Theissinger, KathrinEuropean Reference Genome Atlas Consortium2024-04-022024-04-022023Theissinger K, Fernandes C, Formenti G, Bista I, Berg PR, Bleidorn C, et al. How genomics can help biodiversity conservation. Trends Genet. 2023 Jul;39(7):545-59. DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2023.01.0050168-9525http://hdl.handle.net/10230/59627The availability of public genomic resources can greatly assist biodiversity assessment, conservation, and restoration efforts by providing evidence for scientifically informed management decisions. Here we survey the main approaches and applications in biodiversity and conservation genomics, considering practical factors, such as cost, time, prerequisite skills, and current shortcomings of applications. Most approaches perform best in combination with reference genomes from the target species or closely related species. We review case studies to illustrate how reference genomes can facilitate biodiversity research and conservation across the tree of life. We conclude that the time is ripe to view reference genomes as fundamental resources and to integrate their use as a best practice in conservation genomics.application/pdfeng© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).info:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tig.2023.01.005AnthropoceneEuropean Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA)Biodiversity genomicsConservation applicationsGenomic toolboxReference genomesinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess