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An Overview of DNA-Based Applications for the Assessment of Benthic Macroinvertebrates Biodiversity in Mediterranean Aquatic Ecosystems

Authors :
Eftychia Tzafesta
Francesco Zangaro
Valeria Specchia
Maurizio Pinna
Source :
Diversity, Vol 13, Iss 3, p 112 (2021)
Publication Year :
2021
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2021.

Abstract

The loss of aquatic biodiversity is increasing at a rapid rate globally. There is a worldwide effort to protect, preserve and restore aquatic ecosystems. For efficient biodiversity monitoring and reliable management tools, comprehensive biodiversity data are required. The abundance and species diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates are commonly used as indicators of the aquatic ecosystem condition. Currently, macroinvertebrate species biodiversity assessment is based on morpho-taxonomy, which could be enhanced by recent advances in DNA-based tools for species identification. In particular, DNA metabarcoding has the potential to identify simultaneously many different taxa in a pool of species and to improve aquatic biomonitoring significantly, especially for indicator species. This review is focused on the current state of DNA-based aquatic biomonitoring using benthic macroinvertebrates in the Mediterranean region.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
14242818
Volume :
13
Issue :
3
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Diversity
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.11aa719641643d2bbac5711fa067e3b
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/d13030112