Biotechnology and Genomics in Palms

Abstract

The Arecaceae (Palmae or palm tree), a family of~ 202 genera and~ 3000 species, is one of the best symbolised angiosperm families in the fossil record. It is the first and sole modern family of monocots of flowering plant in the order Arecales. The leaf and stem fossils appeared in the fossil record as early as 80-85 million years ago. This family is divided into six subfamilies, further into 14 tribes and 36 subtribes and finally into around 200 genera. Palms are the largest and diverse family of monophyletic group of plants and are among the best known and extensively cultivated plant families and also are perennials and distinguished by having woody stems. It is distributed throughout tropical and subtropical areas of the world, but it is most diverse in highly threatened moist tropical forest habitats.