MOLECULAR DIFFERENTIATION BETWEEN NATIVE AND VIETNAM ORIGINATED STRIPED SNAKEHEADS (CHANNA STRIATA) IN BANGLADESH USING MITOCHONDRIAL CYTOCHROME B GENE

The freshwater striped snakehead, Channa striata, is widely distributed in several Asian countries such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh. The present study investigated various C. striata populations sequentially by the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Native populations (136) were collected from nine geographically different locations and the Vietnamese populations (50) from two other fish farms in Bangladesh. The partial sequence of Cyt b (836bp) was analyzed, and the results have identified five haplotypes from nine natives and a single haplotype from two Vietnamese populations. This demonstrated that Vietnam-originated populations in Bangladesh had the same origin. In contrast, the pairwise highest Fst value observed between Native and Vietnamese populations shows a substantial genetic variation between them. The phylogenetic tree separated both the native and exotic populations, whereas five native haplotypes formed a cluster with the Indian C. striata. In contrast, the Vietnam haplotype formed a clade with the East Asian C. striata suggesting possible cryptic genetic diversity. Finally, the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene can also be used to identify native and Vietnam-originated C. striata strain available in Bangladesh, beneficial to broodstock development and conservation issues. Besides, a detailed morphological study of Vietnam-originated C. striata needs to be required to identify the exact morphotype available in Bangladesh.