The DNA barcode of Korean polychaetes

Abstract

In Korea, polychaetes inhabit a variety of habitats in all the coasts. Thanks to the well-developed mud flats, polychaetes have a great diversity and abundance. On the other hand, most of the polychaetes species have trouble in identification of their species due to on the similarity in morphological characters among the species. The molecular markers such as the DNA barcode provide objective measures distinguishing each species apart. In this study, we present the DNA barcode, the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) as the molecular characters for Korean polychaetes in order to establish an objective references for species identification. The polychaetes were collected by grap sampling in the southern coast of Korea, identified morphologically, and imaged digitally. Then, DNA was extracted, and the standard barcode region was amplified and sequenced bidirectionally. A total of 96 DNA barcode sequences belonging to 42 species were obtained, of which 38 species were newly analyzed in this study. Average intraspecific and interspecific distances based on Kimura two parameter model (K2P) were 0.5% and 34.6% respectively. In the Neighbor-joining tree of COI, most of the congeneric species were clustered together. The result supports the role of the COI gene as a useful molecular marker for identification of each polychaetes species, enabling us to establish an objective identification measures for Koron of their species due to on the similarity in morphological characters among the species. The molecular markers such as the DNA barcode provide objective measures distinguishing each species apart. In this study, we present the DNA barcode, the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) as the molecular characters for Korean polychaetes in order to establish an objective references for species identification. The polychaetes were collected by grap sampling in the southern coast of Korea, identified morphologically, and imaged digitally. Then, DNA was extracted, and the standard barcode region was amplified and sequenced bidirectionally. A total of 96 DNA barcode sequences belonging to 42 species were obtained, of which 38 species were newly analyzed in this study. Average intraspecific and interspecific distances based on Kimura two parameter model (K2P) were 0.5% and 34.6% respectively. In the Neighbor-joining tree of COI, most of the congeneric species were clustered together. The result supports the role of the COI gene as a useful molecular marker for identification of each polychaetes species, enabling us to establish an objective identification measures for Kor