The Strength of Chemotaxonomy.
Abstract This book chapter discusses the history and development of chemotaxonomic methods, with examples of the application to different taxa, and with extensive reference to primary literature and reviews. The application of in silico methods utilizing information from the genome and future directions will also be discussed. The delineation of higher taxa at the family level and above may especially be aided by chemotaxonomic criteria, as demonstrated in published minimum standards. Although chemotaxonomic methods have been enormously important in the past with identification and classification schemes, it remains to be seen in what form they will be utilized in the genomic era, and in the suite of methods available in the era of omics.