Recognition and characterization of freshwater Cnidaria using environmental DNA (eDNA)

• Grant number: 24/18310-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: February 01, 2025
• End date: March 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Applied Zoology
• Principal Investigator: Sérgio Nascimento Stampar
• Grantee: Luana Maria Deoclécio da Silva
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências (FC). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Bauru. Bauru , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 22/16193-1 - Biology, ecology and systematics of Sea-anemones lato sensu (Anthozoa, Actiniaria and Ceriantharia) in Atlantic Ocean, AP.BTA.R

Abstract

The study of the diversity of freshwater cnidarians (Hydrozoa) in Brazil is still incipient. There is a considerable knowledge gap about the presence and distribution of these organisms, particularly in terms of solid molecular evidence. In the last years, the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) through the metabarcoding approach has emerged as a promising tool for characterize and monitor biological communities, especially in aquatic environments. However, until now, there are no reports about the use of this methodology to assess freshwater hydrozoans. Therefore, the main objective of this project is to identify and characterize the composition of the freshwater Cnidaria in Brazil, via eDNA metabarcoding associated with next-generation sequencing (NGS). For this purpose, water samples will be collected in the twelve Hydrographic Regions of Brazil and will be sent to the laboratory to be filtered. The DNA present in the membrane filters will be extracted and partial sequences of the mitochondrial gene COI (cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1) will be amplified by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) using a set of universal primers for invertebrates. The amplicons will be sent to a private service for the library preparation and sequencing on the Illumina Miseq platform. Bioinformatics analysis and the construction of phylogenetic trees will be conducted using the Geneious Prime software. The results of this work should be contribute to a better understanding of the diversity of freshwater hydrozoans in Brazil, as well as increasing the composition of genetic and occurrence data on public platforms.