Application of the ITS secondary structure in the identification of Nostoc species

Abstract

The study of the species composition of Nostocales cyanobacteria in samples taken from different steppe ecosystems allowed us to analyze for the first time the diversity of the genus Nostoc in the Ukrainian steppe using molecular genetic methods. In the analysis, special attention was paid to the study of the predicted secondary structure of the ITS Box-B and V3 loops. During the analysis, it was shown that a number of isolated Nostoc strains, in addition to morphological ones, have significant genetic differences, which will allow us to propose new species for science based on further research.