A species-specific primer pair for distinguishing between Paramisgurnus dabryanus and Misgurnus anguillicaudatus based on mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms.

Paramisgurnus dabryanus and Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (family Cobitidae) are loaches with high morphological similarity. In this study, we designed primers to distinguish between Paramisgurnus dabryanus and Misgurnus anguillicaudatus based on the length differences in the mitochondrial COXII to tRNA(Lys) gene region. Samples of P. dabryanus and M. anguillicaudatus from different geographical locations were collected and amplified to verify primer specificity. The results of electrophoresis revealed the successful amplification of all P. dabryanus and M. anguillicaudatus DNA samples, which had distinct, specific-specific sizes (214 bp for P. dabryanus and 285 bp for M. anguillicaudatus). In conclusion, the new primers provide fast, reliable, and accurate identification between P. dabryanus and M. anguillicaudatus.