ABSTRACT
Abstract Functional aspects of genetic information as well as the diversity of different genomes will be major biomedical issues in postgenomic research. Genomic information from numerous organisms is closing in at an ever-increasing rate. Complete genomes are avail-
able from different pro-and eukaryotic taxa including that of the mouse--the most prominent eutherian model organism-and humans. Meaningful comparative analyses in character evolution, irrespective on which level this is carried out require an undisputed phylogenetic framework to ultimatively decide between homology and analogy. Though of outmost importance for evolutionary research in humans, an undisputed phylogenetic framework linking the mouse with primate-related eutherians, nonhuman primates and humans is still missing and research results on this issue are often controversially discussed. We herein review the actual status of the investigations on primate phylogeny. An emphasis is given to the divergence of nonhuman primates, relevant interpretations of the fossil record and molecular, including retropositional evidence. Whereas a congruent view is coming up concerning the phylogenetic relationships among primate taxa at a higher taxonomic level, e.g., the primate infraorders, there is still considerable debate on primate origins or very recent splits in primate evolution. For the latter this is mostly due to an incomplete taxon sampling, since primate material from at least more than 200 currently recognized species that is suitable for molecular research is not easily accessible. Obtaining more clarity about primate origins is to a large degree hampered by the sparseness of the critical fossil record. In as far as both molecular and fossil evidence is available for a certain splitting, the impression is that many interpretations based on the two completely different molecular and fossil-based approaches are remarkably compatible.
