Population structure of the Piangua mollusk (Anadara tuberculosa): a tool to design conservation strategies

Abstract

Piangua, Anadara tuberculosa, is a mollusk of the bivalve family. In Colombia, this mollusk has great importance in the economy of the population living on the Pacific Coast, a region with critical social indicators. In the last years, the demand and the exploitation of this mollusk have increased, putting the species at risk up to the point that nowadays, it is considered endangered. Therefore, knowing the organism's genetic information is essential to design conservation strategies. This research aim is to identify the genetic diversity and the population structure of the mollusk in two localities on the Pacific Coast of Colombia. For this, a genotyping analysis was performed with 89 samples using the DArT technology, and a raw genome was used as a reference, which was ensembled using Hifi reads. No geographical population structure was found between the two localities. However, there is a reduction in genetic diversity due to the loss of heterozygotes, which may be caused by the high level of inbreeding within localities. This is the first study in Colombia that gives information on the genetics of the piangua that can lay the foundations for conservation strategies.