title: DNA barcode authentication of wood samples of threatened and commercial timber trees within the tropical dry evergreen forest of India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  India is rich with biodiversity, which includes a large number of endemic, rare and threatened plant species. Previous studies have used DNA barcoding to inventory species for applications in biodiversity monitoring, conservation impact assessment, monitoring of illegal trading, authentication of traded medicinal plants etc. This is the first tropical dry evergreen forest (TDEF) barcode study in the World and the first attempt to assemble a reference barcode library for the trees of India as part of a larger project initiated by this research group.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We sampled 429 trees representing 143 tropical dry evergreen forest (TDEF) species, which included 16 threatened species. DNA barcoding was completed using rbcL and matK markers. The tiered approach (1st tier rbcL; 2nd tier matK) correctly identified 136 out of 143 species (95%). This high level of species resolution was largely due to the fact that the tree species were taxonomically diverse in the TDEF. Ability to resolve taxonomically diverse tree species of TDEF was comparable among the best match method, the phylogenetic method, and the characteristic attribute organization system method.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We demonstrated the utility of the TDEF reference barcode library to authenticate wood samples from timber operations in the TDEF. This pilot research study will enable more comprehensive surveys of the illegal timber trade of threatened species in the TDEF. This TDEF reference barcode library also contains trees that have medicinal properties, which could be used to monitor unsustainable and indiscriminate collection of plants from the wild for their medicinal value.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Engineering, Center for DNA Barcoding, SRM University, Chennai, India; Interdisciplinary School of Indian System of Medicine, SRM University, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: Stalin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nithaniyal
authors.affiliation: Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Steven G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Newmaster
authors.affiliation: Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Subramanyam
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ragupathy
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Engineering, Center for DNA Barcoding, SRM University, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: Devanathan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Krishnamoorthy
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Engineering, Center for DNA Barcoding, SRM University, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: Sophie Lorraine
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Vassou
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Engineering, Center for DNA Barcoding, SRM University, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: Madasamy
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Parani
mesh_terms: D058893:DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic; D056727:Endangered Species; D065928:Forests; D005819:Genetic Markers; D005843:Geography; D007194:India; D010802:Phylogeny; D013045:Species Specificity; D014197:Trees / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D014329:Tropical Climate; D014934:Wood / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers