From microbes to mammals: comprehensive analysis of biodiversity using DNA metabarcoding

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event From microbes to mammals: comprehensive analysis of biodiversity using DNA metabarcoding Mehrdad Hajibabaei1* 1 University of Guelph, Canada Genomic technologies—especially high throughput sequencing (HTS) platforms—provide the capacity to generate vast amounts of genetic data from all types of specimens. DNA metabarcoding utilizes this capacity to derive biodiversity data from the marker genes (e.g. DNA barcodes) embedded in the organisms residing in a bulk environmental sample—from water to soil to sediments. The ability to identify all organisms, from microbes to mammals, from a simple water sample is transformative for scientific and socioeconomic applications. This is reflected in the rapid rise of publications using metabarcoding for biodiversity analysis. These investigations have mainly focused on: 1) a small subset of biodiversity (e.g. invasive species, endangered species); 2) specific assemblages (e.g. ecological bioindicator species); or 3) whole communities (e.g. habitat assessment, beta diversity analysis). These objectives are generally achievable by utilizing small/medium DNA sequencing platforms. However, recently introduced ultra-high-throughput sequencers are capable of further advancing this field by providing comprehensive coverage of all species present in a given sample from a single test. In the face of a global biodiversity crisis, the next phase of ecosystem investigations will need to involve the standardized large-scale application of DNA metabarcoding technologies to generate comprehensive, near real-time biodiversity information. Keywords: Genomics, Biodiversity, metabacroding, environmental DNA (eDNA), Biomonitoirng, Environmental assessement Conference: XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) , Braga, Portugal, 9 Sep - 12 Sep, 2019. Presentation Type: Keynote talk Topic: Keynote lecture Citation: Hajibabaei M (2019). From microbes to mammals: comprehensive analysis of biodiversity using DNA metabarcoding. Front. Mar. Sci. Conference Abstract: XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) . doi: 10.3389/conf.fmars.2019.08.00008 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 15 Sep 2019; Published Online: 27 Sep 2019. * Correspondence: Prof. Mehrdad Hajibabaei, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada, hajibabaei@gmail.com Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Mehrdad Hajibabaei Google Mehrdad Hajibabaei Google Scholar Mehrdad Hajibabaei PubMed Mehrdad Hajibabaei Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.