Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of the Asian Green Mussel (Pernaviridis) in the Waters of Sabah, Malaysia Based on Mitochondrial DNA D-Loop Sequences

Özet

The Asian green mussel (Pernaviridis) is a bivalve species with a high economic value. The waters surrounding theMalaysian state of Sabah hosts a wide range of geographically distributed populations of P. viridis whose population structureis unknown. This study was conducted to elucidate the genetic diversity and population structure of Asian green mussel fromsix sites located along the coastline of Sabah based on the mitochondrial DNA control region (D-loop). The complete D-loopsequences of 197 individuals were recovered by amplification using PCR, followed by DNA sequencing. Interpretation of theresults revealed that the P. viridis populations exhibited high haplotype diversity (Hd=0.912±0.0002) and low nucleotidediversity (π=0.00890±0.00066). The AMOVA analysis showed ST was 0.02322 (P value<0.05), which is indicative of lowbut significant structuring. PairwiseST ranged from low to moderate indicating population differentiation. Five out of thefifteen population pairs showed significant population differentiation. Both AMOVA and pairwise ST suggest there weresignificant population subdivisions in Asian green mussel population in Sabah. Although the Asian green mussel populationin Sabah has gone through a severe mass mortality, evidence for genetic bottleneck was not detected. However, a smallerpopulation size after a severe demographic reduction can cause the population become vulnerable. Thus, regular monitoringof Asian green mussel population is required to keep track of fluctuations in population size and composition. This studyprovided new population genetic information which is crucial for establishing fisheries management strategies for this species.