DNA barcoding Korean birds.
DNA barcoding, an inventory of DNA sequences from a standardized genomic region, provides a bio-barcode for identifying and discovering species. Several recent studies suggest that the sequence diversity in a 648 bp region of the mitochondrial gene for cytochrome c oxi- dase I (COI) might serve as a DNA barcode for identify- ing animal species such as North American birds, in- sects and fishes. The present study tested the effective- ness of a COI barcode in discriminating Korean bird species. We determined the 5' terminus of the COI bar- code for 92 species of Korean birds and found that spe- cies identification was unambiguous; the genetic differ- ences between closely related species were, on average, 25 times higher than the differences within species. We identified only one misidentified species out of 239 specimens in a genetic resource bank, so confirming the accuracy of species identification in the banking system. We also identified two potential composite species, calling for further investigation using more samples. The finding of large COI sequence differences between species confirms the effectiveness of COI barcodes for identifying Korean bird species. To bring greater reliability to the identification of species, increased in- tra- and interspecies sampling, as well as supplementa- tion of the mitochondrial barcodes with nuclear ones, is needed.
Yoo
Hye Sook
HS
Biological Resource Center/Korean BioInformation Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Daejeon 305-333, Korea.
Eah
Jae-Yong
JY
Kim
Jong Soo
JS
Kim
Young-Jun
YJ
Min
Mi-Sook
MS
Paek
Woon Kee
WK
Lee
Hang
H
Kim
Chang-Bae
CB
D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D030541:Databases, Genetic; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV / Q000235:genetics*; D007723:Korea; D010802:Phylogeny; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013045:Species Specificity
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV