Nonlethal age estimation of three threatened fish species using DNA methylation: Australian lungfish, Murray cod and Mary River cod.

ABSTRACT: Age-based demography is fundamental to management of wild fish populations. Age estimates for individuals can determine rates of change in key life-history parameters such as length, maturity, mortality and fecundity. These age-based characteristics are critical for population viability analysis in endangered species and for developing sustainable harvest strategies. For teleost fish, age has traditionally been determined by counting increments formed in calcified structures such as otoliths. However, the collection of otoliths is lethal and therefore undesirable for threatened species. At a molecular level, age can be predicted by measuring DNA methylation. Here, we use previously identified age-associated sites of DNA methylation in zebrafish (Danio rerio) to develop two epigenetic clock

SUBMITTER: Mayne B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8518777 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature