| Low-copy nuclear genes have the potential to provide multiple, independent gene phylogenies that can be used to reconstruct species phylogenies, and may be more appropriate for resolving low-level phylogenetic relationships, such as those among closely related species, than common molecular phylogenetic markers. The goals of this study were to (1) investigate the molecular evolution of low-copy nuclear genes in a phylogenetic context, and (2) investigate the phylogenetic utility of low-copy nuclear genes through comparison to previous phylogenetic hypotheses. To obtain these goals, the low-copy nuclear gene encoding cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase was examined in the conifer families Pinaceae and Taxodiaceae, and the nuclear encoded chloroplast-expressed glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase gene was studied in the angiosperm genus Paeonia (Paeoniaceae). |
