Abstract
ObjectiveTermites are well known for being the most destructive pests of household commodities as well as agricultural crops around the globe. The termite fauna (Isoptera) has about 2650 described species worldwide. Several species are the pests of crops and cause damage to wood structures. MethodsIn the present study, 29 specimens of termites collected from different localities of the Riyadh region were identified using mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequence. COI gene was PCR amplified using universal primers (LCO 1490 and HCO 2198). MEGA7 software was used for phylogenetic tree construction which showed that all 29 specimens grouped together in a single clade indicated close relatedness of all specimens. ResultsAll the obtained sequences were submitted into Genbank database and accession numbers were obtained. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all specimens of present research grouped together into a single monophyletic clade, were confirmed to be highly closely related to one another, and proved to be members of the same species. Pairwise nucleotide sequence divergence analysis showed that there was less divergence among all specimens ranging from 0% to 7.8%. Sequence analysis revealed the confirmed precise identification of 29 samples of Anacanthotermes ochraceus with COI barcode analysis. ConclusionsMolecular data analysis has confirmed morphological identification of all 29 studied samples of A. ochraceus. However, this technology offers strong support for identification of cryptic species which are difficult to identify on the basis of morphological features. Further studies of complete mitogenome can be helpful for accurate identification of termites at species level.
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