Research Article

Delimiting invasive Myriophyllum aquaticum in Kashmir Himalaya using a molecular phylogenetic approach

Published: September 12, 2014
Genet. Mol. Res. 13 (3) : 7564-7570 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4238/2014.September.12.23
Cite this Article:
M.A. Shah, M.A. Ali, F.M. Al-Hemaid, Z.A. Reshi (2014). Delimiting invasive Myriophyllum aquaticum in Kashmir Himalaya using a molecular phylogenetic approach. Genet. Mol. Res. 13(3): 7564-7570. https://doi.org/10.4238/2014.September.12.23
2,646 views

Abstract

Myriophyllum aquaticum (Vell.) Verdc. (family Haloragaceae) is one of the most invasive and destructive South American aquatic plant species and is present in a wide range of geographic regions, including the Kashmir Himalaya. Confusion regarding the taxonomic delimitation of M. aquaticum in the Himalayan region impedes effective and targeted management. Hence, our goal was improve the identification of M. aquaticum for exclusive delimitation from other related species in the study region using a molecular phylogenetic approach. A maximum parsimony tree recovered from phylogenetic analyses of the internal transcribed spacer sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA was used to authenticate the identification of M. aquaticum. The results of this study can be used for targeted management of this tropical invader into the temperate Kashmir Himalaya.

Myriophyllum aquaticum (Vell.) Verdc. (family Haloragaceae) is one of the most invasive and destructive South American aquatic plant species and is present in a wide range of geographic regions, including the Kashmir Himalaya. Confusion regarding the taxonomic delimitation of M. aquaticum in the Himalayan region impedes effective and targeted management. Hence, our goal was improve the identification of M. aquaticum for exclusive delimitation from other related species in the study region using a molecular phylogenetic approach. A maximum parsimony tree recovered from phylogenetic analyses of the internal transcribed spacer sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA was used to authenticate the identification of M. aquaticum. The results of this study can be used for targeted management of this tropical invader into the temperate Kashmir Himalaya.