Groupers are coral fish species of prime ecological and economic significance. The interactions among them and other coral reefs organisms aid the healthiness and species balance in this fundamental marine niches. Also, groupers are among the top priced fisheries species. The Egyptian habitats of the Red Sea are lacking genetic studies that assess species diversity for the final goal of conservation and fisheries management. Moreover, morphological similarities among these organisms sometimes hinder a proper species identification. Hence, more accurate groupers authentication methods are crucially required. Sixteen grouper species belonging to the genera Epinephelus, Anyperodon, Cephaolopholes, Aethaloperca, Variola, and Plectropomus, present in the Red Sea in Egypt, were investigated for species authentication through mitochondrial DNA variations, applying cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and 12srRNA genes sequencing. GenBank comparisons, phylogenetic analyses and comparisons of pairwise distances were carried out. All these analyses aimed to species authentication and identifying their relations at the international scale. The results exhibited >98% identity with E. fasciatus, A. rogaa, C. oligosticta, E. areolatus, V. louti, P. areolatus, E. malabaricus, C. sexmaculata, E. summana, E. chlorostigma, E. polyphekadion, C. miniataus, A. leucogrammicus, E. tauvina, C. argus, C. hemistiktos. Pairwise distances showed a clear increase upon raising comparison level from among species to among-genera. Combined 12srRNA and COI genes sequencing resulted in an accurate tool for Egyptian Red Sea grouper species unambiguous discrimination. This can provide vital aid to the active efforts for these species conservation and fisheries management in Egypt and the world.
Keywords: 12srRNA; COI; DNA barcoding; Phylogeny; Red Sea; Serrandiae.
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