Comparison of genetic diversity and growth traits among Fangzheng silver crucian carp (Carassius auratus gibelio) gynogenetic clones

The silver crucian carp (Carassius auratus gibelio), a gynogenetic teleost, is a promising model for the study of evolutionary genetics in vertebrates. We identified ten gynogenetic clones (FZ-I~FZ-X) from triploid silver crucian carp, collected from Fangzheng County in Heilongjiang Province, China, using microsatellite markers. The genetic diversity of these gynogenetic clones was analyzed using 52 microsatellite markers. A total of 413 alleles were detected and the length of fragments ranged from 96 to 340 bp. The number of alleles per locus varied from 2~19 (mean=7.9423). The observed heterozygosity at polymorphic loci ranged from 0.10~1.00 (mean=0.80). The average allele count per gynogenetic clone ranged from 1.9423~2.1923. The ratio of the polymorphic locus was from 71.15% (VII) to 84.61% (IX) per clone. The number of genotypes ranged from 2~10 per locus. Ten genotypes were observed by analyzing each of 14 microsatellites. As a result, each gynogenetic clone could be accurately identified. In addition, the growth traits, including body weight, length, and height, among five gynogenetic clones were compared. There was a significant difference among gynogenetic clones. Clone FZ-V exhibited the best growth traits, with the largest body weight (53.17±5.24 g), length (11.38±0.37 cm) and height (4.69±0.18 cm). Our results provide basic data for the identification of silver crucian carp gynogenetic clones and can be used as a guide genetic breeding programs.