Phylotastic: Improving Access to Tree-of-Life Knowledge With Flexible, on-the-Fly Delivery of Trees

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary Biology
• Bioinformatics
• Computational Biology

Background:

• Accessing comprehensive species phylogenies (trees of life) is often hindered by specialized knowledge and complex software requirements.
• Existing methods for obtaining phylogenetic information can be time-consuming and inaccessible for general users.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an open and accessible system, the Phylotastic project, for on-the-fly delivery of phylogenetic knowledge.
• To simplify the process of obtaining species phylogenies to be as easy as using online mapping software for directions.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of a robust system comprising a web portal, over 30 web services, and R/Python code toolkits.
• Development of customizable workflows for obtaining species phylogenies, scaled by geologic time and integrated with species images.
• Creation of an open system for validating taxon names, managing resources, and extracting subtrees.

Main Results:

• A functional Phylotastic system (http://www.phylotastic.org) is now available, offering on-demand access to phylogenetic knowledge.
• The system provides customizable workflows via a web portal and accessible web services for diverse applications.
• Code toolkits in R and Python enable custom application development using Phylotastic services.

Conclusions:

• The Phylotastic system offers a unique and accessible resource for retrieving current phylogenetic knowledge.
• This system is highly beneficial for applications requiring quick access to phylogenetic trees from online resources, rather than custom-built ones.
• Phylotastic democratizes access to evolutionary information, supporting research, education, and public policy.