 【Editor: Wang Yi】