<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Nowadays, illegal trafficking and smuggling of animals are among the greatest threats to many avian species. Most commonly smuggled birds belong to parrots, song birds, raptor species and owls. All of these species are protected by national and international legislations. In order to prevent and reduce wildlife trafficking, DNA methods have become an important forensic tool in species and sex identification. In this study, CHD1R/CHD1F primer pair was used to amplify a part of the CHD1 gene from 65 birds that belong to 43 species. For 36 species this is the first time that the length of CHD1 amplicons was measured for the purpose of species determination. The results were visualized using capillary electrophoresis and enabled simultaneous determination of sex and species. Based on the number of amplicons (two in females, one in males) sex was successfully determined in all species, even in cases where gel electrophoresis failed to give results. Moreover, the species was successfully determined in most bird species based on the species-specific sizes of CHD1 amplicon. The method used in this study is of great importance for veterinary forensic medicine and the prevention of wildlife smuggling. Still, further work is necessary to confirm the effectiveness of the method in all bird species.</p>
</abstract>

Nowadays, illegal trafficking and smuggling of animals are among the greatest threats to many avian species. Most commonly smuggled birds belong to parrots, song birds, raptor species and owls. All of these species are protected by national and international legislations. In order to prevent and reduce wildlife trafficking, DNA methods have become an important forensic tool in species and sex identification. In this study, CHD1R/CHD1F primer pair was used to amplify a part of the CHD1 gene from 65 birds that belong to 43 species. For 36 species this is the first time that the length of CHD1 amplicons was measured for the purpose of species determination. The results were visualized using capillary electrophoresis and enabled simultaneous determination of sex and species. Based on the number of amplicons (two in females, one in males) sex was successfully determined in all species, even in cases where gel electrophoresis failed to give results. Moreover, the species was successfully determined in most bird species based on the species-specific sizes of CHD1 amplicon. The method used in this study is of great importance for veterinary forensic medicine and the prevention of wildlife smuggling. Still, further work is necessary to confirm the effectiveness of the method in all bird species.

Potential of Inter- and Intra-Species Variability of CHD1 Gene in Birds as a Forensic Tool

Department of Forensic Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine

Department of Equine, Small Animal, Poultry and Wild Animal Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine

Department of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine

Acta Veterinaria

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Nowadays, illegal trafficking and smuggling of animals are among the greatest threats to many avian species. Most commonly smuggled birds belong to parrots,...

Potential of Inter- and Intra-Species Variability of CHD1 Gene in Birds as a Forensic Tool

Published Online: Jul 12, 2021

Page range: 147 - 157

Received: Apr 01, 2021

Accepted: Jun 14, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/acve-2021-0013

Keywords
birds, capillary electrophoresis, CHD1 gene, species determination, sex determination, wildlife trafficking

© 2021 Dajana Davitkov et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Potential of Inter- and Intra-Species Variability of CHD1 Gene in Birds as a Forensic Tool

Published Online: Jul 12, 2021

Page range: 147 - 157

Received: Apr 01, 2021

Accepted: Jun 14, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/acve-2021-0013

Keywordsbirds, capillary electrophoresis, CHD1 gene, species determination, sex determination, wildlife trafficking

© 2021 Dajana Davitkov et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Keywords
birds, capillary electrophoresis, CHD1 gene, species determination, sex determination, wildlife trafficking