An updated inventory of Brazilian seed plants is presented and offers important insights into the country's biodiversity. This work started in 2010, with the publication of the Plants and Fungi Catalogue, and has been updated since by more than 430 specialists working online. Brazil is home to 32,086 native Angiosperms and 23 native Gymnosperms, showing an increase of 3% in its species richness in relation to 2010. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest Brazilian biome for Gymnosperms, while the Atlantic Rainforest is the richest one for Angiosperms. There was a considerable increment in the number of species and endemism rates for biomes, except for the Amazon that showed a decrease of 2.5% of recorded endemics. However, well over half of Brazillian seed plant species (57.4%) is endemic to this territory. The proportion of life-forms varies among different biomes: trees are more expressive in the Amazon and Atlantic Rainforest biomes while herbs predominate in the Pampa, and lianas are more expressive in the Amazon, Atlantic Rainforest, and Pantanal. This compilation serves not only to quantify Brazilian biodiversity, but also to highlight areas where there information is lacking and to provide a framework for the challenge faced in conserving Brazil's unique and diverse flora.

Andean orogeny is considered as one of the most important events for the developmentof current plant diversity in South America. We compare available phylogenetic studies anddivergence time estimates for plant lineages that may have diversified in response to Andeanorogeny. The influence of the Andes on plant diversification is separated into four major groups:The Andes as source of new high-elevation habitats, as a vicariant barrier, as a North-Southcorridor and as generator of new environmental conditions outside the Andes. Biogeographicalrelationships between the Andes and other regions are also considered. Divergence timeestimates indicate that high-elevation lineages originated and diversified during or after the majorphases of Andean uplift (Mid-Miocene to Pliocene), although there are some exceptions. Asexpected, Andean mid-elevation lineages tend to be older than high-elevation groups. Mostclades with disjunct distribution on both sides of the Andes diverged during Andean uplift.Inner-Andean clades also tend to have divergence time during or after Andean uplift. This isinterpreted as evidence of vicariance. Dispersal along the Andes has been shown to occur ineither direction, mostly dated after the Andean uplift. Divergence time estimates of plant groupsoutside the Andes encompass a wider range of ages, indicating that the Andes may not benecessarily the cause of these diversifications. The Andes are biogeographically related to allneighbouring areas, especially Central America, with floristic interchanges in both directionssince Early Miocene times. Direct biogeographical relationships between the Andes and otherdisjunct regions have also been shown in phylogenetic studies, especially with the easternBrazilian highlands and North America. The history of the Andean flora is complex and plantdiversification has been driven by a variety of processes, including environmental change,adaptation, and biotic interactions