Soltis was born on November 13, 1957, in Nelsonville, Ohio, to Barbara D. Sagraves and Walter Ronald Sagraves.[3] She attended Pella High School in Pella, Iowa, and graduated in 1976 as valedictorian. She was a National Merit Finalist in 1976. She earned her bachelor's degree in biology from Central College in 1980 and graduated summa cum laude. She then attended University of Kansas and earned an M.Phil. with honors in botany in 1984 and a Ph.D. in botany in 1986.[3]
After earning her Ph.D., Soltis started as an assistant professor in the Department of Botany at Washington State University in 1986 and was promoted to associate professor in 1992.[3] She was then promoted in full professor in the Department of Botany and School of Biological Sciences in 1998. In 2000 Soltis moved from Washington State UniversitytoUniversity of Florida, Florida Museum of Natural History as curator. At the University of Florida, Soltis was University of Florida Research Foundation Research Professor from 2006 to 2009 and co-director of the UF Computational Biology Program from 2009 to 2012.[3]
Soltis' research has focused on the patterns and processes that generated the tree of life. More specifically, she studies the flowering plant (angiosperm) diversity and evolution. She uses genomic methods, natural history collections and computational modeling to understand the phylogeny, phylogeography, and polyploidy of angiosperms.[4] She has published over 400 scientific papers, and among her most cited contributions are papers on the role of genetic and genomic attributes in the success of polyploids.[5] In 2016, Soltis was elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017.
She was the winner of the 2002 Dahlgren Prize in Botany from the Royal Physiographic Society of Sweden.[7]Reuters named her as a highly cited researcher in 2014.[8] She won, along with her husband, Douglas Soltis,[9] the 2006 Asa Gray Award. She was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2016.[10]
p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis. 2004. The origin and diversification of angiosperms. Am. J. Bot. 91: 1614–1626
s. Kim, v.a. Albert, m-j. Yoo, j.s. Farris, p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis. 2004. Pre-angiosperm duplication of floral genes and regulatory tinkering at the base of angiosperms. Am. J. Bot. 91: 2102–2118
j.c. Pires, k.y. Lim, a. Kovarík, r. Matyásek, a. Boyd, a.r. Leitch, i.j. Leitch, m.d. Bennett, p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis. 2004. Molecular cytogenetic analysis of recently evolved Tragopogon (Asteraceae) allopolyploids reveal a karyotype that is additive of the diploid progenitors. Am. J. Bot. 91: 1022–1035
t.j. Davies, t.g. Barraclough, m.w. Chase, p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis, v. Savolainen. 2004. Darwin's abominable mystery: Insights from a supertree of the angiosperms. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA 101: 1904–1909.
l.p. Ronse DeCraene, p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis. 2003. Evolution of floral structures in basal angiosperms. International Journal of Plant Sciences 164: S329-S363.
p.s. Soltis, d.e. Soltis, v. Savolainen, p.r. Crane, t. Barraclough. 2002. Rate heterogeneity among lineages of land plants: integration of molecular and fossil data and evidence for molecular living fossils. Proc. of the National Academy of Sci. USA 99: 4430-4435
m.a. Gitzendanner, p.s. Soltis. 2000. Patterns of genetic variation in rare and widespread plant congeners: Do rare species have low levels of genetic variability? Am. J. Bot. 87: 783-792
pamela s. Soltis, douglas e. Soltis, m.w. Chase. 1999. Angiosperm phylogeny inferred from multiple genes: A research tool for comparative biology. Nature 402: 402-404
douglas e. Soltis, pamela s. Soltis. 2006. Developmental genetics of the flower. Volumen 44 de Advances in botanical research incorporating advances in plant pathology. Edición ilustrada de Academic Press, 616 pp. ISBN0120059444en línea
pamela s. Soltis, douglas e. Soltis, jeff J. Doyle. 1992. Molecular systematics of plants. Editor Springer, 434 pp. ISBN0412022419en línea
d.e. Soltis, p.s. Soltis. 1990. Isozymes in plant biology. Edición ilustrada de Springer, 268 pp. ISBN0412365006en línea
pamela s. Soltis. 1986. Studies of genetic variation in an introgressive complex in Clarkia (Onagraceae). Editor University of Kansas, Botany, 596 pp.