*DNA to Curb Illegal Fishing* Scientist By Cristina Luiggi | Posted May 24, 2012
<http://the-scientist.com/2012/05/24/dna-to-nab-illegal-fishers/> *A new SNP assay can determine the geographical origin of commonly overexploited fish species.* A new genetic assay will soon help the European fish industry determine the geographical origin of fish that are stocking the supermarkets. Developed by researchers associated with FishPopTrace, an international consortium that monitors the illegal fish trade, the assay can distinguish between different populations of cod, hake, herring, and sole by scanning for single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) signatures unique to groups of fish. In a trial of the assay, published earlier this week in *Nature Communications<http://www.nature.com/ncomms/journal/v3/n5/full/ncomms1845.html> * (see below), researchers were able to distinguish between legal and protected populations of fish with 93 to 100 percent accuracy. “This is a tremendous breakthrough,” Kimberly Warner, a senior scientist at the international advocacy group Oceana, told *Science*NOW<http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/05/illegal-fish-forensic-dna/> (see below). “These are critical tools in our fight against illegal fishing and mislabeling and enable us to put some teeth into our fisheries laws and eco-certifications.” The United Kingdom will be employing the new tool in the near future in a pilot study designed to vet the authenticity of fish origin labels. -------------------------------------- *Gene-associated markers provide tools for tackling illegal fishing and false eco-certification* NATURE COMMUNICATIONS Einar E. Nielsen, Alessia Cariani, Eoin Mac Aoidh, Gregory E. Maes, Ilaria Milano, Rob Ogden, Martin Taylor, Jakob Hemmer-Hansen, Massimiliano Babbucci, Luca Bargelloni, Dorte Bekkevold, Eveline Diopere, Leonie Grenfell, Sarah Helyar, Morten T. Limborg, Jann T. Martinsohn, Ross McEwing, Frank Panitz, Tomaso Patarnello, Fausto Tinti et al. *Abstract* Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing has had a major role in the overexploitation of global fish populations. In response, international regulations have been imposed and many fisheries have been 'eco-certified' by consumer organizations, but methods for independent control of catch certificates and eco-labels are urgently needed. Here we show that, by using gene-associated single nucleotide polymorphisms, individual marine fish can be assigned back to population of origin with unprecedented high levels of precision. By applying high differentiation single nucleotide polymorphism assays, in four commercial marine fish, on a pan-European scale, we find 93–100% of individuals could be correctly assigned to origin in policy-driven case studies. We show how case-targeted single nucleotide polymorphism assays can be created and forensically validated, using a centrally maintained and publicly available database. Our results demonstrate how application of gene-associated markers will likely revolutionize origin assignment and become highly valuable tools for fighting illegal fishing and mislabelling worldwide. Full text at, <http://www.nature.com/ncomms/journal/v3/n5/full/ncomms1845.html> -------------------------------------------- *Better Fish Forensics Will Flag Illegal Catches* ScienceNow, May 23, 2012 By Rachel Nuwer, ScienceNOW It’s no wonder that fish stocks around the world are plummeting. Up to 25 percent of the global catch comes from illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. Now, science has stepped in to offer a new method to identify contraband fish. A €4 million pan-European project, launched in 2008 and called FishPopTrace, has devised a much-anticipated way to differentiate marine populations of the same species with up to 100 percent accuracy. Full text, <http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/05/illegal-fish-forensic-dna/> ----------------------------- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Filipino Librarians" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/filipinolibrarians?hl=en.
