- Title
- Development and validation of DNA barcoding for biodiversity assessment and conservation of red algae in the Algoa Bay region
- Creator
- Mshiywa, Faith Masilive
- Subject
- Red algae
- Date
- 2017
- Type
- Thesis
- Type
- Masters
- Type
- MSc
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10353/9011
- Identifier
- vital:34182
- Description
- DNA barcoding is a molecular technique that uses a short DNA sequence for species identification. It harnesses global community efforts to establish large-scale public reference libraries to allow species identification. Red algae are a complex group of species and are difficult to identify on morphological grounds only. Red algae have the highest production of halogenated compounds, and are used in the medical and pharmaceutical industries. This study therefore aimed at developing DNA barcodes, universal primers and a Kenton-on-Sea red algae species list, which will aid as a baseline for red algae biodiversity and conservation research. A potential DNA barcode region was designed from the rbcL gene, because rbcL is easy to amplify, easy to sequence and it can differentiate organisms to species level. Primers were designed from multiple red algae rbcL sequences and they were evaluated using bioinformatics tools. Red algae from the Algoa Bay region were screened with these primers and a 77% PCR amplification success was obtained. The PCR products were sequenced and 96% of the amplicons were successfully sequenced and resulted in a barcode sequence length above 700bp, which could be used to identify red algae species. Twenty-six (26) red algae species from Kenton-on-Sea, near Algoa Bay, were successfully identified using the Barcode sequence amplified from a primer set developed from the rbcL gene and were uploaded on the BOLD database for public access. This barcode is, therefore, suitable for use by the South African National Biodiversity Institute or other marine researchers, to identify South African red algae species and ensure the maintenance of their biodiversity and conservation.
- Format
- 72 leaves
- Format
- Publisher
- University of Fort Hare
- Publisher
- Faculty of Science and Agriculture
- Language
- English
- Rights
- University of Fort Hare
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UFH Department of Biochemistry & Microbiology
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details | SOURCE1 | M Sc (Biochemistry) MSHIYWA - May 2018.pdf | 2 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details |