Genetic variation in a freshwater prawn species, Palaemon paucidens, in South Korea

In this study, we investigated the geographical distribution of genetic variation and the genetic structure of P. paucidens populations using mitochondrial DNA sequences and genotypes identified from four microsatellite loci. Our results showed that populations from westward-flowing river systems that drain into the Yellow Sea have more genetic diversity than those from southward-flowing river systems, and that the highest genetic variance revealed by analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) using both genetic markers was observed in river systems grouped as HAN + GEUM, NAKDONG + JEJU, YOUNGSAN, and SEOMJIN. These results suggest that HAN and GEUM, in which freshwater prawn populations have higher levels of genetic diversity, were the most recently isolated river systems from Asian continental systems. Therefore, populations from HAN and GEUM experienced less severe bottlenecks than those from YOUNGSAN and SEOMJIN.

Source: Biochemical Systematics and Ecology - February 14, 2016 Category: Biochemistry Source Type: research