Aplastaceae

Aplastaceae is a taxonomic name that has appeared in scientific classifications as a family-level grouping, but its circumscription is uncertain and it is not widely recognized in contemporary taxonomic resources. In practice, major databases do not consistently treat Aplastaceae as a valid or accepted family; in some classifications it is proposed to include a small number of genera, while in others it is treated as a synonym of a more established family or as an obsolete name. The lack of a stable type genus and inconsistent description have contributed to its limited use.

The history of the name is characterized by taxonomic uncertainty. It has been variously treated as a distinct lineage within a broader higher group, or as an artifact of earlier classification schemes. Because the circumscription of Aplastaceae varies among authors, there is no universally agreed list of genera or species associated with it. The etymology follows the standard -aceae suffix for plant and algal families, derived from Greek and Latin roots related to tissue or form, though no formal description remains widely cited in current references.

As a result, Aplastaceae is often encountered only in older literature or in regional treatments, and researchers typically rely on more widely accepted families for current work. Further taxonomic revision or new molecular evidence would be required to clarify whether Aplastaceae should be maintained as a distinct family or treated as a synonym.