Technologies
As the iBOL barcode reference library grows, two types of application will emerge: massive biodiversity scans (environmental barcoding) and point-of-contact identifications (the hand-held barcoder). Massive scans of biodiversity will be delivered by new generation sequencing platforms which can generate large numbers of sequence records. With this technology it will be possible to collect the dust at the bottom of a grain shipment and identify the pests, potential invasive species and other contaminants it contains. The second analytical approach will deliver point-of-contact identifications for single specimens. This will require a new device that executes all steps in barcode analysis – DNA extraction, PCR amplification, sequencing and reference library matching.
Both technologies will be addressed by iBOL Working Groups.
