ID: 613 / 25

Category: Symposia

Track: Pending

Proposed Symposium Title: SYNANTHEROLOGY RELOADED: RECENT ADVANCES AND THE FUTURE OF EVOLUTIONARY STUDIES IN COMPOSITAE

Abstract: Technological advances in high-throughput sequencing, large-scale phylogenomics, and improved database infrastructure have revolutionized the fields of plant systematics and evolution. The International Compositae Alliance (TICA) will host a symposium highlighting the impact these technologies have had on our understanding of the biogeography, systematics, and evolution of the world’s largest flowering plant family. Compositae comprise more than 30,000 described species and occur in nearly every corner of the earth. They are remarkably ecologically and morphologically diverse, and the family is an excellent model for studying evolution. The symposium brings together speakers who will present major findings from the past decade including how new data have led to major changes in classification and have improved data accessibility and infrastructure. Speakers will demonstrate how research in the family over the past decade has improved our understanding of its biogeography and evolutionary history. The symposium will address the future of studies in the family and what some of the newest technologies, e.g., highly accurate long-read sequencing, CRISPR/functional genetics, and single-cell/nuclei sequencing, will have to offer for further studying the evolution of this fascinating plant group.

Speaker 1: Jennifer Mandel University of Memphis jmandel@memphis.edu The future of studies of evolution and systematics in Compositae

Speaker 2: Alfonso Susanna Institut Botànic de Barcelona asusanna@ibb.csic.es Phylogenomic insights in Cardueae

Speaker 3: Benoit Loeuille Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew benoit.loeuille@gmail.com Disentangling the evolutionary history of Vernonieae

Topics (Up to three): Systematics

Topic 2: Phylogenetics and Phylogenomics

Topic 3: Biogeography / Phylogeography

Justification: Since The International Compositae Alliance (TICA) community published the massive volume on the biogeography, systematics, and evolution of Compositae spearheaded by the late Vicki Funk, technology has rapidly changed how we study plants. During the height of COVID, a group of Compositae researchers reinvigorated TICA which has a growing and strong international community again. We wish to host this symposium to highlight TICA and this community, new tools and approaches, new classifications, and finally, the future of evolutionary studies in this massive flowering plant family.