Journal of Environmental Biology

The efficacy of COI barcoding and ISSR markers in molecular identification of diverse bird Sternula saundersi populations along the Red Sea coast, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

M. Almalki¹, M. Ismail² and A. Gaber^1,3* 

¹Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Taif University, Taif, 21944, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

²Genetics Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Menoufia University, Shibin El-Kom, 32511, Egypt

³Department of Genetics, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza, 12613, Egypt

*Corresponding Author Email : agaber60@yahoo.com

Received: 20.05.2020                                            Revised: 13.08.2020                                                                      Accepted: 31.08.2020

Abstract

Aim: To demonstrate the first DNA barcode and molecular diversity of bird Sternula saundersi (Saunders’s tern) populations collected from the Red Sea coast at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Methodology: The mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was isolated and sequenced from 26 different individuals of S. saundersi, whose blood samples were collected from two different areas at the Red Sea coast of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Also, the genetic diversity of 26 individuals were investigated using highly polymorphic nuclear markers, i.e., inter simple sequence repeat [ISSR] technique.

Results: The COI gene sequences of all 26 individuals were documented and submitted to the GenBank database. Five unique single nucleotide polymorphisms were found in all individuals of S. saundersi that were not observed in other species of the genus Sternula. Consequently, these five nucleotides can be used as a distinctive DNA fingerprint of S. saundersi. Additionally, it was possible to identify molecular diversity within different populations from two different areas using eight different ISSR markers.      

Interpretation: The present data demonstrate the power of COI marker gene in identifying S. saundersi, i.e., it can be utilized to discriminate between different species of the genus Sternula. In addition, highly polymorphic nuclear markers (ISSR) were demonstrated to have significant power to accurately distinguish between individuals collected from different widely spaced areas.       

Key words: COI gene, DNA barcode, ISSR markers, S. saundersi

Copyright © 2021 Triveni Enterprises. All rights reserved. No part of the Journal can be reproduced in any form without prior permission. Responsibility regarding the authenticity of the data, and the acceptability of the conclusions enforced or derived, rest completely with the author(s).