title: High levels of genetic diversity in Penaeus monodon populations from the east coast of India.
abstract: Quality production of the shrimp Penaeus monodon in hatchery operations depends heavily on the evaluation of genetic diversity and population structure of brood stocks. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences have been widely used to study genetic variability and relationships in many crustacean groups, and these same markers may be incorporated into evaluation studies of shrimp broods and populations. For this purpose we looked at variation in mitochondrial D-loop sequences as an indicator of genetic diversity in shrimp populations from a region of India that represents the main sources of new material for brood stocks. In our study of these populations the overall mean genetic diversity was 0.191. The highest level of genetic diversity (0.357) was observed in the Kakinada population, whereas the lowest diversity (0.0171) was observed in the Nellore population. The results also indicate that overall, the populations along the Andhra Pradesh coast are genetically diverse despite the fact that there is considerable gene flow between them. From the results, it is evident that east cost of India shows high genetic diversity among P. monodon broods and no evidence of loss of diversity due to excessive inbreeding. The fact that the genetic variability of these populations has been maintained, despite ten years of dependence on these broods, shows that at the present time there is no indication of over exploitation.
authors.affiliation: Paul Hebert Centre for DNA Barcoding and Biodiversity Studies, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad, 431004 India ; Paul Hebert Centre for DNA Barcoding and Biodiversity Studies, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad, 431004 India.
authors.forename: Gulab Dattarao
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Khedkar
authors.affiliation: State Institute of Fisheries Technology, Jagannayak Pura, Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh India.
authors.forename: A Chandrashekar
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.affiliation: Human Nutrition, Food & Animal Science, College of Tropical Agriculture, Human Resources (CTAHR) University of Hawaii At Manoa, 1955 East West Road, AgSci 216, Honolulu, HI 96822 USA.
authors.forename: Tetszuan Benny
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Ron
authors.affiliation: Paul Hebert Centre for DNA Barcoding and Biodiversity Studies, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad, 431004 India.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Haymer
keywords: Diversity; Dloop; Hatchery; Mt DNA; Penaeus monodon; Population genetics