In order to analyze the taxonomic relationship of grouper species in genus Epinephelus in China at molecular level and clarify the taxonomic controversy,the molecular phylogenetic relationship was com-prehensively analyzed.in 91 samples of 37 species collected in aquatic product markets,fishing ports and wharves in coastal provinces,cities or regions such as Guangdong,Fujian,Hainan,Zhejiang,Hong Kong,and even Australia from 2019 to 2021 based on NADH dehydrogenase subunit I(ND1)gene.The result showed that the consensus ND1 gene sequences were determined to be 645 bp,with genetic distance from 0.0062 to 0.2636,and the average value of 0.1547 among species.The molecular phylogenetic trees were constructed using Cephalopholis species as outgroup,and 37 species of groupers were divided into two parallel clades Epinephelus in the tree,most species relationships with clear and high noded supports.Certain grouper pairs:E.morrhua/E.radiatus,E.maculatus/E.bilobatus,and E.coeruleopunctatus/E.ongus,with taxonomic controversies,were tightly clustered together,but the branch lengths clearly dis-tinguished each pair of groupers.There was larger than the value 2％of genetic distances in ND1 gene in each pair of groupers,indicating that groupers in each pair were distinct species.Within the pair of group-ers E.flavocaeruleus and E.cyanopodus,the ND1 genetic distance between them was 0.0062,and their branch lengths were extremely short and hard to be distinguished,revealing that they might be the same species in molecular level.The findings indicated that the molecular phylogenetic relationship among 37 species in genus Epinephulus was developed and that the synonymous controversies of certain species with similar morphological characteristics are clarified,which provides the molecular evidences for the classifi-cation of species in genus Epinephulus.
维普
万方数据