Molecular identification of Japeuthria ferrea from the south coast of Korea

ABSTRACT

This study represents the first molecular analysis of Japeuthria ferrea specimens from Korea, focusing on COI and H3 gene regions for species identification and phylogenetic analysis. A total of 13 samples was collected from three different locations along the south coast of Korea, and their sequences were registered in the NCBI GenBank. The COI and H3 gene regions were successfully amplified and bidirectionally sequenced, providing a valuable reference for future DNA barcoding studies. Phylogenetic analysis based on both COI and H3 sequences demonstrated that the Korean and Japanese J. ferrea populations lacked clear regional differentiation. Despite the limitations in differentiating the regional characteristics of J. ferrea, the study confirms the applicability of COI and H3 genes for accurate species identification. The findings emphasise the importance of employing multiple molecular markers for comprehensive DNA analysis to improve species identification accuracy and to minimise misidentification. Further investigation involving expanded sampling and additional DNA regions is required to elucidate the phylogenetic relationships and distribution of J. ferrea.

KEYWORDS:

• DNA barcoding
• cytochrome oxidase subunit I
• Gastropoda
• histone H3

Acknowledgments

This study was jointly supported by multiple grants. Firstly, the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2020R1I1A2066477 for J. Park; NRF-2022R1C1C1008465 for I. Yang). Additionally, the research was backed by the Korea Institute of Marine Science & Technology (KIMST) with funding from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Two projects from KIMST were instrumental: ‘Development of risk managing technology tackling ocean and fisheries crisis around Korean Peninsula by Kuroshio Current’ (RS-2023-00256330) and ‘Monitoring environmental and ecological changes in dynamic coasts and estuaries of the Korean four major rivers’ (RS-2023-00238486). The auhors would like tp extend their deep thanks to the reviewer for valuable comments and suggestions which contributed significantly to the improvement of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Korea Institute of Marine Science and Technology promotion: [Grant Number RS-2023-00256330]; Korea Institute of Marine Science and Technology promotion: [Grant Number RS-2023-00238486]; National Research Foundation of Korea: [Grant Number NRF-2020R1I1A2066477]; National Research Foundation of Korea: [Grant Number NRF-2022R1C1C1008465].