Genetic characterization of Owens River basin tui chubs using SNP and microsatellite markers

Authors: Jamie Gillis, Yongjiu Chen, Steve Parmenter, Frank Pezold

Year: 2010 (xlii)

Abstract

Management and recovery of the endangered Owens tui chub (Siphateles bicolor snyderi) faces many challenges. The primary causes for this species decline are habitat loss and introgression with Lahontan tui chub (Siphateles bicolor obesa). This research attempts to establish genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and microsatellite markers to assess the populations of tui chub in the Owens River basin, California in order to genetically determine whether the constituents are Owens, toikona, or Lahontan-Owens hybrids. Preliminary findings from SNP and microsatellite data show that the three are distinct. Allele-Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (AS-PCR) is used to investigate SNPs on a larger scale and delineates Owens, toikona, and Lahontan-Owens hybrids based on the frequency of alleles. Future management of tui chubs in the Owens River basin will be aided by increased taxonomic precision and introgression detection, inexpensive new protocols for specimen evaluation, and potential tools to monitor genetic status.