Evaluation of plastid and nuclear DNA markers in barcoding of Aloe saudiarabica, KSA.

There is great plant diversity in Saudi Arabia. The Asphodelaceae family is within this great diversity, especially the rare species such as the plant, Aloe saudiarabica. Such plants must be preserved in their natural ranges, hence, the need to document them. Genetic markers have become the approved and widely used method for documenting rare plants. The current study deals with the use of three genetic markers to document A. saudiarabica for the first time. The used genetic markers were Maturase-K (matK), Ribulose-bisphosphate-carboxylase (rbcL), and Internal-transcribed-spacer (ITS). The study found that the primers used for the rbcL gene were not effective in achieving identification. Sequencing of the matK and ITS were achieved successfully. The sequences were determined for both markers using two pairs of primers and deposited in the NCBI databases (GenBank). These markers were effective in identifying A. saudiarabica and determining its evolutionary relationship with other Aloe species in various databases. The study showed that A. vera is high similar (>99%) to the other species. In conclusion, the study showed the likelihood of the different genetic markers to document A. saudiarabica, especially the currently investigated matK and ITS.

Molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis of Aloe shadensis from Saudi Arabia based on matK, rbcL and ITS DNA barcode sequence.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia thrives with great plant diversity, including rare plants of the family Asphodelaceae that have multiple benefits and are still being studied. Aloe shadensis is one of these plants that must be preserved and documented in its natural environment. The most appropriate molecular approach currently approved for documentation is the sequencing of some genomic markers. The current study is the first to use genomic markers to record this rare plant. In this study, the plastid genes matK (Maturase K), rbcL (Ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase large subunit), and the nuclear region ITS (Internal transcribed spacer) were used to reveal their efficiency in identifying the plant under study. This study is the first to deal with this plant and document it using these genetic markers. The study showed a promising result concerning identifying the sequence of the matK gene and ITS region, while the rbcL gene did not give a good indicator through the used primers. The obtained sequences of the matK gene and the ITS region were determined through two different sets of primers in each case then deposited in GenBank. The evolutionary relatedness of Aloe shadensis was established with the different species of Aloe. The study showed that the closest species is Aloe vera with a similarity of more than 99 %. The study concludes with the possibility of using these genes to correctly identify, distinguish and document the species of Aloe shadensis.