H.S. Jeon, M.Y. Lee, J.A. Kim, M.S. Do, I.N. Kim, W.J. Choi, J. An
Published: February 14, 2024
Genet. Mol. Res. 23(1): GMR19095
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4238/gmr19095
Cite this Article:
H.S. Jeon, M.Y. Lee, J.A. Kim, M.S. Do, I.N. Kim, W.J. Choi, J. An (2024). Characterization of 23 microsatellite markers and development of multiplex PCRs for the Amur viper Gloydius saxatilis (Viperidae) and cross-species amplification in other Gloydius species. Genet. Mol. Res. 23(1): GMR19095. https://doi.org/10.4238/gmr19095
About the Authors
H.S. Jeon, M.Y. Lee, J.A. Kim, M.S. Do, I.N. Kim, W.J. Choi, J. An
Corresponding Author
Email: safety@korea.kr
ABSTRACT
The Amur viper (family Viperidae), Gloydius saxatilis (Emelianov, 1937) is found in Russia, China, and the Korean Peninsula, and suffers from considerable poaching pressure driven by financial incentives. Its unique distribution has attracted attention as an indicator species for climate change. Herein, we report the isolation and characterization of 23 novel microsatellite loci in G. saxatilis using next-generation sequencing technology consisting of six multiplex panels. We collected 42 muscle samples from G. saxatilis that had either been road-killed or captured at various natural sites in South Korea. Twenty-two samples were collected from Gangwon-do, four from Gyeonggi-do, nine from Gyeongsang-do, five from Jella-do, and two from Chungcheong-do. The observed and expected heterozygosities of the loci varied from 0.447 to 0.937 and 0.436 to 0.815, respectively. The number of alleles per locus ranged from four to 15. All loci were in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium, and no linkage disequilibrium was detected among any pairs of the loci. Examination of cross-species amplification showed that 20 loci were transferable to two other Gloydius snakes (G. ussuriensis and G. brevicaudus) and helped in identifying each species and hybrid. The six multiplex panels of 23 polymorphic microsatellite loci will play an important role in future population genetic studies and in the conservation and management of the Gloydius species.
Key words: Cross-species amplification, Gloydius saxatilis, Microsatellite marker, Population genetics.