DNA-Barcoding of Some Medicinal Plant Species in Saudi Arabia Using rbcL and matK Genes

Abstract

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), thousands of plants are considered to have therapeutic value. The ambiguous use of identification mainly morphological characteristics of many plants has resulted in the adulteration and displacement of plant products which undermine their therapeutic value and weak documentation of plant resources. The aims of this study were therefore to evaluate genetic variability and explore the phylogeographic architecture for Saudi medicinal plant samples using rbcL and matK genes as barcodes for genomic identification. The matK and rbcL sequences collected for these samples were used as key markers for examining the relationship between Saudi medicinal plant species based on genetic diversity. During our study we were successful in identifying and documenting 4 different species (Foeniculum vulgare, Nitraria retusa, Dodonaea viscosa, and Rumex nervosus) located in Saudi Arabia using DNA barcoding technique. A total number of 8 sequences were obtained with a total sequence length of 6176 bp, where it ranged from 617 bp to 878 bp with an average length of 772 bp. The total number of rbcL sequences length is 2801 bp, where it ranges from 617 bp to 807 bp with an average length of 700.2 bp. Out of the 4 plant samples used, only three samples were identified correctly on the species level with an identity percentage higher than 95% using rbcL gene. Additionally, 4 matK sequences have been retrieved belong to 4 species. The total number of matK sequences length is 3375 bp, where it ranges from 819 bp to 878 bp with an average length of 843.8 bp. Out of the 4 plant samples used, only two samples were identified correctly on the species level with an identity percentage higher than 98% using matK gene. Both rbcL and matK have been able to identify most of our collected plant samples by genus, and some by species. Using only one DNA-barcoding technique was not reliable for plant identification, where matK and rbcL must be used as a dual DNA-barcoding procedure.

Morpho-anatomical characterization and DNA barcoding of Artemesia vulgaris L.

“…The ideal locus for DNA barcoding of plants remains debatable since some loci are efficient for some taxonomic groups and the species discrimination of these genes varies among plant species. Although the result of the matK gene phylogenetic tree is not sufficiently accurate to differentiate plants at species level, the rbcL gene-based data would help with this deficiency, this is in accordance with the study by Dong et al (2012) that one DNA barcoding marker is not enough to obtain sufficiently accurate and specific identification results (Dong et al, 2012), so matK and rbcL must be used as dual DNA barcoding procedures (Alasmari, 2020).…”

“…Ho et al (2021) also reported that the discriminating abilities of the matK and rbcL genes in jewel orchid plants showed a different level of efficiency, the rbcL gene was considered to have better discriminating power than the matK gene alone or the rbcL+matK gene combination. According to Alasmari (2020) the separability of the matK gene to differentiate between species is not always reliable, because in their study, only 2 samples of the 4 sequences tested could be identified correctly at the species level. The ideal locus for DNA barcoding of plants remains debatable since some loci are efficient for some taxonomic groups and the species discrimination of these genes varies among plant species.…”

DNA Barcoding of Selected Medicinal Plant Species from Jordan Using matK, rbcL, and rpoC1 Genes

“…DNA barcoding strategies were recruited successfully for different applications in the Middle East, including both plants and animal subjects [26][27][28]. Recently, selected medicinal plant species in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were barcoded [29,30]. Moreover, an effective barcode tool was developed to discriminate between different wheat species in Egypt [18].…”

Genetic Diversity and Relationships among Indian Jujube (Ziziphus mauritiana Lamk.) Cultivars Using Morphometric Characteristics, matK Barcoding, and ISSR Markers

“…Two chloroplast genes are commonly used for the analysis; the matK and rbcL are the best gene loci for analyzing relationships in plants [21]. The locus of rbcL can be recognized at the genus and family levels, while matK is the variable portion of the coding for species confirmation [22][23][24]. They have been proposed as the primary plant barcode regions by the committee Barcode of Life (CBOL) [25] consortium [26].…”