Ancient and Historical DNA in Conservation Policy

Evelyn L. Jensen*, David Díez-del-Molino, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Laura Bertola, Filipa Borges, Vlatka Cubric-Curik, Miguel de Navascués, Peter Frandsen, Myriam Heuertz, Christina Hvilsom, Belén Jiménez-Mena, Antti Miettinen, Markus Moest, Patrícia Pečnerová, Ian Barnes, Cristiano Vernesi

*Corresponding author for this work

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Abstract

Although genetic diversity has been recognized as a key component of biodiversity since the first Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 1993, it has rarely been included in conservation policies and regulations. Even less appreciated is the role that ancient and historical DNA (aDNA and hDNA) could play in unlocking the temporal dimension of genetic diversity, allowing key conservation issues to be resolved, including setting baselines for intra-species genetic diversity, estimating changes in effective population size (Ne), and identifying the genealogical continuity of populations. Here, we discuss how genetic information from ancient and historical specimens can play a central role in preserving biodiversity and highlight specific conservation policies that could incorporate such data to help countries meet their CBD obligations.
Original languageEnglish
JournalTrends in Ecology & Evolution
Volume37
Issue number5
Pages (from-to)420-429
Number of pages10
ISSN0169-5347
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

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