Uncovering the Genetic Structure of European Anchovy Populations in Central and Western Mediterranean.

ABSTRACT: Among small pelagic fishes, the European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) is a key species within the marine ecosystem of the Mediterranean Sea, exhibiting significant population structure across its geographic range. This study applied state-of-the-art genomic analyses, utilizing 9497 genome-wide SNPs derived from ddRAD sequencing, to investigate population structure, genetic diversity, and genotype-environment associations in anchovy samples collected across 12 locations in the Western and Central Mediterranean as well as nearby Atlantic regions. In order to increase the number of polymorphic loci identified, we first assembled a draft reference genome for the species (1.69 Gb and 79.8% BUSCO completeness), which proved to be a powerful tool for downstream analyses. Two main genet

SUBMITTER: Alexandridis D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12626725 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature