MOTUs, Morphology, and Biodiversity Estimation: A Case Study Using Nematodes of the Suborder Criconematina and a Conserved 18S DNA Barcode.

ABSTRACT: DNA barcodes are increasingly used to provide an estimate of biodiversity for small, cryptic organisms like nematodes. Nucleotide sequences generated by the barcoding process are often grouped, based on similarity, into molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs). In order to get a better understanding of the taxonomic resolution of a 3' 592-bp 18S rDNA barcode, we have analyzed 100 MOTUs generated from 214 specimens in the nematode suborder Criconematina. Previous research has demonstrated that the primer set for this barcode reliably amplifies all nematodes in the Phylum Nematoda. Included among the Criconematina specimens were 25 morphologically described species representing 12 genera. Using the most stringent definition of MOTU membership, where a single nucleotide difference is suf

SUBMITTER: Powers T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3380479 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature