Boechera (Brassicaceae) has many features to recommend it as a model genus for ecological and evolutionary research, including species richness, ecological diversity, experimental tractability, and close phylogenetic proximity to Arabidopsis. However, efforts to realize the full potential of this model system have been thwarted by the frequent inability of researchers to identify their samples and place them in a broader evolutionary context. Here we present the Boechera Microsatellite Website (BMW), a portal includes analytical tools that utilize data from 15 microsatellite loci as a highly effective DNA barcoding system. The BMW facilitates the accurate identification of Boechera samples and the investigation of reticulate evolution among the 83 sexual diploid taxa in the genus, thereby greatly enhancing Boechera's potential as a model system.
Specimens | 5015 |
Nomenclatural types | 133 |
Microsatellite loci | 15 |
Microsatellite allele calls | 100294 |
Database version | 1.0.5.5 |
   Li, F.-W.*, C.A. Rushworth, J.B. Beck, M.D. Windham*. Boechera Microsatellite Website: an online portal for species identification and determination of hybrid parentage. Database (in revision). *equally contributed