DNA barcoding Bromeliaceae: achievements and pitfalls.

Background: DNA barcoding has been successfully established in animals as a tool for organismal identification and taxonomic clarification. Slower nucleotide substitution rates in plant genomes have made the selection of a DNA barcode for land plants a much more difficult task. The Plant Working Group of the Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL) recommended the two-marker combination rbcL/matK as a pragmatic solution to a complex trade-off between universality, sequence quality, discrimination, and cost.