Museomics

Abstract

Museo-what? Museomics! Museomics is emerging as a distinct discipline from ancient DNA research and involves natural history museums and herbaria across the world. Museomics can be defined as the application of -omics techniques (genomics, paleogenomics and even paleoproteomics) to previously intractable historical and archival specimens that allow the retrieval of genomic data from extinct or currently declining species. This information has the potential to document genetic erosion in endangered species, to obtain genomes from extinct species, to establish molecular phylogenies, to understand species invasions in the last few centuries, to resolve taxonomic doubts with holotypes, and to explore past diversity of extant species, prior to the current climate crisis. In addition, it can provide information on epigenetic modifications or even past pathogens, which can be of biomedical interest.