Phylogenetic Analysis of Liverworts and Hornworts

Liverworts (Marchantiophyta) and hornworts (Anthocerotophyta) represent two of the earliest divergent lineages of land plants. Their simple body plans and predominantly haploid life cycles render them critical for understanding the origin and early evolution of terrestrial flora. Phylogenetic analysis has employed both morphological characters and increasingly extensive molecular data sets—spanning nuclear ribosomal regions, multiple plastid genes and, in some cases, mitochondrial markers—to resolve relationships within and between these groups. Major clades within liverworts include the complex thalloid, simple thalloid and leafy lineages, while hornworts exhibit fewer recognised genera but display deep genetic splits. Despite a sparse fossil record, integration of molecular clock approaches with available amber and compression fossils has begun to refine divergence time estimates, placing the initial radiation of these bryophyte lineages in the Ordovician to Devonian. Current frameworks support a monophyletic view of each phylum, yet incongruences between gene trees and morphology‐based classification persist, highlighting the need for multi‐locus and genome‐scale sampling. Beyond their phylogenetic significance, liverworts and hornworts play vital ecological roles in nutrient cycling, soil formation and as bioindicators, with an improved evolutionary framework informing conservation priorities and bioprospecting for secondary metabolites.

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Phylogenetic Analysis of Liverworts and Hornworts publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in phylogenetic analysis of liverworts and hornworts across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Molecular phylogeny: Reconstruction of evolutionary relationships based on comparisons of DNA sequence data.

Monophyletic clade: A group of organisms that includes an ancestor and all its descendants, indicating a single common evolutionary origin.

Chloroplast markers: DNA regions within the chloroplast genome (such as rbcL or psbA) used to infer plant phylogenies due to their moderate rate of evolution and uniparental inheritance.

Internal transcribed spacer (ITS): A nuclear ribosomal DNA region situated between the small and large subunit genes, widely used in phylogenetic studies for its high variability among closely related taxa.

References

1. New insight into the taxonomy of Cephaloziellaceae (Marchantiophyta): the family of the smallest higher plants on Earth. Frontiers in Plant Science (2024).
2. Calypogeia (Calypogeiaceae, Marchantiophyta) in Pacific Asia: Updates from Molecular Revision with Particular Attention to the Genus in North Indochina. Plants (2022).
3. Overview of Schistochilopsis (Hepaticae) in Pacific Asia with the Description Protochilopsis gen. nov.. Plants (2020).
4. Exploring the impact of fossil constraints on the divergence time estimates of derived liverworts. Plant Systematics and Evolution (2013).