Record Details

Identification of Balanus amphitrite larvae from field zooplankton using species-specific primers

DRS at CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography

View Archive Info
 
 
Field Value
 
Title Identification of Balanus amphitrite larvae from field zooplankton using species-specific primers
 
Creator Gaonkar, C.C.
Khandeparker, L.
Desai, D.V.
Anil, A.C.
 
Subject AQUATIC COMMUNITIES::Zooplankton
INVERTEBRATE BIOLOGY::Taxonomy and morphology
CRUSTACEANS::Taxonomy and morphology
 
Description Identification of marine invertebrate larvae using morphological characters is laborious and complicated by phenotypic plasticity. Balanus amphitrite is a dominant barnacle, important in the context of intertidal ecology and biofouling of manmade structures. Morphological identification of barnacle larval forms in a mixed population is difficult because of their intricacy and similarity in size, shape and developmental stages. We report the development and application of a nucleic acid-based Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method for the specific identification of the barnacle, B. amphitrite, from the heterogeneous zooplankton sample. This method is reliable and accurate thereby overcoming taxonomic ambiguity. Sequence alignment of the 18S rRNA gene region of selected species of barnacles allowed the design of B. amphitrite-specific PCR primers. Assay specificity was evaluated by screening DNA obtained from selected species of barnacles. The oligonucleotide primers used in the study flanked a 1600 bp region within the 18S rRNA gene. The primer is specific and can detect as few as 10 individuals of B. amphitrite larvae spiked in a background of ~186 mg of zooplankton. This technique facilitates accurate identification and the primer can be used as a marker for enumeration of B. amphitrite larvae in the plankton.
 
Date 2015-08-24T09:41:10Z
2015-08-24T09:41:10Z
2015
 
Type Journal Article
 
Identifier Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, vol.95(3); 2015; 497-502
http://drs.nio.org/drs/handle/2264/4756
 
Language en
 
Rights An edited version of this paper was published ? Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 2015. All efforts have been made to respect the copyright to the best of our knowledge. Inadvertent omissions, if brought to our notice, stand for correction and withdrawal of document from this repository
 
Publisher Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom