Molecular Survey of Mitochondrial Genes in Different Populations of the Black Fat-Tailed Scorpion, Androctonus crassicauda

Mohammad Bagher  Ghavami; Zohreh Alibabaei; Fatemeh Ghavami

doi:10.18502/jad.v16i2.11799

Mohammad Bagher Ghavami Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran
Zohreh Alibabaei Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran
Fatemeh Ghavami Department of Electronics, Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/jad.v16i2.11799

Keywords: Androctonus crassicauda; 16S; ND1; COI; Mitochondrial genotypes

Abstract

Background: Androctonus crassicauda is the most medically relevant scorpion and understanding its genetic forms is essential for improvement of anti-venom sera, and risk management of scorpionism. Present study was designed to identify the variations of mitochondrial genes in different populations of A. crassicauda.

Methods: Adults of A. crassicauda were collected from Zanjan Province during 2016–2017. Genomic DNA of samples was extracted and fragments of mitochondrial 16S, COI and ND1 genes were amplified and some of the amplicons were sequenced. Haplotype of samples were identified by multiple alignment of sequences, then phylogenetic trees of haplotypes were constructed.

Results: Fragments of 352bp, 618bp and 680bp were amplified from 16S, COI and ND1 genes respectively. Nucleotide sequence in COI fragments was conserved, however, five haplotypes with some specific polymorphic sites were detected in 16S and ND1 fragments. Haplotype I was dominant and found in all areas. Other haplotypes were rare and limited to specific regions. Analysis of the phylogenetic trees inferred from 16S and COI genes, confirmed a strong positive correlation between geographic and genetic distance.

Conclusion: Mitochondrial COI, 16S and ND1 genes were detected suitable for identifying the population structure. Five genotypes were found using 16S and ND1 genes. To prepare and improve the anti-venoms quality, additional studies are necessary to identify the toxin electrophoretic profile and geographical/ecological niche models of these genotypes in future.